The uphill climb for Slate Auto, the newest kid on the EV block, just became a little steeper. At least $7,500 steeper due to the elimination of federal EV credits this week. With the promise of an affordable, sub-$20,000 electric truck, all mention of that important offer has disappeared from the companyβs website.
From the outset, Slate has been rightly positioned as a David in an automotive world full of Goliaths, even among other EV automakers and startups. For one thing, its vehicle is small and only offers two doors. The base truckβs overall footprint is comparable to that of a 1985 Toyota SR85 pickup rather than a modern compact truck like the Ford Maverick. However, its key selling point is that the Blank Slate truck is just that: a dirt-cheap vehicle you can customize as much or as little as you like.
And by dirt-cheap, I mean less than $20,000. That originally-advertised price carried an asterisk, of course, which in a tiny-font footnote read βafter federal incentives.β At least before today. Below is a screenshot of the Slate homepage from July 1, courtesy of the Wayback Machine:
That changed when Capitol Hill passed the βbig, beautiful bill,β which features, among its spending and tax cuts, the discontinuation of incentives toward new and used EV purchases. EV buyers have until the end of September to take advantage of the rebates ($7,500 for new EVs and $4,000 for used). H/T to TechCrunch for being the first to call out the website pricing change.
The EV credits were never meant to be a forever freebie. Although they help in bringing EV prices down, affordability is not exactly synonymous with electric. Itβs an even wider gap to bridge if trying to appeal as a vehicle for the masses. But with the coupon crutch gone, a βcheapβ but no-frills EV truck might be a tougher sell. As Autopian Editor-in-Chief David Tracy pointed out in April:
To be sure, EV incentives would bring the Slateβs price down below $20,000, which is cheap for any new car, but given the precarious nature of the $7,500 new clean-vehicle incentive, itβs possible this new Slate will cost consumers over $27 big ones when it launches in late 2026. And $27+ grand for a car with no paint, no infotainment system, and no radio is just not competitiveΒ at all.
Have you seen how much car you get when you buy a $21,895 Chevy Trax or $21,885 Kia Soul?
(β¦)
We also have to talk about theΒ otherΒ small pickup truck built by an American company: The Ford Maverick. Though the 2024 model cost about the same as the Slate, the 2025 model is now up to $29,285 for the hybrid and $29,860 for the turbo four.
Thatβs a bit more change, though the Maverick is clearly at least five grand more car, with the turbo four-cylinder coming with an eight-speed automatic that will help Iget the truck to 60 mph in under 6.5 seconds compared to the Slateβs 8 seconds (which is about the same as the 38 MPG hybrid Maverickβs 0-60). But itβs not the acceleration that matters, itβs the standardΒ four doorsΒ (which is huge to U.S. consumers) and other standard content.
Nevertheless, Slateβs decidedly different product strategy and coolness factor were enough to garner more than 100,000 handraisers after the vehicleβs unveiling, with each person plunking down 50 bucks for a reservation. Autopian Publisher Matt Hardigree was one of them:
Why did I reserve one? I think the idea of a super cheap electric truck is great and, at the earliest, this truck will be available at the end of next year, which gives me time to merely enjoy the idea of it.
Of course, his praise came with its own asterisk:
Whatβs important to me is the pricing of all the little additions. If this ends up being a $35k truck, with no tax credit, after all my options thenβ¦ Iβm probably out. If some tax credit is in place and I can finance at a reasonable rate then Iβd consider it. For the moment, Iβm only out $50.
Well, that $50 reservation fee is fully refundable, so Hardigree would really just lose the time heβs spent thinking about owning the truck. As for the price, Slate never provided a hard number. Today, its website lists the truckβs expected MSRP as βmid-twenties.β That can change again any number of times between now and when the first trucks roll off the line next year. And again, even after that.
What makes the Slate truck and SUV so intriguing is the unique ownership experience and simplicity. Keep it stock or wrap the shell, bring your own music and touchscreen, change the headlight cover design, or make it an open-top β the options are endless.
Too bad most of us donβt have bottomless bank accounts. Although the Slate customization choices are unlikely to change much, the price point comparison to the hybrid Maverick and gas-only Hyundai Santa Cruz gets ever closer. Or as EIC Tracy matter-of-factly put it:
And it seems to me that Slate is relying too heavily on the EV rebate sticking around and tariffs cranking up the prices of other cars in the segment. Because if itβs between even a $3-5K pricier Ford Maverick β which comes with paint, an infotainment system, power windows, and a 120-year old company reputation β and a bare-bones, two-door Slate that can only go 150 miles on a charge, itβs pretty obvious which one is the better βpeopleβs car.β
With the charging infrastructure in no hurry to improve and EVs, in general, turning out to be less popular than hoped, what does Slateβs future look like? Can the company succeed on cool-factor alone?
Top graphic image: Slate Auto
