Slate has officially announced the price of its first electric pickup truck at the company's new design center in Gardena, California. It is indeed $24,950, as previously rumored after a leak. However, this price doesn't include the destination and delivery fee that's baked into the cost of every new vehicle because it has not yet been finalized. Still, we're told the destination charge will be minimal, in keeping with the overall low price of what the startup brand is calling its "Blank Slate" pickup.
The Slate pickup will be sold direct to consumers, so there isn't a traditional brick-and-mortar dealership. All Slate pickups will be painted the same color, with finishes applied at the end of the production line with a wrap. There are 100 available colors at launch, with some 40 of them priced at just $499. No further prices were confirmed, including the optional SUV configuration, a two-inch lift, or a lowering kit that you can have installed.
View Price on AmazonTechnically, every single option will also be user-installable. You can buy the Blank Slate and upgrade it when your budget allows. This includes the wraps and even the SUV Kit. Of the 100 or so options available at launch, 33 percent cost under $100, 50 percent are under $250, and 80 percent are under $500.
When it was first announced, the Slate truck's range was a middling 150 miles. However, since then, a new LFP battery chemistry has been developed. The range is now 205 miles, from a 63-kWh battery. Charging is handled through a NACS port on the left rear fender, so it'll be fully compatible with Tesla's vast Supercharger network, where it can charge at up to 120 kW. Slate claims the 11-kW onboard AC charger can take a depleted battery to 100 percent in about four hours when connected to Level 2 equipment.
The Slate is offered in a single rear-wheel-drive configuration, with its electric motor mustering 181 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque. It's no speed demon, but it's no slouch either. Slate claims that's enough oomph to reach 60 mph in 8.0 seconds, and it'll achieve a top speed of 90 mph. During a very brief ride, the Slate had no trouble maneuvering through traffic, thanks to the instant torque of electric drive.
The suspension is MacPherson strut up front and a De Dion axle out back. The rear-axle choice is interesting, as it allows a rigidly mounted motor to supply a solid axle through half-shafts. Fun fact: It's the same setup used in the rear of the Mercedes-Benz electric G-wagen. In the same around-the-block ride, the Slate was quite smooth and pleasant on the pockmarked roads. That's probably due in part to the pickup's relatively long 108.9-inch wheelbase.
Maximum payload capacity is up from previous estimates and now stands at 1550 pounds for the pickup and 1263 pounds for the SUV, the 287-pound difference being the weight of the SUV components. The bed is remarkably similar to anything you'd find in a four-door cab mid-size truck, being just over five feet long. Maximum towing capacity for the pickup is now 2000 pounds, although we wouldn't recommend anything but local towing.
One of the biggest knocks on single-cab trucks is the lack of lockable storage, but the Slate's rear-drive EV architecture leaves room for an ample 7-cubic-foot front trunk. We played around with it, and it has room for two small-sized roller bags, with extra space left over. The SUV version has 34 cubic feet behind the seats and 58 cubes with them folded. The seat is remarkably easy to enter through the front door too, and it offers surprising space.
Source: caranddriver.com
