It’s going to be very interesting. Has Slate identified an under-served market? Will they see mainstream success?
Or is this another iPhone Mini / Framework / sports wagon where a small, passionate minority ends up disappointed and angry that their priorities are not shared by the mainstream?
I sincerely hope for the former. We need lower-cost vehicles, I like diverse product offerings, and this is a purist’s take on a small truck. But then I like small phones, (the idea of) repairable laptops, and sports wagons.
The iPhone mini was reasonably successful; it shipped more units than Framework has in the life of the company (about 15m iPhone minis based on reports of if being ~4% of iPhone 12 and 13 sales, vs hard to find estimates of Framework but none over 1m).
Framework is making a go of being a niche provider, which is great. But they are currently estimated to have less than 0.1% of the laptop market.
It doesn't require an app, hell if you even want a modem in it you need to pay extra.
Edit: it only needs an app for updates, which isn't notably different than taking you older pre-modem cars into the dealer for updates. Also I can't find any evidence that the base model even has a GPS built in.
It's most likely will have comms. And it will make 0 difference for most people. Having your most expensive asset NOT have basic tracking is insanity. That said I'm all in for all of this to be easily disabled even tho I struggle to find a valid reason (in actual dictatorships you are fucked multiple ways anyway and in democratic ones you are about to do crime).
I’ve never been a truck person, if I hadn’t just bought a car 3 years ago, I’d be eyeing this. If it’s still around and remaining true to form when I’m ready for my next vehicle it will be a serious contender.
Working from home, I don’t drive much. If I could not have a car at all, I would. Having a no frills truck, that’s isn’t an old beater in constant need of repair and maintenance, sounds really nice.
Your other question is about.. bed vibes? That's not a real spec (for any truck builder). You can put a 100x4 sheet rock in any 4'+ wide bed.. best of luck to the person behind you. Don't forget the red flag (day) or light (at night).. in north america.
The width is 50 some inches but the wheel wells are there so you may need some 2x4 or something to keep plywood from flexing over them. And the length of the bed isn’t near 8 feet so you’d need the bed open and the boards strapped in.
This truck is remining me of the Yugo. When the Yugos were announced people were thrilled about the price. Unfortunately after they were in use people understood why they were so cheap, quality suffered and they were basically disposable cars. Cheap is nice in theory but eventually you wish for something a bit better.
I actually think it is not cheap enough. Start adding basic, standard features and the price doesn’t look as competitive against legacy manufacturers. Do those manufacturers offer an equivalently cheap EV today? Maybe, but probably not. Though they could, and if they did, Slate is probably toast.
It seems unlikely they'll be like the Yugo. That car was produced in a low quality factory. This is a modern product from Jeff Bezos that has fewer parts, not just cheap, poorly made parts. Yugo was Yugoslavia's only car manufacturer. Slate competes with all the other US brands so it can't just be total garbage going in. That wouldn't make sense.
Yes, it's a very different environment from the state-run Yugo company that was a product of socialism and never could compete successfully in the market. That's not the situation for Mr. Bezos.
Price is nice to see. The cab design is from before the '90s though. That's to say, not much space and rather plain.
Also, like many contemporary vehicles it still has that snubbed nose design that limits vision of low profile objects in front of the vehicle. It's a design choice, not a necessity. Wonder why given it was a blank slate design,
Many people will be pleased to have a vehicle with no communication, sensor, or surveillance systems.
It's hard to estimate how important that might be now that all other cars force them on everyone.
It’s going to be very interesting. Has Slate identified an under-served market? Will they see mainstream success?
Or is this another iPhone Mini / Framework / sports wagon where a small, passionate minority ends up disappointed and angry that their priorities are not shared by the mainstream?
I sincerely hope for the former. We need lower-cost vehicles, I like diverse product offerings, and this is a purist’s take on a small truck. But then I like small phones, (the idea of) repairable laptops, and sports wagons.
Strange to put Framework in this category... They seem reasonably successful and even the company I work at is switching to them.
The iPhone mini was reasonably successful; it shipped more units than Framework has in the life of the company (about 15m iPhone minis based on reports of if being ~4% of iPhone 12 and 13 sales, vs hard to find estimates of Framework but none over 1m).
Framework is making a go of being a niche provider, which is great. But they are currently estimated to have less than 0.1% of the laptop market.
You must be very naive to think that this app that you would need for this vehicle won’t do all that.
It doesn't require an app, hell if you even want a modem in it you need to pay extra.
Edit: it only needs an app for updates, which isn't notably different than taking you older pre-modem cars into the dealer for updates. Also I can't find any evidence that the base model even has a GPS built in.
Interesting. Well hope this is what lands. Tracking all metrics and location is a bit out of control
> a vehicle with no communication, sensor, or surveillance systems
Do we know that? The website seems silent on the topic, unless I've missed something.
As we used to say in the car business, "it comes with a heater and paint."
In this case, not even paint, but you can buy decals and wraps.
It's most likely will have comms. And it will make 0 difference for most people. Having your most expensive asset NOT have basic tracking is insanity. That said I'm all in for all of this to be easily disabled even tho I struggle to find a valid reason (in actual dictatorships you are fucked multiple ways anyway and in democratic ones you are about to do crime).
Gotta get a GPS for my house lol
I’ve never been a truck person, if I hadn’t just bought a car 3 years ago, I’d be eyeing this. If it’s still around and remaining true to form when I’m ready for my next vehicle it will be a serious contender.
Working from home, I don’t drive much. If I could not have a car at all, I would. Having a no frills truck, that’s isn’t an old beater in constant need of repair and maintenance, sounds really nice.
Does it fit a standard 4x8 sheet flat with the tailgate down?
(Anyone seen detailed dimensions specs?)
Not flat between the wheel wells (42.9"), but on top of them. There's a photo (don't know if it's real though).
https://www.slateforums.com/forum/threads/slate-truck-dimens...
Easily found: https://www.slate.auto/en/specs
None of that seems to answer my question.
the bed is listed as 5 feet long, and the entire truck a bit under 6 feet wide. so I don't think you can get something thats 4x8 feet to lay flat.
Detailed dimension specs are.. right there.
Your other question is about.. bed vibes? That's not a real spec (for any truck builder). You can put a 100x4 sheet rock in any 4'+ wide bed.. best of luck to the person behind you. Don't forget the red flag (day) or light (at night).. in north america.
Only the bed length is listed there. It’s insufficient data to determine whether a full size sheet of plywood will fit.
It seems like not quite.
The width is 50 some inches but the wheel wells are there so you may need some 2x4 or something to keep plywood from flexing over them. And the length of the bed isn’t near 8 feet so you’d need the bed open and the boards strapped in.
This jalopnik article had some helpful measurements: https://www.jalopnik.com/1845231/slate-pickup-bed-fit-every-...
Discussion (296 points, 2 days ago, 463 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48659451
Easiest decision ever to skip the infotainment system - your phone is better at that anyway.
The Slate is like the original Nintendo Wii - swapping sophistication for fun.
This truck is remining me of the Yugo. When the Yugos were announced people were thrilled about the price. Unfortunately after they were in use people understood why they were so cheap, quality suffered and they were basically disposable cars. Cheap is nice in theory but eventually you wish for something a bit better.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yugo
I actually think it is not cheap enough. Start adding basic, standard features and the price doesn’t look as competitive against legacy manufacturers. Do those manufacturers offer an equivalently cheap EV today? Maybe, but probably not. Though they could, and if they did, Slate is probably toast.
It seems unlikely they'll be like the Yugo. That car was produced in a low quality factory. This is a modern product from Jeff Bezos that has fewer parts, not just cheap, poorly made parts. Yugo was Yugoslavia's only car manufacturer. Slate competes with all the other US brands so it can't just be total garbage going in. That wouldn't make sense.
Bezos is just an investor; he played little part in its design or engineering.
Yes, it's a very different environment from the state-run Yugo company that was a product of socialism and never could compete successfully in the market. That's not the situation for Mr. Bezos.
I also wonder if it will develop a negative stigma as a cheap beater truck used in company fleets and such.
Price is nice to see. The cab design is from before the '90s though. That's to say, not much space and rather plain.
Also, like many contemporary vehicles it still has that snubbed nose design that limits vision of low profile objects in front of the vehicle. It's a design choice, not a necessity. Wonder why given it was a blank slate design,
is this vehicle actually available for purchase at $24,950?
Preorder shipping late 2026