Preview: Bare-Bones All-Electric Slate Truck or SUV Starts Under $25,000
A small two-seat pickup that you can convert to an SUV promises to be an antidote to giant vehicles, high prices, and complex technology
Slate is a new all-electric vehicle brand that will sell only one vehicle: a small, two-door electric pickup truck with virtually no factory options. It doesn’t have an infotainment screen, and it doesn’t even have power windows. Squared-off, "fastback," and "open-air" SUV versions are available, either as factory conversions or do-it-yourself kits.
As trucks get bigger, technology gets more complex, and car prices get higher, Slate has taken a different approach. The vehicle has almost entirely manual controls and very few creature comforts. Truly a small truck, it measures about 2 feet shorter than the Ford Maverick. The entry-level Blank Slate pickup starts at $24,950 before a mandatory destination charge and fees.
Consumer Reports got a chance to check out the Slate truck at an event in New York City. We also paid to reserve a Slate Squareback SUV, with an MSRP of $29,950. It’s expected to arrive at our test track in summer 2027.
Photo: Consumer Reports Photo: Consumer Reports
Photo: Paul Eng/Consumer Reports Photo: Paul Eng/Consumer Reports
Slate EV vs. the Competition
| Slate Pickup | Chevrolet Bolt | Ford Maverick | |
| Type | Electric pickup truck | Electric hatchback | Gas pickup truck |
| Length | 174.6 inches | 169.6 inches | 199.8 inches |
| Width | 70.6 inches | 69.7 inches | 72.6 inches |
| Height | 68 inches | 63.9 inches | 68.8 inches |
| Bed Length | 5 feet | N/A | 4.5 feet |
| Max Payload | 1,550 pounds | N/A | 1,500 pounds |
| EPA Range/MPG | 205 miles | 262 miles | 26 mpg |
| Base Price | $24,950 | $27,600 | $27,145 |
| Standard Active Safety Features | Automatic emergency braking | Automatic emergency braking, Blind-spot warning | Automatic emergency braking |
| Other Standard Features | Air conditioning | Power windows Touchscreen | Power windows Touchscreen |
| Available Options | Wrap Lift kit | Heated and cooled power seats | All-wheel drive Blind-spot warning |
Consumer Reports' Take
Although American consumers seem to vote with their wallets for big trucks and big screens, we often hear from readers who long for simpler, smaller vehicles. We’re glad to see that Slate is giving those buyers an option. The Slate will never be able to tow a horse trailer and it doesn’t offer all-wheel drive, but it’s well suited for weekend warriors, companies that operate fleets of maintenance vehicles, and drivers looking for less-expensive new wheels.
Whether buyers actually opt for a basic Slate over a better-equipped used car or a model from a more established manufacturer remains to be seen. Slate says it’s aiming for top safety ratings and making automatic emergency braking (AEB) standard equipment on every vehicle. However, we wish it also had blind spot warning (BSW), one of the safety systems proven to prevent crashes, especially since the vehicle seems to have very wide roof pillars.
Since the Slate was announced, Ford has said it is also preparing a low-cost electric pickup truck, meaning consumers may soon have a choice in this emerging niche.
Photo: Slate Photo: Slate
Outside
The base Slate looks a lot like the truly compact pickup trucks that were popular in the ’70s and ’80s, like the Chevrolet LUV, Ford Courier, and Datsun 620. It’s a two-door, two-seater that’s just under 70 inches tall and just over 174 inches long—about as long as a Mini Countryman and as tall as a Ford Maverick. The bed is 5 feet long and 42.9 inches wide between the wheel wells, but at least 50 inches wide above them, so it would be possible to fit plywood or drywall with some maneuvering. There’s a 7-cubic-foot frunk for enclosed storage under the hood.
The styling is extremely basic. It comes with 17-inch steel wheels, and the only available paint color is black. There’s a lot of plastic cladding, too. It’s low to the ground, which makes for easy loading, although a lift kit is available. The 5-foot bed is longer than the bed on many current midsized trucks, which have compromised bed length for crew cab configurations.
The Squareback is a traditional boxy SUV, the Fastback has a slanted rear window, and the Open Air kit looks like a Wrangler with the doors and roof off. Every Slate has only two doors, so passengers will have to scoot behind the front seats.
Photo: Paul Eng/Consumer Reports Photo: Paul Eng/Consumer Reports
There’s a huge front trunk, or "frunk," for storage, which comes in handy for a pickup truck. Slate says it can fit at least two rolling carry-on suitcases, and there’s a drain plug at the bottom if you want to fill it with ice to use as a cooler for tailgating.
On the preproduction model we saw, all the doors and the tailgate opened and closed with solid “thunks.” The composite body panels felt sturdy, with no give or bend if you pushed on them hard.
Just as Volkswagen Beetle owners customized their cars in the ’60s and ’70s, turning them into everything from open-air dune buggies to fake Rolls-Royces, Slate has shown several unique configurations for its pickup truck. With enough money and enough accessories, you can build a low rider, a beach cruiser, a work truck, or a family hauler.
Photo: Slate Photo: Slate
Inside
The interior is extremely spartan. You’ll be impressed by the Slate’s creature comforts only if you currently drive a delivery van for UPS or the U.S. Postal Service. There aren’t even vanity mirrors on the sun visors.
There are knobs for climate control (air conditioning comes standard), crank windows, a traditional turn-signal indicator, a column shifter, buttons for cruise control, and a spot to place a phone or tablet. The seats adjust manually (horizontally and vertically), and the steering wheel telescopes and moves up and down. All the manual adjustment levers and knobs feel solidly assembled. The Slate does have power locks.
If you add the SUV kit, you’ll also have to add roll bars that improve strength in a crash but visibly intrude into the rear cargo space. As boxy as the Slate SUV is from the outside, the interior is a bit more curved.
Photo: Slate Photo: Slate
What Drives It
A single 135-kilowatt electric motor drives the rear wheels. All-wheel drive is not an option. Towing capacity is around 2,000 pounds, and the bed can hold about 1,550 pounds. Acceleration from 0 to 60 mph should take a respectable 8 seconds, according to the company’s estimates, and the top speed is 90 mph.
The 63-kilowatt-hour battery pack is claimed to deliver about 205 miles per charge. The Slate comes with a standard Tesla-style NACS charging port. Its maximum charging acceptance rate is 120 kW, which is slower than many newer EVs, and the company says the battery can go from 20 percent to 80 percent charged at a DC fast charger in less than 30 minutes.
Photo: Slate Photo: Slate
Safety and Driver Assistance Systems
Slate says its new EV is designed to achieve five-star safety ratings in NHTSA’s crash tests, which is an admirable goal. However, we’re more interested in how it performs in stricter crash tests from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Front and side curtain airbags come standard, and additional curtain airbags are included in the bolt-on SUV kit.
There’s a difference between technology that claims to make driving less stressful and technology that actually prevents crashes. We wouldn’t mind if the Slate eschewed features like lane centering or adaptive cruise control, which some of our members say can beep relentlessly or steer too aggressively.
However, other features have actually been proven to prevent crashes and injuries. We’re very glad to see that one of these features—AEB—is standard on the Slate, likely due to anticipated federal safety rules. Similarly, a mandatory backup camera is displayed on the screen behind the steering wheel. But blind spot warning is not available.
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