It doesn't get much attention as a green vehicle, but the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck line is the best-selling vehicle line at General Motors.
Now there's a zero-emission version, and it's available today.
That means that you can acquire one even before this spring's launch of the all-new models with more efficient V-6 and V-8 gasoline engines.
There's a slight catch, of course.
As you might expect, this one is considerably lighter--and dimensionally more compact--than the versions fitted with gasoline engines.
Surprisingly, its design is flatter and blockier than the carefully smoothed lines of the new gasoline trucks coming in a few months.
And it carries considerably less cargo than the less fuel-efficient gasoline models, whose heaviest versions are likely to come with load ratings exceeding 10,000 pounds.
(Load capacity is a huge mark of macho status in the full-size pickup truck world--even though you compare rated capacities among makers at your peril.)
You might think that a zero-emission Silverado pickup truck would take a similar approach to VIA Motors, which fits a battery pack and electric motor in converted GM pickups to permit all-electric running.
But in fact the emissions-free 2014 Silverado--which, today, is offered exclusively online by a special GM division--has no batteries or electric motors.
Rather than describe the technological details, we defer to the maker for its full description.
Check out GM's innovative and unexpected approach to zero-emission truck design:
2014 Chevrolet Silverado zero-emission vehicle
We're certainly impressed.
Are you?
Leave us your thoughts in the Comments below.
Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day!
[hat tip: Jason Lancaster]
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