Jeff Bezos-backed startup Slate Auto is launching a barebones electrical truck for simply $20,000 because it requires a return to affordability after years of cussed inflation drove on a regular basis costs up.
Merely known as the Truck, it is available in only one spec, a two-door, two-seater in slate grey. With crank home windows and no leisure system, it’s a blast to the previous – and so is its worth.
“The definition of what’s affordable is broken,” Slate CEO Chris Barman mentioned in an announcement. “Slate exists to put the power back in the hands of customers who have been ignored by the auto industry.”
That $20,000 beginning worth, nevertheless, features a federal EV tax incentive that President Trump has rallied in opposition to.
The Truck’s two-door construction might be become a 5-seat SUV. The truck itself is pretty small – lower than 15 ft lengthy, akin to a 1985 Toyota pickup.
As a substitute of a contemporary leisure system, the Truck has a smartphone mount for telephones and tablets, and optionally available add-on audio system.
The car additionally comes with easy HVAC controls and crank home windows.
Although it’s a plain design, Slate is planning to supply an enormous line of equipment to make the truck customizable, together with wraps and a mattress cap.
Slate’s new truck has a most vary of 150 miles on a single cost, with the choice for a longer-range battery pack that provides as much as 240 miles.
It boasts a zero to 60 miles per hour time of eight seconds, in a position to attain a high pace of 90 miles per hour. The truck produces 201 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque.
Slate mentioned it plans to construct the truck within the US, however has not but introduced a manufacturing unit location. TechCrunch reported the plant is in Indiana.
Bezos, together with Los Angeles Dodgers proprietor Mark Walter and billionaire investor Thomas Tull, helped Slate increase $111 million for the undertaking, in response to TechCrunch.
The vehicles are usually not anticipated to be delivered to clients till late 2026, however they are often reserved for a refundable $50 payment.
