Alright, we get it. Y’all are enthusiastic about Slate. We thought the little Slate Truck was cool, however primarily based on the variety of clicks and feedback on our Slate Auto articles to date, you’d wish to know extra. Lots of you wrote in with questions and various folks raised some doubts.
So, we wished to handle as lots of these as we might. Right here’s your one-stop store for Slate solutions primarily based in your questions — plus a couple of of our personal.
What are the Slate’s full specs, and the way does it examine to a Ford Maverick or F-150?
The Slate is clearly a automobile constructed for on a regular basis utility, and whereas it’ll make for a helpful machine for hauling a whole lot of issues, massive towing and heavy cargo had been clearly not a prime precedence. Listed here are the important thing specs, in contrast towards the four-wheel drive hybrid Ford Maverick with the two.5-liter engine and a Ford F-150 4×2 with a 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6.
| Slate Truck | Ford Maverick | Ford F-150 | |
| Horsepower (hp) | 201 | 191 | 325 |
| Curb weight (lbs) | 3,602 | 3,674 | 4,171 |
| Max payload (lbs) | 1,433 | 1,500 | 1,775 |
| Max towing (lbs) | 1,000 | 2,000 | 8,400 |
| Mattress size (ft) | 5 | 4.5 | 5.5, 6.5, or 8 |
| Mattress width (max / min, in) | 50 / 54.9 | 42.6 / 53.3 | 50.6 / 66.9 |
| Seats | 2 | 5 | 5 |
It’s value noting that these Ford numbers range broadly primarily based on configuration. For instance, you may get a “4K Tow Package deal” on the Maverick that reinforces towing to 4,000 lbs, and the F-150 has lots of of variations relying on want. Max towing on an F-150 is 13,500 lbs. The numbers above characterize the figures quoted by Ford for a base, option-free automobile.
And one closing observe: towing considerably reduces the effectivity of the tow automobile, because of the weight of the trailer and its extra aerodynamic drag. For an electrical automobile just like the Slate, that may certainly end in lowered vary, maybe by as a lot as half relying on the trailer.
The place will the automobile be manufactured?
Slate has confirmed manufacturing will happen in a former catalog printing facility in Warsaw, Indiana, which closed in 2023. Slate hopes to renovate the power and finally make use of 2,000 employees, with an annual manufacturing quantity of 150,000 automobiles. And the corporate is looking for tax abatements on the manufacturing facility website from the county authorities to start building. Full particulars on that right here.
That home manufacturing ought to imply that automobiles produced by Slate are eligible for the complete $7,500 federal rebate — if the credit score nonetheless exists late subsequent yr when the Truck enters manufacturing.
Does the Slate Truck have a mobile connection?
No, the Slate Truck doesn’t have built-in mobile connectivity. LTE is an more and more frequent function in new vehicles, enabling auto producers to do all types of stuff, together with good issues like software program updates and a few maybe not so good issues like promoting your driving information.
For the previous, o-the-air updates will nonetheless be potential by way of the Slate smartphone app. Updates can be downloaded to the cellphone after which pushed to the Slate Truck by way of USB cable. As for the latter, that leads us to our subsequent query.
Will Slate harvest and promote my driving information?
Not your driving information, no, however you may add information concerning the well being of your automobile. Jeff Jablansky, Slate Auto’s head of public relations and communications, gave us this instance:
“A ‘test engine’ gentle comes on: if the motive force has their cellphone plugged in and has opted in to information motion, the corporate will ship a notification to the Slate app to allow them to concentrate on potential service wants.”
Jablansky confirmed that no information can be bought to 3rd events.
Can I precondition my Slate Truck?
One of many joys of proudly owning a contemporary EV is simple preconditioning. No matter the place your automotive is parked, you may get the inside warmed up or cooled down from just some faucets in your smartphone, all with out having to fret about filling your storage with carbon monoxide.
Are you able to do this within the Slate Truck? Possibly. The dearth of mobile connection means you received’t have the ability to wirelessly hook up with your Truck from anyplace, however Jablansky didn’t rule it out solely, saying, “That is one thing we’re engaged on by the app.”
Will Slate make fashions out there for designing 3D-printed equipment?
Able to obtain some STL/3MF information as we speak and begin designing your final cupholder? Us, too, however we’ll have to be affected person for a bit of bit. “The Maker neighborhood is extremely vital to Slate, and we’re on observe towards delivering on this dedication nearer to launch,” Jablansky says.
So keep tuned on that entrance. Jablansky says this may also embody particulars on third-party accent suppliers and licensing.
Why didn’t Slate use normal DIN slots for ease of putting in audio?
The DIN slot, also referred to as the ISO 7736 or Deutsches Institut für Normung 75490 slot, has lengthy been the usual for in-dash audio. Why, then, are there no DIN slots on the Slate Truck? Slate says it was to supply larger flexibility. “We wished to permit the client to select and select their equipment with out forcing mixtures of choices collectively in packages. This involves life in our audio technique to permit clients to decide on to put in something from a Bluetooth speaker to a full audio system,” Jablansky says.
So the dangerous information is if you wish to use a regular DIN receiver, then you definately’ll have to DIY an enclosure for it. The excellent news is in case you simply wish to mount a Bluetooth sound bar, then you definately received’t have to fret about filling any gaping rectangular holes within the dashboard.
Picture: Slate Auto
Is a extra superior lively driver help system within the works?
No. “In keeping with our broader method, we targeted our engineering to make a Slate an excellent truck to drive,” Jablansky says.
Preserve these arms on the wheel, of us.
Why select a Truck to start out as a substitute of a sedan or compact SUV?
Price and ease, it seems. Jablansky says that “a two-door type issue meant much less materials, much less complexity, decrease price.” He provides that the lockable frunk means there’s sedan-like safe storage on your stuff, with the additional advantage of a giant mattress out again. And, after all, you may add on the SUV equipment in case you want extra seating or extra coated storage.
Will any particular instruments be required for any of the DIY upgrades and add-ons?
Per Jablansky, particular instruments will not be anticipated to be required.
Will this factor actually promote for $20,000? What about tariffs? What if the EV incentives go away?
It’s a dynamic world and dynamic trade on the market proper now, however Slate isn’t backing down. “We’re dedicated to our anticipated value level of $20,000 after federal incentives,” Jablansky says, which suggests an MSRP of roughly $27,500. “If incentives go away, Slate will stay well-positioned within the U.S. with a robust proposition of worth, security, and customization.”
Will these attributes be sufficient to woo folks away from a Ford Maverick, which begins at simply over $28,000? We’ll have to attend and see.
Jablansky says that Slate can be dedicated to US manufacturing, which ought to fend off a lot of the tariff fears, and that the corporate remains to be on observe to start out manufacturing in 2026.
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