A new company called Slate Auto — backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, among others — just rolled out its first vehicle, a modular truck/SUV so basic it doesn’t come with paint, heated seats, power windows, speakers, aluminum wheels, or even an infotainment screen. And yet, at around $27,000, it’s not exactly cheap. That’s because it’s fully electric, which in my opinion is the wrong powertrain choice for a high-volume “people’s car,” at least right now. Here’s why.
I think going fully electric with a budget-minded vehicle just isn’t the move right now if the goal is super-high volume.
Slate showed me around its headquarters earlier this month, pointing out the fascinating new vehicle it had engineered — a “back to basics” machine missing many of the features most Americans generally expect in a modern car. The whole concept is refreshing given the heavy “trimflation” and elevated MSRPs of modern cars, and as Slate’s rep showed me how spartan its truck was, I couldn’t help but become more and more excited. I have for years believed that modern vehicles have become far too expensive and far too jam-packed with features that the layperson doesn’t need to get to and from work.
And yet, when the Slate rep told me the truck’s price, I couldn’t help but be disappointed.
The Content Per Dollar Ratio Doesn’t Seem Competitive (Depending On Rebate/Tariffs)
Mid-20Ks. Roughly the price of a Subaru Crosstrek.
To be sure, EV incentives would bring the Slate’s price down below $20,000, which is cheap for any new car, but given the precarious nature of the $7,500 new clean-vehicle incentive, it’s possible this new Slate will cost consumers over $27 big ones when it launches in late 2026. And $27+ grand for a car with no paint, no infotainment system, and no radio is just not competitive at all.
Have you seen how much car you get when you buy a $21,895 Chevy Trax or $21,885 Kia Soul? Here’s the Slate’s interior:
And here’s the Trax’s and Soul’s:
Here’s how the Slate comes from the factory, paintless and with only two doors:
And here’s the Trax and the Soul — colorful and door-rich:
Right about now, you’re probably looking at the pictures above thinking: “OK, so those are dirt cheap cars that do have more creature comforts than the Slate, but even if I think the Soul is fun and the Trax is handsome, The Slate looks so much cooler!”
And I agree! But another SUV with plenty off-road-ish cool-factor is the Subaru Crosstrek, which starts at a reasonable $27,230 — right around what the Slate costs sans rebate. And not only does it have four doors, but it comes with standard all-wheel drive, while the Slate is rear-drive only. Plus, look at everything else it gets in the interior:
We also have to talk about the other small pickup truck built by an American company: The Ford Maverick. Though the 2024 model cost about the same as the Slate, the 2025 model is now up to $29,285 for the hybrid and $29,860 for the turbo four.
That’s a bit more change, though the Maverick is clearly at least five grand more car, with the turbo four-cylinder coming with an eight-speed automatic that will help Iget the truck to 60 mph in under 6.5 seconds compared to the Slate’s 8 seconds (which is about the same as the 38 MPG hybrid Maverick’s 0-60). But it’s not the acceleration that matters, it’s the standard four doors (which is huge to U.S. consumers) and other standard content.
The Maverick looks fantastic, it’s got power windows and an infotainment system, plus it’s got double the towing capacity and a little more payload capacity than the Slate, and all still under 30 big-ones.
So it’s pretty clear that, especially if that EV rebate goes away and this slate costs $27,000 or something in between, the consumer is getting way, way less content per dollar when compared with other budget cars out there.
That said, some of the cars mentioned above — the Trax, Soul and Maverick — are built in other countries, and given the threat of heavy tariffs on imported cars, it’s possible that these vehicles could see a price hike that would make them pricer than the America-built Slate. The Crosstrek, though, is built in the U.S.
But especially if the tariffs end up being just a threat, and deletion of the EV rebate becomes more than a threat, then reality is that, given all the cost cutting, the Slate won’t really be a cheap car, it’ll just be a cheap EV. And whether someone at the bottom of the new-car market is willing to give up standard features and pay more money just to have an EV, I’m not so sure, especially given the challenges associated with EV still to this day. Let’s get into that.
A 150-Mile-Range EV Isn’t Really The Right ‘People’s Car’ For America
When Slate set out to build this truck, the goal was to create a true People’s Car — something budget-friendly for the masses. The vision was a “back to basics, only the essentials truck, and the narrative did outline low-cost solutions for suspensions and minimal-size battery that gets 150 miles of range,” said Eric Keipper, head of engineering at Slate.
He told me the goal was a “Minimal size battery that allows us to optimize for the customer’s commuting needs.” As for a gasoline motor, he said that was “not a consideration,” going on to say: “Literally the first drawing that I put on the whiteboard was how we package the battery.”
“If you’re gonna bring a new car to market, it’s gonna be a BEV,” he told me, saying it’s the right solution given where the industry is going and all the improvements in charging infrastructure.
I respectfully disagree.
I think there are a few problems with choosing an EV as a people’s car in 2025. The first has to do with the political climate and the very possible removal of EV rebates, which will only amplify the cost issue: even a “cheap” EV is expensive when compared to a similarly equipped gas car (or even a hybrid, in some cases).
Second, 150 miles isn’t enough range.
I realize that most commutes are much shorter, but that simply does not matter to many consumers. Car purchases are not rational, and proof of that requires looking no further than the current crop of EVs on the road; think about how many people buy 300+ mile Teslas and Rivians and Hyundais — they’re all probably spending over $10,000 extra and adding over 1,000 pounds of weight to their car just to have some extra range they rarely need.
Look at the prices of 2019-2021 BMW i3 Rexes versus BMW i3 BEVs — both of them offer about 150 miles of range, and most people with the range extender pretty much never use it (me included). And yet range extender-equipped i3s are far more valuable than otherwise equivalent fully electric i3s. People want a backup. Whether that’s in the form of a gas generator or excess battery capacity, I truly think the average person — especially if they live in a cold climate, where 150 miles might actually be 120 — sees a 150-mile BEV as a second car, not an only car.
And when we’re talking about the bottom of the consumer market, the idea that budget-oriented folks are going to buy two cars, with the second helping fill in their brand new EV’s practicality gaps, is a bit silly.
Beyond that is the fact that many people shopping at the bottom of the market do not have a single-family home in which to charge their car. Apartment and condo-dwellers often have to park outside or in a poorly-equipped parking garage. For them, a 150-mile EV is problematic, as it likely means having to charge multiple times a week at a public charger.
And that’s its own issue: charging infrastructure and utility rates aren’t ideal. I live in LA, California, where EV charging infrastructure is better than that of 99% of the United States. And yet, it can still be a big pain in the arse. Of course, Slate will use the NACS plug that presumably works with Tesla Superchargers, so finding a charger shouldn’t be too bad, but the cost thing is still a concern.
Juice from public fast-chargers — which many people living in apartments would have to rely on — can often be more expensive than gasoline on a per-mile basis. I found that out when driving the Rivian R1S to Las Vegas; at one charger, I paid 66 cents per kWh! But even at a more reasonable 40 cents per kWh, if this Slate manages a good 3.4 mi/kWh on the freeway; that’s $4 to go 34 miles. Given current gas prices in California, that’d cost about the same as gasoline for a 41 MPG gas vehicle. You’d spend less money filling up a new 56 MPG Prius, which you can get in the upper $20K range (of course EVs are easier to maintain, but still).
It’s worth pointing out that Nissan currently sells a 150-mile range car for about $29,000 — the Leaf S. While that’s pricier than the Slate, and it’s not a truck, it does have four doors and basic creature comforts. Nissan sells a modest 11,000-ish Leafs a year, and some of those are the 212-mile variant.
This Seems Like A Hard Sell, But Then There Is The ‘Cool Factor’
Let’s just imagine if Slate hadn’t chosen an electric powertrain, but instead a gasoline one. In theory, it’d be cheaper to make than the Ford Maverick or even the Chevy Trax or Kia Soul (obviously, these established companies have economies of scale, so it’s not quite that simple). Imagine an $18,000 pickup truck/SUV that looks as badass as the Slate? I’d walk straight to the dealership, realize that Slate doesn’t have dealerships and is selling straight-to-consumer, and order one online immediately.
Toyota offers a truck that’s not that different from the Slate in that it was built with extreme cost-saving in mind. It’s called the Toyota Hilux Champ, and the base price for the gasoline, five-speed manual (optional six-speed auto) equipped truck is just over $13,000!:
Granted, this thing is built in Thailand is only comes “70 percent finished,” per Road & Track’s interview with Toyota, but still. Even at, say, 18 grand I’d find that compelling and, importantly, usable.
Then there’s the concept of extended-range EVs, EREVs. To me, an EREV Slate would make for a more compelling high-volume “people’s car” than this BEV. You could cut the battery size from 52.7 kWh to 25 kWh, and offer an EV range of about 80 miles, which is plenty for commuters. And when those 80 miles run out, you can just run it on gasoline, making the vehicle palatable for far, far more users than a 150 mile BEV — and at about the same cost.
In 2022, when Slate started this project, the regulatory environment was different than it is now. The sky seemed to be falling for gas cars, and there was very much a “Go BEV or else” attitude in the air globally. I can sympathize with automakers on that; whereas in other nations like China, there has been a firm and united front on electrification, things in the western world are yo-yoing back and forth to no end. It’s challenging, but in a way it means you have to design a vehicle that can weather uncertainty.
And it seems to me that Slate is relying too heavily on the EV rebate sticking around and tariffs cranking up the prices of other cars in the segment. Because if it’s between even a $3-5K pricier Ford Maverick — which comes with paint, an infotainment system, power windows, and a 120-year old company reputation — and a bare-bones, two-door Slate that can only go 150 miles on a charge, it’s pretty obvious which one is the better “people’s car.”
I asked Slate about this. Specifically, I asked its team: “If the tax credit disappears, what about the new Slate do you think will make it more compelling than a similarly-priced gasoline car with significantly more features? (i.e. Ford Maverick).” Here was their response:
If incentives go away, Slate will remain well-positioned in the U.S. with a strong proposition of value, safety, and customization. Slate’s commitment to American manufacturing is foundational to our business, and we are on track to a 2026 start of production, thanks to our highly experienced team and top industry partners.
The “customization” bit is one that I’m going to end on here, because even if a bargain EV doesn’t really make sense as a volume “people’s car” on paper, you can’t ignore the cool-factor.
And while I do think the Slate’s design is a little Ford Bronco Sport-ish, it is cool, and the fact that you can add features later instead of having to tick the King Ranch/Longhorn/LX box at initial purchase is extra cool.
I don’t think the Slate, as currently configured and priced, is going to become the next Volkswagen Beetle or Ford Model T, but I do think its DIY strategy for adding features, its cool interchangeable roofs that let you change body styles, its overall rugged and boxy shape, and its simplicity are deeply compelling and charming, and it will be those intangibles that could bring Slate to more roadways than pure logic might lead you to think.
I don’t know that people looking for a cheap car as their only form of transportation are going to be the ones behind the wheel, but especially if the rebate sticks around, folks like me who have another car and space at home to charge might not be able to resist a cool, brand new, two-door, fuel-saving commuter-pickup for $19 grand, even if you could get a used 300+ mile Hyundai Ioniq 5 for the same price.
UPDATE: I suspected this might upset EV diehards, so I’ll just note: I’m not saying the Slate isn’t a badass vehicle (I say the opposite), nor am I saying it’s not going to sell in significant volumes. I’m saying that — in part because of its powertrain and two door design — it faces significant challenges if it wants to become a true people’s car (like a Corolla or old Beetle). This is hardly a hot take for 2025, though battery developments could totally change the calculus. Also, I could be entirely wrong. Also, note that most outlets are reporting that the Slate is expected to cost over $27,000, so that has been adjusted accordingly.
Thank you everyone for your comments! There were some very passionate, sometimes heated ones! While a few folks let that passion lead them to insults, by and large there’s been great discourse between folks who think the Slate works as a volume people’s car and those who don’t.
Thank you all for reading and for participating in valuable discussions about the current state/the future of automobiles! None of us are oracles, so we can only opine on some of these issues, but sharing knowledge and perspectives is great, and makes this the best car community on the web.
Thank you!
David, I totally get your point, but I think it would really apply only if Slate were a legacy automaker. For a startup, I suspect development costs and time-to-market are lower if you’re developing a BEV platform. They’re also probably working on the assumption that battery costs will continue falling, so they’ll be able to lower prices, raise margins or increase range (maybe a combination of these) in the near future.
Certainly an EREV would be the “best of both worlds” but it would also be the most challenging scenario in terms of development, unless they were able to adapt an existing solution like the one that Horse (the engine company created by Renault) is offering.
I’d be more concerned about the “Tata Nano” effect: if the car is perceived as a “poor peoples’ vehicle”, nobody will want to be caught dead inside one. But, from the way they’re doing their marketing, I feel that they’re very aware of this risk and trying to sell a “cheap, but cool” image. I think it may work …
I agree entirely with your comment.
It also has to be an EV as it is almost 100% that Slate is simply going to be assembling knock down kits from a Chinese EV manufacturer in the USA. The Chinese lead the world in EV tech but their gas vehicles simply aren’t up to par*
At least based on a sampling of Chinese ICE vehicles I’ve rented in other countries.
Oh there’s a theory I hadn’t heard yet. It’s gonna be really interesting to see what a teardown of one of these reveals when/if they make it into production. I’d be surprised if that’s all it ends up being with them so proudly touting it’ll be “made in the USA”, but it would be a great bit of irony.
Agreed on all the words except the eyeball hurting interiors of the soul, trax and even cross trek. I’ll take the honest spartan visuals of the slate, because it’s clean, see?
Bev only is not the move given the absurd difficulty to charge in this country, especially combined with that tiny range – gives me id buzz vibes: pretty but on a very short leash. Let’s just say that I am holding on to my Scout rez.
Yeah, the stripped, yet still way overstyled interiors of the Trax/Soul look WAY worse than the Slate.
EREV. Give me more EREV choices. This is the way
Especially in a utilitarian targeted vehicle! otherwise this will become -and stay- an urban hipster vehicle and that demographic is targeted by everyone. Wtf.
Indeed.
You are very correct that at that range, it’s a commuter car for me. As I’d be biting my teeth making a trip to see family in the winter. ALL of my extended family lives an hour or better of highway cruising away from me.
But, I’d love this to bomb around town in. With an EREV setup, my god you’ve got a winner.
I don’t disagree, but if I can get it with the SUV and 5 seats and then take off the roof and leave it at home like an old school Blazer, I’m in! I need more details on cost for that still but I love the idea of this, but I’m sure the accessories add up quickly and the “sub $20k” will likely be $25k+ by the time I add stereo and the SUV body but I’m still very interested.
“Slate” is an anagram for “Tesla.” Coincidence or conspiracy?
I’m curious about liability for structural Ikea-style add-ons like the rear passenger assembly. I’m going out on a limb and thinking that these will require a “certified” installer. Otherwise, what happens when Cletus can’t quite figure out that roll cage installation and he pancakes his passengers in a rollover accident? The legal/insurance implications would be interesting.
Ironically, at this point Tesla could use a clean slate.
Is that really all that different than minivans with entirely removable seats? Yes, not a crash structure, but a secured passenger is probably as basic and fundamental to crash safety in general as vehicle structure and Chrysler, Honda, Kia, etc have no issues selling those. Where are all the lawsuits cause Cletus can’t reinstall the seat 2nd row seat correctly?
I’m not a lawyer, but I think the difference is that a minivan comes from the factory with seats properly installed and tested to meet federal standards. If Slate mails me seats, there’s an assumption that they will work as designed, including in a crash, and that reasonable care has been taken in their design to ensure that they will do the same when self-installed.
I’m sure Slate believes they have this issue handled, but I’m also sure that some personal injury attorneys are ordering extra business cards just in case.
The Slate interior does two things right in my eyes:
Overall I’d pick the Slate over everything else pictured here today on the interior alone. The outside styling is attractive even in dull grey plastic. SO … if they can meet their “cheap” claims and avoid any drastic fails they’ll have a customer.
I love the column shift.
But can you get it with a bench seat?
I totally agree on the interior. I love proper “truck like” dash where it’s just a big rectangular panel.
It’s one of the things I love about my ’74 F100, and the dash in the slate particularly reminds me of the early GMT400, which is one of my favorite truck interiors.
While you have some valid points, I think your treatise is far too harsh. When planning started for this truck, no sane person would have anticipated that the orange moron would not only win in 2024, but be allowed to haphazardly gut every EV infrastructure project, and attack even the most basic environmental regulations. That he immediately started crashing the US economy, thereby driving down gas prices, was another wild card event. Many of the complaints you level at it functionally would be minor or even nonexistent if those events had not occurred. And your financial analysis seems highly bias, given that in many places home and business charging is as low as 15 cents/kWh.
Financially, launching with a piston engine would only be possible if a larger car maker made an engine with a suitable emissions package available. The cost of developing and legalizing their own engine would have been time and cost prohibitive. And if they had launched with a piston engine, they would be seen mainly as the “cheap” truck, not the “innovative low cost EV” truck. If automotive history teaches us anything, it’s that vehicles whose primary attribute is “cheap” rarely succeed.
Looking at the Chinese EV market shows how successful a simple short range EV can be. While I think a range extender by Slate or the aftermarket needs to happen, the cost per mile and low maintenance will make this compelling vehicle for a lot of people & businesses as is.
Turning their cheap featureless build plan into a fun customization program for buyers is also brilliant marketing – and reminds me of why people liked VW beetles!
The Model T was cheap, and got CHEAPER. Cheap isn’t what sells? Really?
No, the Model T sold because it was the only decent option. And then it proceeded to get cheaper, which only made it sell better. Point is, it succeeded despite being cheap. Just ask Tata how well their cheapest car sold.
Tata? Are you thinking Yugo, or Lada?
No, he meant Tata
The Tata Nano. The Indian car with the goal of being the cheapest car in the world to get Indians off motorcycles and into a car. It failed partly because it was seen as a cheap car for poor people and people that actually had the money to buy one spent a little bit more to get a car that wasn’t marketed as a car for the poor.
The model T didn’t really have competition. That’s not something that can really be compared to anything else in the modern world because it was the only affordable car in existence for a while.
You cannot compare the Chinese market to western markets. The socio-political environment and customers tastes are wildly different. Also, Chinese OEMs are beginning to invest in EREVs and hybrids, because the EV tipping point hasn’t happened, something that was apparent long before Trump was elected for a second time.
there’s hope with the latest super fast charging batteries but the infrastructure will take way too long -or never- to catch up in places like the US. I am still holding out for H2 swappable cells. Until then, Erev Scout it is.
Sad that people don’t believe the USA can do basic things like build power lines anymore.
Sad but based on irrefutable proof.
In the DOE’s most aggressive EV adoption scenario we would need to add 23 TWh of generation capacity per year. In the 00’s we averaged 50 TWh per year.
It’s not the power lines or generation capacity obviously, I genuinely thought you’re being sarcastic because no one seriously believes that. If they want, they will flex whatever is needed – for example AI needs have unlocked some serious capacity. No, I am talking about the humble, ubiquitous, last step infrastructure the likes of which needs to be carpeted across the country. Even more dense than gas stations because getting the electricity equivalent of a 5gal emergency reserve for far to reach spots is not a thing.
It’s that type of infrastructure that I just don’t see blossoming here for deeper reasons than technical ability.
The vast majority of charging happens at home today and will happen at home in the future. To do that you need generation, transmission, and distribution. Things we do every day, year after year to power new homes and industry. It make no sense to replicate the gas station model where we drive somewhere to refuel.
Using DC chargers as the primary source of charging is massively more expensive than relying on AC charging. Not only are the technical requirements higher but it also will focus charging in the peak use window in late afternoon / early evening. Done right EVs can balance the grid instead of adding to the peak power problems.
The public DC charger network is for long trips and infrequent use. No doubt we need to greatly expand the current network but we have decades to do it. It will expand steadily with the increased number of EVs on the road (just as it has been for the last decade.
Charging and EV adoption also won’t be evenly distributed across the USA. Today we have some states that are actively encouraging EV adoption and charging infrastructure – and some that are not or are even actively discouraging people from buying EVs.
Where I live building codes require wiring for chargers in new construction – everything from single family homes to apartment buildings.
My local utility will provide up $1,000 to install a charger and up to $5,000 to upgrade the electrical service. (A coworker just had PGE pay for 100% of his charger install and upgrading his box from 100A to 200A)
There is no common “western” market. The USA is a market to itself and the gap between the US market and the EU market is steadily growing. While the USA is talking about rolling back our relatively lax 2027 – 2031 CAFE requirements (which can be met without any EVs) the EU is not seriously talking about ditching fleet averages. The discussion is on whether or not 2035 is too soon for 0 g/km CO2 and whether it should be something like 10 g/km.
Also the Chinese market is quickly approaching the size of the US and EU market combined. 2024 sales:
31.3 million – China
15.9 million – USA
10.6 million – EU
This is true, but we can sort of amalgamate most developed western markets as being variations of a theme. The same cars mostly sell across all of Europe, and conceptually at least in the US even if the brands are different. The only real outliers are mainly trucks. China is vastly different because the market there is so much newer and tastes haven’t matured yet.
The European and US markets are WILDLY different. Of the 10 best selling vehicles in Europe only 1 is sold in the USA and that is the Model Y. In the next 10 best selling we add the Sportage, Tiguan and Tucson. The vast majority of those top 20 vehicles are A and B segment hatchbacks not sold in the USA in any form.
The next largest market is Japan and 1/3 of their sales a Kei micro cars.
The Chinese market is different because the market is new AND the Chinese have made it a national goal to dominate the EV and PHEV sector along with battery manufacturing. They passed 50% plug-in last year and are still climbing.
Sportage, Tiguan and Tuscon all of which we get in Europe. I’m not talking about specific cars or brand but categories of cars, which are broadly similar across Western markets with trim and equipment variations, apart from specific outliers like trucks and as you mention, Keis in Japan.
ahh – yes. Those are the models I listed that are sold both in the EU and USA. Along with the Model Y.The rest of the top 20 cars models in the EU are not sold in the USA in any shape or form.
A and B segment hatchbacks are the dominate class of car sold in the EU and we do not get them in the USA anymore.
If you had suggested during the planning stages for Slate, that by product launch, the US would be effectively cut out of world markets and spiraling into a depression… you would have been laughed out of the meetings. We are experiencing the worst possible case scenario, far from what could have been reasonably anticipated.
The EV tipping point may not have happened yet, but if Trump had not been elected, America would be moving toward it instead of away from it. EV infrastructure would be expanding instead of being removed. The country would be 4 trillion dollars wealthier, and looking at future growth instead of certain recession. These things do matter, and greatly effect how the public will react to the launch of Slate.
I agree that a low cost ER package is needed to make this a truly attractive EV. And the Chinese market is very different – but its also alive and experimenting in a way ours isn’t. They are moving forward, and we are pissing on our feet.
The arguments David makes here are exactly the arguments that I and basically 100% of other industry professionals have been making consistently, ever since TSLA went to the moon and normies started asking us about the electric cars that they formerly thought were crunchy hippie swag.
$25k wouldn’t even be considered that cheap if the market hadn’t become so distorted over the last 5 ish years.
Mercedes-Benz offered the “stripped” G-Class, based on W461 with some equipment from W463, for the civilian sales in the past. Hopefully, the civilian version of W464 would be offered, probably with different engine (for Euro 6/7) soon.
I don’t think a gas-engined Slate would end up any cheaper unless a legacy manufacturer made a copy. And segmented to just EVs, the Equinox EV is a decent chunk more, but goes for basically the same price as a Camry/RAV4, with what, 300 mi range. A next-gen Bolt seems like it could plausibly be sub-$30k, and be ready to go with 4 doors and a back seat and all.
The real key to its success, as alluded to below, is probably in the fleet space if they can ship out a lot at a time. Rivian makes fleet (Amazon) vans and consumer pickups, this kind of bridges them like an Amazon Basics version of a commercial model of a Rivian R3 (if that existed). An Amazon-backed company should make it less of an unknown quantity, bringing some peace of mind for service and resale. (Is this where Kohls adds auto service centers?)
I don’t know how far exterminator company trucks typically go, but they usually like cheaper, smaller pickups and often throw a cap on. Have auto parts stores started installing chargers? Seems like they could use these for delivery vehicles, unless that’s a bad look.
Maybe more like the Pizza Planet truck
YO
The NAPA near me replaced almost all of their Ford Rangers with Chevy Bolts.
When Ford rolled out their eTransit they said the average Transit drives something like 66 mile per day. (Base on their access to location data on all their vehicles)
I honestly wouldn’t want to deal with this with the unpainted plastic body. I have no faith that it will outlast even the battery. And it is not worth the cost of a wrap or painting the whole car given how cheap this thing is.
The (probably unintended) great thing about modularity is opportunity for 3rd party support.
If this sells well, there will be cheap aftermarket body panels in every color of the rainbow on Amazon, ebay, etc. You’ll be able to sell your stock ones of FB marketplace to someone that needs a replacement because they had an accident.
If this came with a gas engine I’d probably yawn, shrug and think about picking up a used one in 10 years if the inevitable little turbos hold out. I’d also be instantly disappointed with the lack of a stick shift, which for whatever reason doesn’t bother me if the car is all electric.
With the Volt I remember how much I enjoyed not stopping at the gas station near as often. Oil changes have been few and far between. And best of all, that 12 cent per KWh electric rate from home-charging felt like driving for free as it added up to a drop in the bucket on our utility bill each month.
This truck does away with even the occasional need for oil and gas. Just run errends, commute, whatever, head home, plug-in, rinse, repeat. And spend the savings on those $75 fill-ups the fun cars require from time to time.
I’m mixed on it. The bare bones mini truck approach makes alot of sense and a lot of people have been begging for it. Plus the modular accessory aspect that really works I think Scion kind of did that and it was refreshing. Some kind of rex like the scout will have could be a nice option. Maybe a smaller battery option to bring the cost down further. $27k seems a bit steep I guess in some states it will be around $14k that seems like a decent deal but also a basic little work truck should probably cost that.
I don’t need a pickup truck, but if that changed, I’d probably go with the Maverick hybrid. (And wow, that shade of green is gorgeous. I’d also wait another year for the mechanical kinks to get ironed out and the software de-bugged.)
And since you pointed out there are no dealerships, who you gonna call when something inevitably breaks? And which collision center is going to want to or know how to fix crash damage? I guess replaceable plastic body panels might make it relatively easy to fix minor impacts. But Edmunds’ Cybertruck difficulties are a cautionary tale.
They say there will be 2500 shops initially, but besides them any generic auto shop.
Depends on the final design, my best guess is it’ll be similar to basically every other car made today, if the frame is boned then it’s totaled, if the frame is fine then it’s fixed like any other car, though likely a bit easier on account of the BEV drivetrain.
Perhaps if this is truly a DIY machine, there will be any number of diagrams, instructional videos, .pdfs, etc. showing how to fix things along with helpful links to the parts and tools one needs to buy to get the job done. Maybe they’ll even be able to sell a cell or two if one needs changing out so one can keep on trucking.
I don’t think any of that will actually happen, but I would want one all the more if it did.
I am a diehard truck convert. I literally couldn’t imagine life as a homeowner and outdoor enthusiast without one. I’m also fortunate that my wife has a reliable daily driver, and I have a fun summer car that I inherited when my mom passed.
With that said, If I didn’t tow a 4000 lb trailer into the backcountry every other weekend, and if/when an AWD variant becomes available (I live in snow country), I would happily trade my big ass Ram 1500 for one of these. It checks all the boxes for someone who works from home but needs a rig to take the dogs, bikes, and/or skis into the mountains; makes weekly runs to Home Depot; and has to haul shit to the dump from time to time.
While more range and/or a REX would be preferable to facilitate longer trips, a cheap shit hauler with a 150 mile range is right in my theoretical wheelhouse (but for the lack of 4wd and my camping habit), tho I admit that I’m an edge case.
I disagree.
A gas engine introduces the Footprint Rule, excess vibration, emissions, and greater complexity.
150 Miles is enough range for the base model, especially since their claim is that you’ll be able to upgrade to the longer range at a later date.
Lots of businesses like auto parts stores just need a 2 door mini pickup for in town parts runs, A 2 door 2 seat pickup or 2 door 5 seat SUV with 150 miles for a High Schooler is plenty, and sure beats putting them in a less safe older beater.
If it was for sale today I would have bought one instead of my 2025 Nissan Leaf S, which has 149 Miles of range…
Also the Single cab configuration has a very important benefit for BEVs: Less air in the cab means less thermal mass to cool down in the summer and more importantly less thermal mass to keep warm in the winter, which considering the minimal amount of waste heat BEV generate I appreciate the single cab configuration. I never use the rear seats in my Leaf but I’m stuck heating and cooling all that extra space anyways.
I don’t disagree that it’s compelling! I’m a big fan myself!
I think David’s point about the availability of charging for the supposed target market is a key one though. If it’s a “people’s” car and if that covers those looking at entry level cars lack of available charging is a no go. How many those folks have access to easy and cheap charging. If you’re in an apt, and gotta drive somewhere and then charge at a high cost, it’s a deal breaker. Folks don’t got no time or money for that.
If it’s for well to do folks looking for their first EV, then this might be the cheap way in.
Charging for cheaper than it costs to fill up your tank isn’t really an issue.
At home, it typically isn’t. At retail chargers, the cost per mile is higher for EVs than for ICE.
I just did a long trip in my EV, and the total cost per mile was basically the same as with a hybrid version of my vehicle, with some chargers being free, some being more expensive than gas, and some in the middle.
Not that I would generally advise someone to own an EV without reliable home or work charging without carefully considering charging costs and availability, but the cost variables are pretty huge depending on what charging options people have.
Where were you getting free charging these days?
I have worked with real estate developers and retailers for years and charging was initially an interesting marketing ploy that often gained some credit for green initiatives. Free charge points would get installed before EVs were common but now they never are. A free public charger is a huge draw to EV owners, which makes it a major expense to the owner.
Paying retail for charging a BEV is almost always more expensive than ICE per mile for comparable vehicles. Hoping for free charging seems overly optimistic.
There free chargers scattered around my city in the burbs. I also have free chargers at work if I get up early and get there before 6:30.
Pay chargers vary wildly. At the local grocery store they are 45 cents per kWh for Level 2 – and sit empty. (That is what DC fast charging costs around here)
Downtown Level 2 charging is $1 an hour (6.6 kW) so about 15 cents per kWh.
I had a project with low-cost/free chargers at a grocery store about 12 years ago. The same client now contracts with one of the retail charging companies. The market is normalizing which will soon mean little to no free charging and all the retail charging being basically the same price at retail Tesla or Electrify America level rates. The subsidized or free options are like the introductory offer, followed by the full price.
But free and subsidized charging isn’t a realistic option going forward. The $.45/KwH would mean a Tesla Model 3 would cost 30% more per mile than a Camry Hybrid at a retail charger. BEVs just aren’t good options for most people. They take a somewhat rare use case to be the best financial option. They also tend to have a larger environmental footprint than PHEVs.
Nobody is going to pay Tesla rates for Level 2 AC charging. The Blink at the local grocery store is trying that and nobody charges there. People pay for DC charging for the convince of charging in 20 minutes. Slow AC charging needs to be 15 cents or so per kWh or nobody will use it – they will just charge at home instead.
Free charging at work makes a lot of sense as the equipment is cheap as they are just dumb chargers and at industrial rates the free coffee costs more than the chargers. My employer pays 5 cents per kWh. Even charging for 8 hours on a 3 kW charger is only $1.20 a day.
Employers may offer free charging as a perk for a few people, but it won’t be widespread in most work environments. Most people don’t work in places where everyone has dedicated parking in spaces that can support charging. The chargers may be inexpensive, but installing them is not. New panels, often very long runs to reach parking areas, a substantial likelihood of needing a new drop from the pole, and it is an investment of tens of thousands of dollars per location in many places. Locations you would need to address to make work charging a significant resource. Most workers don’t work in industrial buildings where significant extra capacity exists.
Plus, increased demand for power at industrial rates due to substantial vehicle charging is going to manifest in higher costs somewhere, either by higher industrial rates or higher residential rates. The total income needed by the power company to generate X amount of power will still be needed.
Retail charging doesn’t make economic sense for consumers, and counting on subsidized or free charging elsewhere is a fantasy for general consideration. None of the investments needed for anything other than slow charging at home have any economic incentive.
Meanwhile, with current battery tech, PHEVs represent an option that tends to have a lower environmental footprint, requires no changes to infrastructure, have almost no functional disadvantages and don’t require any change to consumer habits, and are less expensive to drive for the vast majority of use cases.
Until battery technology improves substantially and requires fewer extracted resources and/or the U.S. power grid gets substantially cleaner, BEVs are a second-rate solution.
Curious – where do you live? I ask because the reality of driving an EV varies wildly from state to state or even in different parts of the same state.
I live in Oregon – which has a big push for EVs. We have building codes that require new construction to include charging – both for single family homes and apartments / condos.
We also have incentives for people install chargers in existing structures. My utility (PGE) will provide up to $6,000 to install a charger and upgrade the service. There are also incentives for employers to add chargers.
Which makes sense – as we add more and more solar there is a mismatch between power generation and power consumption midday. Solar peaks in the early afternoon when traditional demand is low. It makes a lot of sense to use that extra demand to charge EVs directly vs using it to charge a grid scale battery and then charge an EV from that battery later at night. A freshly charged EV can also be used to buffer the grid in peak demand in the early evening but allowing EV owners to power their homes during peak when rates are the highest. (I pay 44 cents on-peak and 9 cents off peak)
As to PHEVs – they are great – except that they are expensive and will only get more expensive as emission regulations increase over time. At the same time EVs are getting steadily cheaper.
Look at a decent PHEV like the RAV4 Prime. Great car – but it is $44K for a PHEV with a 42 mile range – The point at which PHEVs actually start doing a significant amount of mile in EV mode. (It takes a 70ish mile range to get 50% of yearly miles on electricity with the average PHEV). That RAV4 Prime is only $2K less than a EV6 long range that does 320 miles and charges in 20 minutes
Personally a like the idea of paring an EV with a hybrid or other ICE vehicle. That is what my wife and I have been doing for almost a decade. When we got our first EV it was realistically a city only car. Not only because of the limited range but public DC charging was basically nonexistent. Today our Bolt (260 mile range) is a regional car only because it only charges at 50 kW. Replace it with something like the EV6 mentioned above at it is a primary car that can do long distance trips because at least were I live the DC chargers are there and more are being added on a regular basis.
Roughly 60% of US households live in single family homes with dedicated off-street parking.
I may surprise people on the coasts but in the interior of the country lots of low income people live in manufactured homes and this would charge just fine next to the doublewide between the truck and the bass boat.
As someone with a small 25 kwh EV, a truck would not get 80 miles real world on 25 kwh.
My i3 would do 80 miles on 19.8 kWh (usable). This is obviously boxier… the Mazda MX-30 will do 100 on 35.5…eh, I bet with the standard tires this could get close to 70. Still not bad.
But nothing priced anywhere close to people’s car levels would have the materials and construction that allow your i3 to go 80 miles on 19.8 kWh. Carbon fiber and so forth still don’t come cheap.
If we just do the math, they claim 150 mi on 52.7 kWh; cut that down to 25 kWh and you land at just over 70 miles. Not bad.
I still haven’t read the informational post yet, so I’m just going off of half-read comments here, as I usually do
Not a problem. I’m just glad you’re here.
Sounds like a challenge. It’s late here, but I’ll see what I can do to change that in the morning.
I should clarify what I mean when real word: 70-75mph in an unfavorable climate.
It’s pretty bad anywhere that’s not California weather. 60kwh give or take a few is about the bare minimum that I would consider ok for a daily driver that works well in all climates.
You can make do with less (I do) but it requires compromises that only nerds and fanatics will accept. And despite my appreciation for them from an engineering standpoint, I don’t think PHEVs make much sense from a product dev standpoint at the low-end. Apartment dwellers are better served by plain hybrids than short range PHEVs if they can’t charge at home, and if they can, an extra $2k in batteries for double the range (25 to 50 kwh) is a lot easier and cheaper then developing a parallel power system.
People remember the Beetle and Model T because they were good enough at cheap enough. I think 150 in a small pickup is good enough for a lot of people. The question I have is can they really make it cheap enough? The slate at $25k and 7% interest is a monthly payment of $495 and about 70% the running cost of a Ford Maverick (combined mpg at $3 per gallon versus an electric cost of about 16c per kwh). A $20k hybrid maverick is a better deal and more practical, but it doesn’t exist. Used ones are still north of $20 and it starts at $24k. The release pricing Maverick would have been a people’s car, but that doesn’t exist anymore. If slate can hit their price target, they’ll be the new people’s car easy, but if that doesn’t happen, it’ll be another neat truck for old people and fleets.
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You seem very hostile.
And now I wish I knew what drama has been edited. But it’s probably better that I don’t.
Didn’t miss much – it was basically a JefF BeZos sUks/yell at the clouds type of thing.
Ugh. I struggled whether to reply to a fairly political post yesterday and then felt bad about it when I did.
Politics is why I left Facebook in 2018. I have a personality flaw (journalist and then software engineer) that makes me so itchy when I read something that needs either balance or a fact check.
It has not served me well in a couple of marriages.
And I am committed to just not doing that again here. It seems like it’s only been recently that the comments have gotten very political. We’re here to talk cars. Not politics. I get that The Morning Dump has to address things, but I am just going to walk away from any thread that annoys me.
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The hardest disagree. Like, I can’t even.
I would buy a Toyota Stout immediately if it was for sale in the USA. But Toyota would never sell it here. Besides, it doesn’t meet US safety or emissions regs.
Not having to meet emissions regulations immediately makes it cheaper to build or import an EV.
Yes, I’d buy a Slate if it had a gas engine, so I’m in complete agreement with your premise.
Yes! A Stout 4cyl or 6cl (thinking 151 or 250, maybe even a 3.8V6) and I’m fine with RWD. Cheap charging means nothing to me in our post-apocalyptic landscape!
… and now you are at $30K just like the Maverick
I’d be more interested at $30k with an ICE/manual trans
This feels like it’s made for a world where EV mandates already exist, because the comparisons to the Trax, etc are pretty damning otherwise.
Sure, some fleets or weirdos who populate blog comment sections may jump at the chance to own something with no space, pitiful range, and no features, but that’s not usually a winning combo with the public.
Comparing this to a Prius or Leaf is pointless. That’s not the target. It’s going to sell like crazy for fleet use in California. I see EV fleet vehicles and I know several state government agencies will buy these. Those vehicles don’t need the range and there are chargers at state offices and other state locations. It will be a great addition to the mix with the Silverado EVs, Bolts, and other EVs already in use.
The comparison is the same one that falls apart for all other EVs. Sure I could have gotten a Prius and got 51 mpg but I could not go 0-60 in under 4 seconds. I went from 14 mpg to spending $54 a month on charging and I charge at work and public chargers only. $768 spent year to date. I used to spend that a month on gas for a Dodge Charger Scat Pack.
A truck like this is what my brother in law wants. He has a Maverick and drives it to work, Home Depot and charges at home. It’s not a roadtrip truck, it’s for the 2 car family or even a 3 car family.
Sure its not for everyone everywhere but its got great potential.
.
For the record, I don’t think it’s going to be a failure. I just know that an ICE version would be palatable to a larger group of Americans.
And more people like Pepsi than Coke.
But only one is a synonym for soda
Ford has the Maverick and they could make it more basic if this gets any traction. Chevrolet could be inspired to bring back an S-10 or a more basic Colorado. While I agree that ICE could have broader appeal, I think that it would be much more for Slate to make an ICE version vs Ford or Chevrolet stepping up.
I concur.
Like, a LOT LARGER. Both Options, with a donor drive train from an established manufacturer. Win/Win!
It’s not just a donor drivetrain; they would have to completely redesign the chassis to accommodate it.
and lets be real – underneath the plastic body panels the Slate likely has a Chinese BEV platform that Bezos private labelling.
On the record A has been saying making cars is hard for years. Tesla is still the new kid 10 years after you could buy one.
If the A readers aren’t ready to throw money at the concept right now, it seems hard to imagine that Slate can make it in the the mainstream market.
I like it, but it would have to have Maverick specs to even be considered.
The specs all make sense to me… if it was a small truck destined for the EU market. Seems like something that would do really well there…especially with the cap on the back and the LR vibes. It would be the EV Jimny.
And there are people in NA that really want a Jimny (me included)… so maybe there’s a market?
I look at it like this: My commute (4 days/week) is 2 miles each way. I use a $300 HiBoy S2 scooter unless the weather is shit. Well, now the tires are shot, and I basically am going to buy a whole new scooter because the cost to replace the tires is almost a wash factoring in labor.
Now, I could buy a better scooter that is faster and has more range, but at that point, I am almost in e-bike territory. If I step into that world, I’d like to get a nice one, which puts me close to Moped territory. If I am buying a moped, I might as well get a Vespa, which puts me into…you get the point.
My little S2 has done me right, and I see no need to climb the ladder.
Most people will absolutely not buy this truck (and those that get all fancy with it are kinda dolts), but for a certain segment, it’s pretty friggin’ sweet.
Exactly!
Thank you, DT!!! hahaha
(The Pistons were sooo close, btw. Fun game to watch, though!)
DETROIT…[you know what to say]!
It’s been a few years, but I must have told you at some point how Mason asked me if I had an idea on how to announce Chauncey the day we got him. I made it up on the spot, “How about Chauncey- (play it straight)- Buh, Buh, Buh Billllluppppss?”
He looks me dead in the eyes and says, “I like it!”
The rest, as they say, is history 🙂
Wait. You came up with that?!
Yep! He used to live in Rivertown, so I’d see him around from time to time. It was a totally spontaneous thing, just a flippant comment when shooting the shit one day. The next game, he started saying it, and I was like, “Holy shit, he did like it! Cool”. lol
Like “A Fistful of Yen”?
I think it’s fair to argue that this will suffer from a lack of demand due to range constraints and Americans’ obsession with needing 200+ miles. But EREVing it wouldn’t solve the issue of the bare-bones interior and would push the price past 30k (depending on rebate) at which point it’s against much more competitive self-charging hybrids from established manufacturers like the aforementioned Maverick or the wagon-shaped Corolla Cross.
My 2¢ are that this should be produced exactly as-is and we can see if people put their money where their mouth is. People say they want a back-to-basics EV, people say they’re willing to pay extra for it not to be made in China, and people say they’re ok with low range as long as the price is reasonable. So that’s exactly what this is, now buy it or shut the hell up.
EREV would allow for a smaller and cheaper battery, so it isn’t as simple as current cost + cost of small engine, there would be some offset there. Might even work out slightly cheaper, given how expensive batteries still are and how cheaply engines can be made these days
I guess, but I also think ‘PHEV/EREV’ inherently causes manufacturers to jack the price up, whether warranted or not. There isn’t a single PHEV on the USDM cheaper than an equivalent ICE, self-charging hybrid, or full EV, and if a PHEV version of this was created you can’t tell me they wouldn’t try to sell it at a premium either ‘because it’s more capable’.
EVs are also an excuse to jack up prices, and that might even be happening here, because with a little 4-cylinder ICE, no electric motor, no traction battery, we all know it would be sub-$15,000 with these specs, instead of the $28,000 it actually is without the tax credit that may or may not continue to exist
Made in America?
I believe there are parts of the Americas where it could be done for that, yes. Maybe even some parts of the US & US overseas territories, possibly, depending on how much of a margin you feel you absolutely need
The last Focuses manufactured in Wayne, MI started at $17,950 in 2019. Adjusted for inflation that’s $22,805 today. Considering a brand-new EV platform and the cost associated with battery packs, nearly $6k more to build a full EV in the U.S. seems like a bargain. Point taken that obviously a full EV will still cost more than a pure ICE model regardless, but I just don’t think a PHEV could cut that $6k gulf by much given the R&D and engineering costs involved with setting up that kind of powertrain.
I also doubt manufacturing in PR or Guam are all that feasible given their relative remoteness and historic lack of an auto supply chain, and going for cheaper labor within the contiguous U.S. even in RTW states doesn’t seem plausible considering non-American brands still make their cheapest USDM models in Mexico or Thailand.
Concept vehicle fronted by some dude with a bottomless wallet. He can afford to call it a success when it collapses like a wet cardboard box.
It COULD be, but you know, Shareholders. Fuck the Consumer, placate the Shareholders!
I would agree ….. except at $27,500 this isn’t cheap and it isn’t projected to be on sale until 2026 which means it will need to compete with the new Bolt and Kia EV3.
Which will be in the 30s if no rebate, so still around $5-7k more. Fact of the matter is, unless you’re gonna build it elsewhere (assuming little to no tariff) there’s not going to be sub-25k EV; that’s just the crux of American manufacturing and corporate margins.
The Equinox EV is $33,600 MSRP today with 320 miles of range. There is no point in building a Bolt unless it is less than $30K before any rebates.
One can hope. But the cheapest Equinox EV my local dealer stocks is $35k, so the Bolt is probably going to be $30k at least. And made in Mexico, don’t forget. The Slate isn’t—supposedly.
The cheapest Equinox EV on my local dealer lot is $35K too – but that includes the $1,400 destination fee. No doubt Slate will be adding a destination charge on top of their MSRP just like every other manufacturer.
I suspect the Slate will be assembled in the USA from a Chinese knock down kit. Assuming they ever start production. No doubt the whole business case was worked out before the current trade war with the world.