Everyone seems to hate this thing based on marketing but I actually kind of liked the looks of it, sigh.
Yeah, what's wrong with it? It looks like a simple truck for around town use, and it's fairly cheap.
My only deal breaker is the lack of 4x4. I love this truck, but I will not buy a truck without 4 wheel drive.
What do you need 4x4 in a truck this small for?
Rwd is shit in the snow and other low traction environments. Also, just to take out in the woods and have fun beating it up overlanding.
Are you really going to take it into the woods with just two seats, mediocre suspension (likely, given the limited payload and towing), and limited range? Just get a Polaris side-by-side or something, they're built for that.
I get it, a cheap truck is appealing, but at this price target, it's going to make a lot of compromises. It should do fine in plowed roads (might need sandbags in the back though), so it'll probably be fine for around town use, which seems to be its target.
With the motors and battery being on the backend of the truck, wouldn't that give you better traction on the back wheels over the front wheels?
I'm not sure how the weight is distributed, so maybe? Maybe it needs sandbags in the front?
Either way, it sounds workable as an around town truck, even in snow, without 4WD.
Yeah, lol, I probably would. Unless they do something weird, suspension and wheels can be upgraded, and they have a battery/range upgrade that can anso preclude the need for sand bags. But yeah, I probably would.
Also, a sxs needs a trailer and a truck to get to the woods, and I have nowhere to store a trailer and a sxs.
Same. I would like to have a 4WD overland rig that doesn't pollute the air while I enjoy nature. Don't tell the guys over at !fuckcars@lemmy.world this but I kinda want a Rivian R1S but with a near $100K USD price tag, It's probably never going to happen. I'll just stick with eMTBs.
I love this thing too hell and back. This is exactly what I want in a car/truck.
What is up with those pickup trucks anyway? Why do so many people in the U.S. (and elsewhere) buy them?
Everything that you put in the back is subjected to weather and one of first additions people buy is a cover.
Compare that to a mini bus or transporter, you can transport as much or more than with a pickup truck, protected from weather, and you can add or remove chairs, if you need to transport people.
If you have a transporter, you can also much easier furnish the inside with racks etc, to improve space use.
- Sometimes you need to move a thing that is oddly shaped and doesn't fit within the confines of an enclosure
Like what? And is that a common use case?
- Depending on what you're hauling, you may want separation between the cab and the payload. Like if I'm moving dirt, I'd rather not have it rolling around my cabin
Or just put down a nylon sheet, put the dirt on top, fold the nylon sheet over it and bind it down. Now it is covered under and over and will not fly around.
In most cases I guess people will just buy prepackaged earth in bags. That also doesn't fly around.
Sure, if you are one of the very few people that work in the woods or on a field, where this common use case, then alright. But that would not explain why those cars are so common.
- Easier to clean, just take a hose to it without needing to worry about soaking the cabin
Buy a bus with removable carpet, then you can just hose it down as well. Many buses have a small step, which separates the cabin from the back, so water will not flow into the cabin.
- Access isn't limited to just the door, which can be useful when unloading something
There are many different rear door types and sliding side doors on the side that provide ample and easy access. This isn't difficult or complicated.
That didn't convince me that pickup trucks are not a very specialized vehicle for just some uses, while transporters and mini busses are much more useful for all kinds of purposes. Be it furniture, tools, sport equipment, electronics and other sensitive equipment, and people. While also being good at hauling the occasional dirty stuff, if you just put something underneath.
Like what? And is that a common use case?
Furniture is what comes to mind
Or just put down a nylon sheet, put the dirt on top, fold the nylon sheet over it and bind it down. ... Buy a bus with removable carpet, then you can just hose it down as well.
Sure, you could do that, or you could use the right vehicle for the job.
There are many different rear door types and sliding side doors on the side that provide ample and easy access. This isn't difficult or complicated.
Until you want a pallet of something. Would be nice if that van had a removable roof so they could just drop it in there 😉
What it comes down to is that trucks are versatile and people like them for it. If you don't see utility in having open access, then that's fine, but a lot of people do.
At least tell me there’s a DIN slot in the dashboard. As long as I can connect my phone via Bluetooth I’m good.
Elon now bezo. Noice
150kWatt and a top speed of 145? That's kind of insane?
Wait a minute, mph not km/h I guess.
Yeah, 145km/h might be a liiitle under powered. I drive between 120km/h to 130km/h on the US interstates.
How are you doing kph in the US?
Every car I've owned has had a way to change the speedometer from freedom units to ✨ metric ✨ .
For knowing what speed I should be going, I roughly follow these numbers. (Note, these are not equivalent.)
Also, very roughly 10km ≈ 5mi.
However, most of the time I just follow the flow of traffic.
I voluntarily switched to metric like 10 years ago, so meters, celsius, grams, etc make more sense to me now.
You missed the joke.
I was making a joke as if kph and mph were physically distinct things and only one of them worked in each country.
Squinting your eyes on the smaller numbers on the speedometer. I do it all the time!
Be careful, you might get pulled over for doing kph instead of mph in the US.
No imperialist (system) is going to stop me!
So you're saying your car is able to use mph when in the US? Fancy car!
Btw, I was trying to make a joke about mph being some different kind of "fuel" that's not compatible with kph, in case that wasn't clear.
Aside from being backed by Bezos, this seems like Lemmy the car. Under 20K, an EV, no stupid touch screen, designed to be repaired and modded, and even crank windows.
I bet the catch, aside from Bezos, is the range or charge speed.
I don't think that it has a cell modem, either, because it sounds like it eschews a baked-in entertainment computer:
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a64564869/2027-slate-truck-revealed/
Roll-down windows come standard, as do manually adjustable rearview mirrors. An audio or infotainment system is noticeably missing, too. Instead, your cellphone or tablet serves these functions, with a dock for the former included and one for the latter available as an optional accessory. Better like the sound coming out from your phone or tablet's speakers, too, because the Slate lacks speakers, though the brand's accessory division will gladly hook you up with a set.
Honestly, if you took my last year of comments complaining about privacy-infringing cars and those complaining about changes to what a truck is, this does kind of look to be addressing both. Gotta see what the actual production vehicle is like in real life, of course, but...
When I say the truck is small, I mean it. At 174.6 inches, it’s about 2 feet shorter in overall length than the 2025 Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz. And to use the Wayback Machine to a time when compact pickups were actually compact, it’s roughly the same size as the compact pickups of 1980: the Toyota truck, Chevy LUV and Ford Courier. Notably, no other automakers have offered trucks of this size in America since the mid 1990s.
Yeah, like the "inexpensive, no-frills utility vehicle" that pickups originally were.
because the Slate lacks speakers,
I mean, I get they need to cut costs, but come on.... a damn radio wouldnt have killed them
Honestly, as long as it's easily DIY upgradable (accessible speaker mounting locations, standard DIN panels, etc) I am all for this. Most OEM audio systems are stupidly overpriced and suck complete donkey balls compared to what you can get for a few hundred bucks at Crutchfield and install in an afternoon.
For the last 20 years or so, most factory audio systems are so integrated into the rest of the electronics that they can be an absolute nightmare to upgrade unless you are a pro, which means you get the worst of both worlds: garbage audio, AND a steep upgrade path.
No, the catch is that it isn't real.
@ me when it's rolling off the production line.
Until then...
it will have
you will be able to
Please keep in mind that this is after tax incentives. So let's just assume the tax incentives are zero and call it 27,000 just to be on the safe side.
Looks about right.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a64564869/2027-slate-truck-revealed/
The Slate Truck is a bare-bones EV that's expected to cost a little under $27,500, which can drop to less than $20,000 with the federal EV tax credit included.
Cool but now I’m worried this is being spammed everywhere. New capitalism marketing at foot?
Whoa, now that raised an eyebrow. Doesn't look like the truck bed is ridiculously high. This checks a lot of boxes, and my crap vertebrae agree.
Definitely following this company.
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
