A new truck (or it can be an SUV), with no paint, but can be any color, no frills, with a low base price, inspired me to hop on a train to New York City to see it in person on display at a block party in Greenwich Village Aug. 2.
The Slate, a truck born out of a group of investors who created Slate Auto, is described on its website slate.auto as “the most personalizable, radically simple vehicle out there. A Slate is a two-door electric pickup truck that’s thoughtfully designed and engineered to be customized again and again to transform into whatever you need it to be: even an SUV. And it’s designed to be radically affordable, expected to be priced in the mid-twenties.”
And it has some solid financial backing. Newsweek reported in May that the company has received $700 million in funding from numerous investors, including Jeff Bezos-backed Bezos Expeditions.
And it has some solid public interest. In the first couple weeks, a $50 refundable reservation was offered, and 100,000 people reserved. After I posted a couple of pictures to my personal social media on the train ride home, the comments and likes flooded in from all demographics of people.
I have always liked simple, low-cost vehicles, which are all but extinct on new car lots.
My current rides are a 2022 Ford Maverick hybrid, a manual transmission Ford Fiesta left over from the last decade before reliable, cheap cars went away and an antique 1994 Toyota 4×4 Pickup that mostly sleeps in the garage, but never goes away because it never needs repairs and it reminds me of carefree times rolling through Colorado and Alaska 30 years ago.
It isn’t just low price, but simplicity that I find attractive in a vehicle, and Slate Auto is onto something.
The truck is expected to go on sale in late 2026.