The rough and tough Ram 1500 PHEV features a two-mode hybrid transmission, a liquid-cooled 12.9-kWh lithium-ion battery pack, and the ability to generate AC power at 120 or 240 volts.

Bubba and Tex would love this big, bad Ram pickup truck, with its 4×4 transmission and 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 engine – as long as they don’t find out that it’s also a plug-in hybrid. The rough and tough Ram 1500 PHEV features a two-mode hybrid transmission, a liquid-cooled 12.9-kWh lithium-ion battery pack, and the ability to generate AC power at 120 or 240 volts.

Unfortunately, Bubba and Tex won’t be getting one any time soon. The powerful plug-in pickup is part of a test fleet of 140 vehicles that Chrysler built using a $48 million grant from the US Department of Energy. The Rams will spend three years being evaluated by eight fleet operators, located in areas of extreme temperatures around the country.

Once the government money is gone, however, Chrysler claims it has no plans to put this or any other hybrid truck into production. In March, the company canceled plans to sell a hybrid version of the Ram. In February, Ram CEO Fred Diaz told PluginCars.com, “Truckers don’t want to buy hybrids.” Meanwhile, GM seems to have been talking to different truckers, as it features hybrid versions of the Silverado and Sierra pickups in its 2012 lineup.

Image: Chrylser