Modern trucks are hellaciously expensive. So expensive that folks are swapping their work trucks for utility side-by-sides in droves, as trucks have become too expensive to fix, too expensive to maintain, and too expensive to beat the ever-living-hell out of. You just can't do truck things with modern trucks, unfortunately.
But UTVs can only get you so far, as not every state in the Union is as cool with them being on public roads as my home state of Utah is. And even then, you can't go on interstates with them. So, for the most part, you still need something to haul your toys around.
Slate, a new fully electric pickup truck company with the backing of Amazon's Jeff Bezos, however, thinks it has the solution to the problem of $100,000 pickups in the form of a back-to-basics, almost UTV-like pickup that'll start at $20,000. That sounds pretty good, but it's when you get to some of the specs that you really start to see how this baby pickup could be a powersport lover's dream truck.
How's a 1,400-pound payload capacity sound? Sounds like you could fit a bunch of bikes into the back, and likely an ATV, too. So long as you're willing to roll the front wheels over the wheel well humps in the bed.
Let's talk specs first. The Slate is powered by a 52.7-kWh battery pack, coupled to a 150 kW motor that only powers the rear wheels, and will launch with a targeted range of about 150 miles. A second battery pack, however, that's 84.3-kWh, will target 240 miles and will be available upon launch according to the company. But at present, it's RWD-only, which for folks who have weather and seasons like I do in Utah, isn't exactly ideal.
You'll be able to get by with good snow tires, but I'd like to see future models with all-wheel drive at a minimum.
It's NACS-supported, meaning you can rock up to a Tesla Supercharger and fuel up, and with which can "fast-charge to 80% at 120-kW in under 30 minutes." Not terrible. Likewise, it'll be a direct-to-consumer sales process, and the company is targeting a starting price of under $20,000 after federal incentives, but doesn't include state incentives. However, that's all still up in the air given the current administration's want to kill those subsidies.
The truck's bed, however, is of more importance to this audience.
Featuring a payload capacity of 1,433 pounds, along with a towing capacity of 1,000 pounds, both figures are more than enough for the diminutive pickup to carry multiple motorcycles, ATVs, or tow a small trailer with a PWC behind it. And for comparison's sake, the Slate's payload is on par with Ford's Maverick and Ranger, the Honda Ridgeline, and Toyota Tacoma (depending on spec, it could actually beat it). Likewise, though small in stature compared to others in length, width, and height, the Slate's bed ain't bad.
Measuring 50 inches wide within the bed, and 60 inches long (81 inches with the tailgate down), that's more than enough for quite a few toys. I could easily see you sticking a couple dirt bikes, a full-sized motorcycle, and even an ATV (depending on spec and make) in the back. It'd be tight for the latter, and you'd had to drive over the wheel well humps, but it's doable. I mean, based on how many Kei trucks I've seen doing the same, and this has similar dimensions as one, why not?
According to Slate's CEO Chris Barman, "The definition of what’s affordable is broken. Slate exists to put the power back in the hands of customers who have been ignored by the auto industry."
Slate says the pickup will be ready for customers at the end of next year. But the question becomes, is this something folks are going to want? And, by proxy, will it affect UTV sales? We'll have to wait and see, as the future is still very murky for the EV world at the moment. At least here in the United States.
