Ask just about anybody, and they’ll tell you that new cars are too expensive. In the wake of tariffs shaking the auto industry and with the Trump administration pledging to kill the federal EV incentive, that situation isn’t looking to get better soon, especially for anyone wanting something battery-powered. Changing that overly spendy status quo is going to take something radical, and it’s hard to get more radical than what Slate Auto has planned.
Meet the Slate Truck, a sub-$20,000 (after federal incentives) electric vehicle that enters production next year. It only seats two yet has a bed big enough to hold a sheet of plywood. It only does 150 miles on a charge, only comes in gray, and the only way to listen to music while driving is if you bring along your phone and a Bluetooth speaker. It is the bare minimum of what a modern car can be, and yet it’s taken three years of development to get to this point.
But this is more than bargain-basement motoring. Slate is presenting its truck as minimalist design with DIY purpose, an attempt to not just go cheap but to create a new category of vehicle with a huge focus on personalization. That design also enables a low-cost approach to manufacturing that has caught the eye of major investors, reportedly including Jeff Bezos. It’s been engineered and will be manufactured in America, but is this extreme simplification too much for American consumers?
I found the specs a bit interesting. 52.7 kWh battery and a curb weight of 3,600 lbs is nearly identical to the Chevy Bolt, but this only has a range of 150 miles instead of 240. Is it really that much less efficient? The only thing I can think of is the aerodynamics, but that’s a 40% difference.
As I understand it, the aerodynamics can be no joke on EVs. The motors are very efficient, there’s very efficient regenerative breaking, and an object in motion just continues in motion until there’s a force. That means drag is pretty much where your whole battery charge goes. (I’m not sure how much tire flexing accounts for exactly)
For an example off the top of my head, the Arrow concept car manages 500km by not having side mirrors. Compare that to an ICE engine which wastes most of the fuel energy as heat, but to a widely varying degree depending on design and implemented energy recovery features.
This is generally in line with ice, the drivetrain efficiencies anymore are in the high 90%s (applies to ev too), so from engine out you are losing basically everything to drag.
On ICE vehicles you lose a lot more to braking
Yeah, friction losses scale with angular velocity and not torque, and moving a ton of metal takes torque. Don’t forget the braking losses, though, unless it’s a hybrid of some kind. There’s no turning movement back into fuel the way you can turn it back into electricity.
The point is if you’re looking good range, there’s several dials that can be adjusted on an ICE car, related to the prime mover. On an EV, drag is the start and finish of the considerations (unless you’re going to move it onto rails, maybe). And of course range is a huge deal, because a liter of secondary cell can’t come close to the energy density of a liter of petrol and 38 liters of ambient air.
This is one thing I don’t get for the complaints about EV’s: Drag and towing. You have the same losses in ICE, just that the ICE powerplant is so much worse ‘before’ the drive
EV truck vs. car? 40% difference sounds about right, even an aerodynamic truck isn’t much better than an aerodynamic brick
Also, the “(after federal incentives)” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. The basic option for the 2023 Bolt comes out to about $20K after federal incentives, but you get way more range and a bunch of those “luxury” features this is missing. Considering how cheap low-end smart phones are, I have a hard time imagining that infotainment systems actually add more than 1-2% of the cost of the vehicle. Feels more like a type of virtue signal than a real cost-saving measure.
Your vehicle not being yet another surveillance vector can be a selling point.
I mean, I guess, but that’s only a selling point to the small number of people without smartphones, which isn’t a large enough group to make it a sound business strategy.
Would definitely buy one of these. I miss having a truck, but I only need one occasionally for the occasional need to haul something that won’t fit in my car (e.g. Lowe’s trips). I also really dislike the “smartphone on wheels” aspect of pretty much all current EVs.
Plus, I hate the infotainment systems so I would be happy to roll my own.
Though I do wonder if it has a backup camera/screen. Aren’t those required nowadays?
According to the articles I read about it, the gauges are a digital screen which changes to the backup camara when in reverse.
Good to know. Will have to read up, though from the little I’ve read, it sounds like this is just a concept for now.
the website for it is pretty comprehensive as far as i can tell
Seems like they have physical concept cars they’ve built based off the Arstechnica article.
Touchscreens are the worst interface in a vehicle. But yes, Amercian law says all automobiles must have a backup camera installed as of 2018. I need and use a truck but I do just fine with a smaller Tacoma, which these days are basically a full size truck of yester-yore. These look nice, like the UTE style; but the 150 mile range would be an issue for me.
That’s what I thought (re: backup cameras), and someone else mentioned the gauge cluster is a digital screen which switches to the backup camera view). In my case, 150 miles (round trip ) would be just around the upper edge of my use cases, though 15-20 would be more average.
which these days are basically a full size truck of yester-yore
Makes me miss my old 2003 Ranger. It was right where I needed a truck to be, size-wise.
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The average truck buyer is looking for something that can do everything. Seating for the whole family, comfortable for trips across town or aria the country, able to pull a trailer and carry a load. Enough luxury to enjoy the drive.
This truck is for businesses. Construction or last mile delivery. Enough room for just the people necessary to load or unload it. No comfort features besides the bare minimum. No long range driving.
I expect to see these in fleet yards, not in driveways.
Or someone looking for a run around beater.
I would love this for going to work and back, doing my weekend trash run to the dump, and going to grab stuff to do things around my house.
And backed by Bezos
this strikes me as a fascinating idea–with a couple of eyebrow-raising backers–that is probably going to flop spectacularly because it’s too minimalistic to the point of just being cheapskate
They look like excellent fleet trucks.
I’d imagine the $20K price is for a model so basic many people won’t want it. it will be interesting to see what the price is for a model most people would consider an acceptable basic car or truck.
There may be a market.
The big 3 have been chasing larger trucks, effectively abandoning this market. I can see this being a farm truck that gets beat to shit.
Why this over a used vehicle?
electric vehicles are not a used market yet
Is there a used electric truck old enough to be $20,000?
Love it. No connection to the internet except when you choose to, through your phone. Analog controls. Frickin roll up windows!
My only beef with the current concept is the bolt on body panels and other parts. Too easy to steal. Could replace those bolts with security bolts, if they aren’t already, but that just discourages the casuals.
My only beef with the current concept is the bolt on body panels and other parts. Too easy to steal.
I mean the same could be said about Jeep Bronco. Although these just being plastic means they’re probably not worth stealing…
Jeep Bronco
Missing a comma there…
I laughed haha
Hell yeah. I actually emailed them and they confirmed that there’s no data collection at all. That’s extremely rare for any new car these days.
Want.
How big a trailer can it tow, and how big of an optional battery can I get? Those are my two questions.
Can it tow?
Probably about as much as a Civic
Range is 150 miles so not holding my breath
I would still like one, but I’d wish it had the utility of a kei truck at least.
1000lb. towing capacity.
Dam, so even less than a Civic (around 1500lbs)
I can’t wait for people to find the actual towing capacity, hopefully it manages at least 3 tons.
I pulled a U-Haul trailer with my Civic from Virginia to Oregon. Only took 2½ days, though the final few hours were harrowing. Maps back then didn’t so much express topography, so the trailer was actually pushing me down … I likely went through a year of brake pads in six hours.
Damn, be glad you didn’t boil your brake fluid though.
So like a fully plastic Pickman?
I really like this concept. Definitely catches my attention. But I think minimalists are in the minority these days.
What would you prefer, this for $20k, or a 6 year old truck with 50k miles and all the features for $20k? Most cheap people prefer the latter
I don’t disagree about what most people want. Personally, I don’t really care for the features, so I’m an outlier. The one thing I do miss on my 25-year-old Saturn is cruise control.
Plastic panels are awesome, BTW. 25 years and zero door dings.
What used electric truck costs $20k?
None yet. Electric trucks haven’t been available long enough to reach that price point. It will come.
The problem is you probably could not find a 6 year old truck with 50k miles. Most 2 year old trucks now have close to 100k miles on them.
More and more advertisements on here. Get the fuck out of here with your advertisements.
No paint? Sure. No touchscreen? Good.
…No radio? That’s going to absolutely murder their sales.
Many will consider this a cost-cutting step too far, but the interior was designed for ease of upgrading, with easy mounting space for anything from a simple soundbar to a full sound system.
This isn’t for everyone, but if it’s easily accessible, I’d have no problem installing a basic CarPlay head unit and speakers in an afternoon.
a 12v outlet can power a radio just fine
Yeah I mean they should include a standard double-DIN radio with Android Auto. Or at least make it optional. Using a Bluetooth speaker is ridiculous and will sound awful. And the battery will probably explode being it’s kept in a hot vehicle…
Quite possibly. They’re gambling on a market for a no-frills car existing, but it might just be too small. That’s what killed economy cars the first time.
If they are targeting work trucks - which is where most bare bones trucks go - the buyers already have a bluetooth radio they use all day.
You know what, people can just add their own bluetooth speaker.
I think it’s fine.
I think it will depend on if they have lots of USB power conveniently available. Like you could literally make your own stereo with two bluetooth speakers and a phone as long as there’s plenty of USB power and mounting points.
That design also enables a low-cost approach to manufacturing that has caught the eye of major investors, reportedly including Jeff Bezos. It’s been engineered and will be manufactured in America, but is this extreme simplification too much for American consumers?
I’m more worried about the cheapness and corner cutting.
So they finally made a car for minimalists.
