Bezos-backed Slate Truck is a £20,000 electric pick-up
US EV start-up Slate Auto has revealed plans for a back-to-basics electric pick-up truck costing the equivalent of just £20,000.
The new brand, backed by Amazon’s billionaire boss Jeff Bezos, says it aims to “redefine personalised transportation” and create “an EV for everyone” with the Slate Truck.
The definition of what’s affordable is broken,” said Slate CEO Chris Barman.“Slate exists to put the power back in the hands of customers who have been ignored by the auto industry.”
Launched without fanfare, the Slate Truck is a relatively compact and basic all-electric pick-up truck whose makers say will cost from under $20,000 after federal incentives.
True to Slate’s cheap and simple claims, the Truck comes in just one specification and with a basic equipment list that includes wind-up windows, 17-inch steel wheels and a smartphone mount in place of a complicated infotainment system.
However, Slate says the Truck is open to huge levels of customisation through different exterior wraps for the single piece composite body panels and more than 100 accessories, including a dedicated tablet screen system.
Slate even boasts the two-seat Truck can become a five-seat SUV thanks to a flat-pack conversion kit that can be fitted at home.
The Slate Truck will come with two powertrain options. Standard vehicles will use a 52.7kWh battery pack providing around 150 miles of range. That’s presumably on America’s tougher EPA test. An optional 84.3kWh battery pack will provide a targeted range of 240 miles.
Both variants will be rear-wheel-drive, using a 201bhp motor that will allow a 90mph top speed and an eight-second 0-60mph run. Both will also rapid charge at up to 120kW, allowing a 10-80% top-up in 30 minutes.
The truck is significantly smaller than the usual hulking American pick-ups. At 4.4m long (175 inches) and around 1,600kg (3,600lb), it’s 1.5m shorter than a Ford F-150 Lightning and smaller even than European models such as the Ford Ranger. This compact size and basic EV powertrain is reflected in a 650kg (1,433lb) payload and towing capacity of just 453kg (1,000lb).
Michigan-based Slate says the Truck will be built in an as-yet-unnamed “reindustrialised factory” in America’s Mid-West, meaning it will avoid the tariffs on imported vehicles introduced by President Donald Trump.
Launched without any pre-emptive hype, $50 reservations are now open for the Slate Truck. Sadly for buyers in the rest of the world, the innovative EV appears to be bound only for the US market.
