Slate Truck Brings the American EV Pickup to $20K
As more EV pickups come to the market, they tend to have one big thing in common: a hefty price tag. Ford’s F-150 Lightning starts north of $60,000, Rivian’s R1T is closer to $70,000, and the Chevy Silverado EV starts in the mid-$70,000s.
Enter the Slate Truck, a new contender in the EV pickup space expected to cost around $20,000 after incentives. That makes it not only one of the cheapest EVs out there, but one of the most affordable vehicles on the market. Backed by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, the intent is for Slate to be a bare-bones, budget-friendly EV truck and SUV platform.
As you might expect of an EV startup with tech company backing, Slate execs like to discuss the project in terms of disruption. CEO Chris Barman put it simply: “Slate exists to put the power back in the hands of the customers.” Essentially, Slate engineers have created a new business model that saves on production cost: they build the basic truck, and you customize it yourself using their extensive accessories suite. Here's a closer look at what you can expect.
Yes, the Slate Truck is a $20,000 Electric Pickup Truck
The Slate Truck is a two-seat, old-school pickup — at least, as old-school as an EV can be. To help keep the price down, Slate skipped many modern convenience features found in most vehicles today, opting instead for manual windows, traditional A/C knobs, and steel wheels. Its clean, boxy exterior completes the truck's no-frills ethos.
The total cost is intended to be around $20,000, with one important caveat: that figure includes federal incentives, which could change before the Slate Truck officially hits the market. Final pricing will be confirmed closer to launch.
The Slate Is a Small Truck With a Not-So-Small Bed
The truck is shockingly compact, measuring just under 175 inches long and just over 70.5 inches wide. It's slightly smaller than a Nissan Leaf and a full two feet shorter than the already small Ford Maverick pickup. Despite that, it still has a maximum payload capacity of 1,433 pounds. Its bed is 50 inches wide and 60 inches long and holds up to 37 cubic feet of cargo, which is slightly more than the Maverick’s 33.3 cu-ft.
Get 80% Charge in Under 30 Minutes
The Slate comes with a 52.7 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery that drives the rear wheels for up to 150 miles of range, but you can opt for an 84.3 kWh battery that boosts range to a very respectable 240 miles. Charging can be done with anything from your household plug to a Level 3 fast-charger. The Slate Truck supports charging speeds up to 120 kW, allowing you to reach 80% charge in 30 minutes or less.
While it’s not intended to set any land speed records, it still has a respectable 201 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque, which help it hit 60 mph in 8 seconds and reach its top speed of 90 mph.
A Basic Truck with a Full Slate of Accessories
One of the most unique aspects of the Slate Truck is its reliance on accessories, which come individually or in bundles. All in all, you have over 100 accessories to choose from, meaning Slate offers one of the most robust factory accessory programs of any vehicle out there. You can even customize the look with their vinyl wrap kits, which a Slate spokesperson swears you can install by yourself.
Prefer an SUV? Slate Has That Covered
Among the various accessories available is something Slate calls a “flat-pack accessory SUV kit” that transforms the pickup into a five-passenger SUV, complete with airbags and even a roll cage, should you be the adventurous type. Details remain sparse, but the kit is intended to be installed by owners themselves. Of course, the option to pay someone else to do the work remains, but it does drive the cost up.
Inside, it’s Just as Economical
The window cranks we mentioned earlier are just the beginning. You won’t find a fancy head-up display or 30-inch infotainment screen inside this truck — those are exactly the pricey luxury items Slate seeks to avoid. Instead, the Slate Truck comes with a universal phone mount and USB port to keep it charged. According to a Slate spokesperson, you won’t need Android Auto or Apple CarPlay because it “doesn’t beam to another screen. Our app facilitates you using your preferred apps.”
Slate Truck Safety
While Slate may have stripped out modern convenience features in the name of efficient pricing, safety tech like automatic emergency braking and forward-collision warning remain, not to mention a full suite of airbags — up to eight if you opt for the SUV kit.
No Dealers Here
Slate orders will be entirely online, with a network for local service work. Details are sparse at the moment, but Slate says you’ll be able to service it “in your neighborhood.”
Reservations are open as of April 24th for just $50 at the slate.auto site.
