If Amazon Basics made a pickup, the Slate would be it.
Startup American truck maker Slate Auto revealed its first model at an event in Long Beach, Calif., on Thursday night. The small electric pickup is a no-frills truck designed to be the ultimate economy vehicle.
The Michigan-based company counts Jeff Bezos as one of its backers and has been developing it for a couple of years with plans to manufacture it in a factory it is building at an Indiana brownfield site.
The two-door, two-seat Slate is similar in size to a subcompact SUV like the Ford Bronco Sport and features a relatively long five-foot bed. It has manually cranked windows, no built-in radio or infotainment system and a standard driving range of 150 miles per charge.
Its price is as small as the range and expected to be less than $27,500 when it goes on sale in late 2026. That means it will be possible to purchase one for less than $20,000 if the $7,500 federal tax credit is still in effect then.
“Our view and our reason for existing is that the automotive industry has abandoned working class America,” Slate COO Jeremy Snyder told The NY Sun.
“If I have an hourly job, I’m not thinking about whether I’m going to be driven to work by my autonomous car, I’m thinking I need to get to work in a reliable, safe way,” he said.
Slate’s idea is to produce the composite-body truck in a single configuration and color (Slate Gray) to keep costs down. The it will offer accessories for them to update their vehicles with when their needs, wants or financial situations change.
“Rather than thinking of it as a traditional truck, it is actually a platform for personalization,” Mr. Snyder said.
One option will be a kit that turns it into a five-seat SUV with an airbag-equipped roll cage, a roof and a rear bench seat. It has been designed to be simple enough for the owner to install themselves and can be flat-pack shipped.
“You can buy it six months later, a year later, two years later, that’s the big change” Mr. Snyder said.
Want a different color? Slate will sell DIY wrap kits in a rainbow of hues and patterns.
A Slate University library of videos will demonstrate the installation processes for all of the equipment, but Slate will also have service centers that can perform the work.
Mr. Snyder expects the truck to appeal to people who gave up tinkering with cars because modern ones are filled with too much complex and expensive technology.
“The entire industry has been so focused on content and electronics and autonomy that all of that stuff has driven prices up like crazy and they can not get away from it,” he said.
An optional extended-range battery pack that provides 240 miles of driving will be available when the truck is ordered, but if you buy the base 150-mile model, you can upgrade to the larger pack later.
Despite its size, the Slate is a mighty mite. Its payload capacity is 1,433 pounds, it is rated to tow 1,000 pounds and can sprint to 60 mph in eight seconds. The top speed is limited to 90 mph, which is 5 mph higher than the fastest speed limit in the country.
A country that is littered with failed electric car startups like Fisker and Canoo, none of which tried to build a cheaper car than the big companies could.
Perhaps they should have tried starting with a blank slate.
