SLATE Truck revealed as modular Pickup & SUV

[Zachanadandy]

I believe that driving an electric car is like going to the grocery store to buy meat.
No matter how you look at it. It still takes oil, diesel, and basically dead dinosaurs to do the job and people refuse to understand that it's still dirty and will never be a clean vehicle.
I feel that people who buy meat at the store don't understand where it comes from. But when you tell them you hunt they are appalled at the fact. Come to terms with it people.

That's assuming your electricity comes from a fuel source. Granted there's the mining operations and production and transport of the new vehicles but that's another story. What if your power comes from a hydro-electric plant? Solar? Wind mills? As far as production pollution that's a wash in the ice vs EV discussion. The daily pollution from use over the life of the vehicle will be lower on the EV side even if the power comes from a coal or natural gas fired power plant. If you have solar on the house and exclusively charge at home then the daily pollution is in fact 0 and doesn't require oil, diesel, or dinosaur juice at all.

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[Free2roam]

That's assuming your electricity comes from a fuel source. Granted there's the mining operations and production and transport of the new vehicles but that's another story. What if your power comes from a hydro-electric plant? Solar? Wind mills? As far as production pollution that's a wash in the ice vs EV discussion. The daily pollution from use over the life of the vehicle will be lower on the EV side even if the power comes from a coal or natural gas fired power plant. If you have solar on the house and exclusively charge at home then the daily pollution is in fact 0 and doesn't require oil, diesel, or dinosaur juice at all.

But all the things in general that have to happen for that electric vehicle to become net 0 in the end it's not worth the cost. IMO

 

[Zachanadandy]

But all the things in general that have to happen for that electric vehicle to become net 0 in the end it's not worth the cost. IMO

Which is exactly what all the horse carriage owners argued as ice vehicles were introduced. Being able to "fuel up" at home would be one hell of a bonus in my opinion. No I don't think the EV is the answer for everyone. No I don't think it makes a great road trip vehicle. But for something like this ultra compact, light duty truck it would be great for many. I live in a community where most people commute ~50 miles per day. Most of them do so in some small, fuel efficient car or EV. For most that is not their Fabiola vehicle or weekend rig. The beauty of a little, cheap, basic truck like this is it would serve that role perfectly AND could still pick up some plywood, haul a washer home from the store, etc that just doesn't work in a civic, prius, etc commuter car. And it will be cheaper than any new ice vehicle on the market if this pricing holds up. And it's American made. Sounds like a lot of positives to me.

 

[AstroZombie]

interesting. In the images is appears to have a 4 door for the 5 passenger or is the set up a fold down rear seat?

 

[AstroZombie]

Im not buying a 2wd truck ever but id be lying if I didnt see some utility in these for my business

i always said this until i needed a truck and my buddy had a Tacoma pre-runner. I got over it really quick but I'd be lying if i said i never look at converting it to 4x4 everyday since

 

[Mad Mac]

To quote Yogi Berra
It's deja vu all over again.
The B-52s Love Shack explains it.

I got me a car that's as big as a whale
And we're heading on down to the Love Shack
I got me a Chrysler that seats about 20
So hurry up and bring your jukebox money

(In college in the '60s, I got eight of us in my Dad's 1960 Chrysler New Yorker. 413 with a 4-barrel and dual exhausts. But I digress.)

American cars had become bloated,
gas guzzling behemoths by the 1970s.
It took the Arab Oil Embargo to wake us up.

Japanese imports took over
the American vehicle market because they made affordable cars and trucks that were inexpensive to buy and operate and they were fun to drive.

Now we have done it to ourselves again, no thanks to the NHTSA and EPA. It may take $10 a gallon gasoline for us to come to our senses a second time.

In my opinion, there is a market for economical $20,000 basic transportation as a second or third vehicle, what was once referred to as a "student car".

(A while back I advocated for a $15,000 vehicle but we have had about 140% inflation since then.)

If anyone can actually pop them out cheaply enough they will sell all they can make.

The small foreign cars that I have owned over the years have always been my favorites.

 

[OldButStillJeeping]

Not to ba a "nay-sayer", BUT... Yugo did this a few decades ago. They are mis-collector's items now. The wierd guy a mile away from you may have 5 stashed in his weeded property.

You get what you pay for, and reliability is expensive.

JT's are overpriced IMO but so is every new car.

To me, a 20K new truck or SUV is a joke, or an old Ford Bronco II made electric with a toy train motor and one thousand disclaimers.

 

[Mad Mac]

Search Labs | AI Overview
"The Voluntary Export Restraints (VER) program, which essentially functioned as a quota, was in place from 1981 to 1994, limiting the number of Japanese cars and trucks that could be imported into the US each year."

In a way, the restraints backfired, The Japanese wisely took advantage of the limited quantity imposed by the quota by adding plenty of accessories to every vehicle to inflate the prices. They could build against a fixed number knowing they were guaranteed to sell every one of them, essentially a market rigged in their favor.

It is possible to build and sell a capable vehicle for $20,000.

Search Labs | AI Overview
"The most affordable base model Nissan cars currently are the 2024 Versa and the 2025 Sentra S, with starting MSRPs of $17,190 and $21,590 respectively."

 

[XraytecH]

First thing that came to mind was a Suzuki Kai Truck.

Kai Trucks are COOL!!!

 

[ShadowsPapa]

It's Bezos vs. Musk.....

That 20K is apparently a very stripped down, manual everything version with no infotainment screen, manual windows, 150 mile range, and so on.

Slate Auto, a firm backed in part by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is unveiling a low-cost electric truck that can also change into an SUV.

Its starting price point: $20,000 after federal EV incentives.

"A radically simple electric pickup truck that can change into whatever you need it to be — even an SUV," the Slate Auto website says. "Made in the USA at a price that’s actually affordable (no really, for real)."

The two-door version can be changed into a 5-seat SUV. The baseline truck is small: About two-thirds the size of a Chevy Silverado EV and about seven-eights the size of a Ford Maverick. It has a payload capacity of 1,400 pounds compared the Maverick's 1500 pounds.

At less than 15 feet long, Slate says its more akin to a 1985 Toyota pickup.

Its smaller and less gaudy stature are by design: TechCrunch refers to the Slate as an "anti-Tesla," and while both the Slate Truck and the Cybertruck are customizable, the starting Slate model is stripped down to essential elements, including no power windows or infotainment screen.

The specs show a maximum range of 150 miles on a single charge, with the option for a longer-range battery pack that could offer up to 240 miles. The vehicles are designed in California and Michigan, engineered in Michigan, and assembled somewhere in the Midwest, according to Slate's website. TechCrunch reported the plant is in Indiana.

Earlier this month, TechCrunch broke the news that Bezos, along with the controlling owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mark Walter; and a third investor, Thomas Tull, had helped Slate raise $111 million for the project.

A document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission listed Melinda Lewison, the head of Bezos' family office, as a Slate Auto director.

The vehicles aren't expected to be delivered to customers until late 2026, but can be reserved for a refundable $50 fee.

 

[Sweetums]

I have no interest in a Bezos-mobile.

 

[Zachanadandy]

Not to ba a "nay-sayer", BUT... Yugo did this a few decades ago. They are mis-collector's items now. The wierd guy a mile away from you may have 5 stashed in his weeded property.

You get what you pay for, and reliability is expensive.

JT's are overpriced IMO but so is every new car.

To me, a 20K new truck or SUV is a joke, or an old Ford Bronco II made electric with a toy train motor and one thousand disclaimers.

A start up building ICE vehicles would make me nervous (and yet thousands, especially in our 4x4 communities are buying grenadiers starting at $65k), but by comparison an EV is so simplistic. Look at owning, operating, and maintaining a simple 2 stroke yard tool like a weedeater or chainsaw (especially in our ethanol fuel era) vs the battery version of the same. Fuel lines and carbs gummed up between seasons. Priming bulbs that crack every few years, mixing fuel, tuning the carb, washing/replacing the air filter after just 1 day of hard work in a Dusty environment, pull start that with all the above mentioned headaches is extra frustrating as you figure out why it doesn't want to start. Vs put in charged battery and pull trigger. Then there's the price. No I'm not buying a startup EV at $80k+ when I could buy from a more reputable source. But half the price of the nearest competitor and purposely simple and easy to work on? That is literally the recipe for reliability that nobody follows anymore. No transmission, no fluids, no air/fuel ratios, just an electric motor and a battery. And even the battery sounds like it will be easily replaced as they claim you can upgrade to the larger pack diy.

 

[Oilburner]

I thought federal bribes/incentives were ended?

 

[Zachanadandy]

I thought federal bribes/incentives were ended?

Don't tell that to the AG and oil industries. It's mind boggling to me that everyone is fine with subsidies (often to incentivize lower production and drive prices up) from those industries and bailouts for gm, banks, etc but an American start up? Energy alternatives? Being we all know they aren't going to lower taxes or give it back to us, I'd rather my money go to innovation and businesses that are hungry and growing than the ones who decided to outsource as much of their labor and suppliers as possible to foreign entities and are only struggling because of record corporate bonuses and waste of record profits.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

Don't tell that to the AG and oil industries. It's mind boggling to me that everyone is fine with subsidies (often to incentivize lower production and drive prices up) from those industries and bailouts for gm, banks, etc but an American start up? Energy alternatives? Being we all know they aren't going to lower taxes or give it back to us, I'd rather my money go to innovation and businesses that are hungry and growing than the ones who decided to outsource as much of their labor and suppliers as possible to foreign entities and are only struggling because of record corporate bonuses and waste of record profits.

Government also makes a lot of money on oil. And one of the big tax incentives they have is drilling costs being deductible which is promoting new business.

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