The Clean Slate can have a curb weight of three,600 kilos, with a payload capability of 1,430 kilos. Rated towing capability is listed at 1,000 kilos—considerably lower than the 4,000-pound most towing capability within the new 2025 Ford Maverick Hybrid AWD, which has a smaller cargo mattress however 4 doorways for the bigger cab.
Visually, the Slate follows the upright, horizontal, square-edged profile of the traditional two-seat American pickup truck—although rendered in miniature when in comparison with the full-size US pickups from Ford, GM, and Ram that collectively promote virtually 3 million models per yr. It appears to be like one thing like a retro Ford Ranger from the Nineteen Eighties, versus the extra car-like styling of the Hyundai Santa Fe, the one different small pickup supplied within the US in addition to the Ford Maverick.
Dimensionally, the Slate is smaller than the Maverick: It’s 175 inches lengthy, 71 inches vast (not together with the mirrors), and 69 inches tall. That compares to the Maverick’s 200-inch size, 73-inch width (once more with out mirrors), and 68- or 69-inch top. Slate provides a full 60-inch (5-foot) mattress, versus the Maverick’s 54 inches. (Each measurements are with the tailgate raised.) Whereas the Maverick has no entrance trunk (it has an engine as an alternative), the Slate’s entrance trunk provides 7 cubic ft of storage on prime of the 37 cubic ft within the cargo mattress (or 34 cubic ft within the SUV’s load bay).
Buyer Satisfaction
Barman stated Slate will goal retail patrons to determine the model and get as many personalised vehicles on the highway as potential to spice up public consciousness. Slate’s EVs will even be offered to company prospects buying the automobiles for fleets, Barman says, although she declined to supply a breakdown of what percentages of gross sales Slate estimates will go to these two sectors.
We additionally didn’t discuss this, but it surely’s value mentioning: Slate vehicles might conceivably even be offered to Amazon. The connection is sensible, since Slate Auto emerged from a startup lab partially funded by Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos. The web retailer already deploys tens of 1000’s of Rivian EV supply vans, however a smaller EV might serve its functions for particular makes use of as properly.
Echoes of the Previous
As Mark Twain as soon as quipped, maybe apocryphally: Historical past doesn’t repeat itself, but it surely usually rhymes. Anybody who’s been following the auto enterprise for about 20 years might have learn Slate’s information and sensed a faint echo, a distant and long-forgotten reminiscence tugging on the corners of their minds.