Chery StockmanThe Chery Stockman has two tanks, a high-voltage battery, four-wheel drive, and plenty of towing capacity.A plug-in hybrid vehicle is already plenty complicated with a gas engine.Using a diesel engine would complicate things even more, but Chery thinks it can crack the code.The Chery Stockman is the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid pickup truck, and it promises ultra-low fuel consumption, 62 miles of electric range, and good towing capacity.A little over a decade ago, Volvo had the bright idea to make a diesel plug-in hybrid. On paper, everything looked great: the low fuel consumption of a diesel paired with the benefits of all-electric cruising around town. In practice, though, running a diesel engine for short bursts doesn't do it any good, so Volvo scrapped the oil-burning PHEV after a few short years to focus on gas alternatives. Now, though, Volvo's idea from the early 2010s is making a comeback in the form of the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid pickup truck. It's a solution that, in theory, could help boost the electrification rate of America's gas-guzzling pickup truck market. Mercedes-Benz is doing diesel PHEVs in Europe, so clearly there's still some life left in this solution.As is the case with a lot of news about electrified cars nowadays, this one comes from China, but it's not for China. The Chery Stockman, the mid-size pickup that earns the "first of its kind" badge, was developed specifically for the Australian market, where some road trips seem like they would never end, towing is a big part of daily driving, and low fuel consumption is increasingly important due to rising prices at the pump.It's a highly competitive market where 20% of all new car sales are pickups, so the stakes are very high, but the Chinese automaker reckons it has a chance. And to its credit, the spec sheet looks very promising.The Stockman has a proper four-wheel drive system with a solid rear axle, three locking differentials, a low-range transfer box, and a maximum towing capacity of 7,716 pounds (3,500 kilograms). That's on par with some of the best competitors, but where the Stockman ups the ante is in the fuel consumption department.Powered by a 2.5-liter turbo-diesel lump and an electric motor of some sort, Chery's PHEV pickup promises an outstanding efficiency of 117.6 mpg (2 l/100 km), a combined system output of 469 horsepower, and 590 pound-feet (800 Newton-meters) of torque. Of course, there's an asterisk in there, and that's because the fantastic fuel efficiency only happens if the 34-kilowatt-hour battery is fully charged, in which case the Stockman can drive up to 62 miles (100 kilometers) on electricity alone, on the NEDC cycle.Chery StockmanThat's roughly 45 miles (73 km) on the EPA cycle, which isn't great, but even with the advertised NEDC figure, things aren't looking great, with a calculated average efficiency of 1.82 miles/kilowatt-hour (34 kWh/100 km).Chery didn't reveal how the electric motor is integrated into the powertrain, but considering the traditional 4WD layout, it's likely that the e-motor is sandwiched between the diesel engine and automatic transmission, resulting in rather high transmission losses.On the comfort front, Chery is offering heated and ventilated front seats, leather upholstery, a dual-zone climate control system, a premium sound system, two large screens, and a generously sized color head-up display. Vehicle-to-load (V2L) is also part of the pack, with a pair of household sockets in the bed offering energy straight from the high-voltage pack.Chery StockmanThe Stockman is expected to debut in Australia soon, where it will go up against household names like the Toyota Hilux, Ford Ranger, and Mitsubishi Triton (L200 in other markets). That's the same crowd where the BYD Shark 6, a Chinese gas plug-in hybrid, is trying to make a name for itself.It's a solid proposition, but in the end it comes down to the price and the potential reliability issues of such a complicated setup. Like any modern diesel truck, it uses diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) to keep emissions low, but that whole system comes with pumps and lines that can get clogged over time, especially if the engine doesn't start up for weeks on end.More Electrified Pickup TrucksCATL's New Batteries Target American Pickups. They Could Be Made In The U.S.Toyota's Hydrogen Pickup Is Coming In 2028 With 248-Mile RangeTelo Says Its Tiny EV Truck Can Tow More Than A Base Ford F-150Slate's Cheap EV Pickup Is Surprisingly Easy To Make Expensive