Right then. The world’s gone electric. Fine. We’ve got silent Teslas sneaking up on pedestrians and electric Porsches that are faster than God’s own thunder. But now, it seems, just being electric isn’t enough. Now they want cars to be… modular. Like Lego, but heavier and probably more frustrating. And cheap. Allegedly.
Enter Slate Electric Vehicles. Never heard of ‘em? Join the club. Another startup elbowing its way into the EV scrum, funded partly by Jeff Bezos chucking a cool $100 million their way – presumably because conquering space wasn't expensive enough. This lot thinks it's got a truly brilliant idea. Instead of selling you a truck or an SUV, they want to sell you a truck… that becomes an SUV. Yes, really. They call it the Slate Truck, and it’s apparently more of a base unit onto which you bolt different personalities. Today, a pickup! Tomorrow, after some spanner work and probably a fair bit of swearing, a family wagon!
The big headline? A $20,000 starting price! Sounds amazing, until you see the asterisk. That’s after incentives, meaning you need the government to chip in a hefty chunk. What’s the real price before the taxpayer helps out? They’re less keen to shout about that. Oh, and another small detail: they don’t actually have a factory yet to build the things in. Minor hurdle, I'm sure Bezos's pocket money can sort that. Still, they promise a simple, customizable electric pickup. It's got a single motor driving the rear wheels only (because who needs traction?), a modest battery, and this party trick of swapping its backside.
This isn't just about 0-60 anymore; it's about whether the damn thing seals properly when you bolt the roof on, and whether they can even build it. Let’s have a look.
From Load Lugger to People Carrier: The Big Swap
So, how does this miracle occur? Well, underneath it’s the usual electric skateboard – batteries flat on the floor, motors tucked away. Good. That leaves the top bit free for shenanigans. The ‘SUV kit’ is basically a posh truck cap taken to the extreme: a roof, side windows, a back door, probably some seats. You bolt this lot onto where the pickup bed was. Simple!
Except… it probably isn’t. They say it’s manageable. But what does that mean? An hour? Half a day? Given the base truck has a claimed payload of around 1,400 pounds (about 635 kg – not bad for its size) and a pathetic towing capacity of roughly 1,000 pounds (450 kg – my ride-on mower might beat that), you're not exactly starting with a workhorse brute anyway. The real question is whether adding the SUV kit makes it completely useless for carrying anything heavier than a week's shopping.
And the join… that’s the tricky bit. This isn't just clicking bricks together. It needs to be strong, waterproof, maybe even have wiring for lights and wipers in the tailgate. Get that wrong, and you’ve got leaks, rattles, drafts, and electrical gremlins. It'll feel less like a clever transforming car and more like a shed bolted to a truck.
An SUV Then? Let’s See About That…
Bolt the kit on, and voilà! Instant SUV… allegedly. You get back seats – but are they proper seats for actual humans, or just upholstered benches suitable for small children? Getting in and out might be awkward too.
The open bed (a small 37 cubic feet) becomes a boot. Secure? Yes. Weatherproof? Hopefully. But is it as big or useful as the boot in a proper SUV? Probably not. Especially when you consider the base truck only offers 34 cubic feet behind the front seats and a tiny 7 cubic feet in the frunk. It's not exactly cavernous to begin with. This whole truck is surprisingly dinky, measuring just 174.6 inches long – that's shorter than a Ford Maverick or even a modern Mini Countryman! It's practically a toy.
And crucially, does it feel like an SUV inside? Is it quiet? Warm? Or does wind whistle through the joins? Early drives (if they ever happen) will tell all. If the back bit feels like a cheap add-on, then it’s just a glorified, very expensive truck topper on a budget EV.
The Inevitable Catch: Performance, Range, and Reality (Prepare for Disappointment)
Right, physics and finances. You can’t just bolt several hundred pounds of extra kit onto a vehicle, make it boxier, start with distinctly average specs, and expect miracles. Especially not at this price point.
Let's talk range. The standard battery is a mere 52.7 kWh, giving a claimed 150 miles. That's barely enough to get you out of town and back. You can option a larger 84.3 kWh battery for 240 miles, which is better, but still hardly class-leading. Now, add the weight and drag of the SUV kit. How much range will that gobble up? 10%? 20%? Suddenly, that 150-mile base model might struggle to do 120 miles with the family wagon top on. Crippling.
Performance? Don't expect fireworks. The single 150 kW motor gives an estimated 0-60 mph time of 8 seconds. Pedestrian. Top speed? 90 mph. Adequate, I suppose, but hardly thrilling. Adding the SUV weight will only blunt this further. And with that 1,000 lb towing capacity, you’ll be struggling to pull the skin off a rice pudding.
Charging? It uses the NACS port (Tesla's standard), which is good. But it maxes out at 120 kW for DC fast charging (20-80% in under 30 mins, they claim). Okay, but not lightning fast. Level 2 charging takes under 5 hours (20-100%), and Level 1 (plugging into a regular wall socket) takes a yawn-inducing 11 hours.
Let's put it bluntly:
- Truck Mode: Small, light-ish, RWD only. Modest range (150/240 miles), feeble towing (1000 lbs), okay payload (1400 lbs), adequate performance (0-60 ~8s). Cheap-ish (maybe).
- SUV Mode: Heavier, draggier. Less range, less payload, same feeble towing, probably slower. Still RWD only. Still small. Costs more (you have to buy the kit).
- Proper eSUV/Truck: Usually bigger, often AWD, much better range, proper towing/payload, faster charging, more refined. Costs more (probably).
The Slate offers a compromise on a budget platform. Is it a good compromise, or just… compromised everywhere?
Who On Earth Is Going To Buy This? (Apart from Jeff Bezos?)
So, who is the target? Someone who genuinely needs both a tiny pickup and a small SUV, can live with the low range and performance, doesn't need AWD, doesn't tow anything heavy, has somewhere to store the bits they're not using, and is convinced by that headline price (ignoring the asterisk and the cost of the extra kit)?
It sounds like a solution for people whose lives are incredibly varied, or incredibly constrained by budget and space. Or maybe it's for someone who likes the idea of swapping configurations more than the reality, especially given the low base specs.
Let's be honest, if you need real truck capability, this isn't it. If you want a comfortable, practical family SUV with decent range, you'll buy something else. This Slate thing, especially at under 175 inches long, is competing more with compact crossovers than serious trucks or SUVs. Its main appeal seems to be "it's electric, it's cheap(ish), and it does a weird trick."
But the "hassle factor" and the "actually building it factor" are huge. If swapping takes hours, or if the company struggles to even start production, its appeal evaporates faster than petrol on a hot day.
Standing Out, Or Just Standing Awkwardly?
Compared to any serious electric SUV or truck, the Slate looks underpowered, short-ranged, and basic. Its specs are closer to entry-level electric cars than capable utility vehicles. Its small size puts it in a different league altogether.
Compared to simply buying a small, cheap petrol pickup like a Ford Maverick and putting a cap on it? The Slate is electric, which is a plus for some. But the petrol truck will likely tow more, have longer range, refuel in minutes, and actually exist in showrooms.
Its unique selling point is that transformation trick tied to a low-ish entry price. But it’s a USP built on a foundation of significant compromises – range, power, size, capability, and the big unknown of whether the modularity works reliably, or if the company can even get off the ground.
So, Is It Brilliant… Or Rubbish Funded by Space Billions?
The Slate Truck trying to be an SUV is ambitious, bordering on bonkers, especially given its budget aspirations and lack of a factory. The idea of one cheap(ish) vehicle doing multiple jobs is appealing. It could be a clever, affordable solution for a specific niche.
But… the execution has to be flawless, and they have to actually build it. The base vehicle's specs are already modest. The SUV kit will compromise them further. It needs to be easy to convert, reliable, and the final price (including the kit, before incentives) needs to be genuinely compelling. Get any of that wrong, and it’s just an under-specced, overly complex novelty item backed by optimistic venture capital.
Will it succeed? Finding buyers who accept the low range, feeble towing, small size, RWD-only layout, and want the modularity and trust a company without a factory yet? That's a tall order. Maybe Bezos's $100 million buys enough time and engineers to pull it off. Or maybe it just becomes an expensive footnote.
It’s a fascinating, slightly desperate-sounding experiment. Maybe this kind of budget modularity is the answer for some. Or maybe it’s just proving that you really do get what you pay for, even when it comes with a famous billionaire's backing and a transformation gimmick. We wait, with considerable skepticism, to see if any actually hit the road.