Fused 12 VDC access in the dash would be nice.

[RetiredOnPaper]

Or a marked "drill here" or better yet a punch out to access the 12 V battery and perhaps mounting for a fuse block. This would be more in keeping with the DIY mindset.

 

[solartogo]

Lots of external 12V accessories exist, so having a standard "cigarette lighter" (now often referred to as a "power point") socket would be useful, at least as an option.

Which makes me wonder if there is still an ashtray in modern cars, and specifically in the blank Slate, as I haven't seen mention of such. As a non-smoker, I generally use the ashtray only for storage, so other storage spots suffice.

 

[Kit352]

I've just assumed they would have a 12v\5v power center in place in the dash already. If they are counting on people using phones and tablets and Bluetooth speakers for everything they would have to have added in the ability to charge them, including a standard 12v outlet. To do otherwise would be foolish.

 

[metroshot]

Be very careful what you put on to the 12V bus.

EVs are notorious for low 12V issues.

My Ford EV has a stop sale / recall for the 12V going low and trapping people in the car !

I put in a small 12V 12Ah gel cell battery that is solar charged to power my UHF and VHF 2way radios.

 

[Luxrage]

I'm hoping for a simple hot and ground bus inside the dashboard. I have only two interior accessories I'd like to wire up and it would make it way easier to have those.

 

[Imhotep]

Cigarette lighter was between the center and RH console on the Slate I saw:

 

[RetiredOnPaper]

Be very careful what you put on to the 12V bus.

EVs are notorious for low 12V issues.

My Ford EV has a stop sale / recall for the 12V going low and trapping people in the car !

I put in a small 12V 12Ah gel cell battery that is solar charged to power my UHF and VHF 2way radios.

They already said there will not be a hot 12 VDC supply without the "key" being on. My Yeasu FT-817 has its own battery pack. For my first project with the Slate I will use my old AM car radio from the '60s AM only, no need for internal memory-no clock, station "memory" is mechanical push buttons.

Using a cell phone or a tablet of course will be what they plan for, but, there are many configurations and sizes of those and I hope they offer different sizes of robust "holders".

I will wait until I get my blank Slate to experiment with. I might rig up a 48VDC pack with a DC to DC down converter. Or just build a separate Li-Ion 12V pack on a second charging circuit. Just to see how far I can push their DIY concept.

BTW, the beauty of the Slate is a 12V fail will not lock you out or in. And you can still roll down the window.

 

[metroshot]

.......BTW, the beauty of the Slate is a 12V fail will not lock you out or in. And you can still roll down the window.

You have to be extra careful not to connect: accessories, cigarette lighter stuff, USB phone chargers, nor any parasitic drawing 12V energy on an EV like dash cams, garage door openers, etc....

With all EVs, the 12V battery is the weakest point - causing all types of issues with engaging/starting the EV motors, unlocking door locks, releasing electronic parking brakes, and on board CPU failure which will not allow it "move".

My 12V battery in the Ford EVs have been small 35AH AGM batteries not meant for cranking on an ICE starter, but to allow it to power up the on board electronics.

Here's how small these EV 12V batteries are:

NOTE:
Once the 12V charge drops to a certain point, it won't start, unlock nor allow it be place in neutral for towing. And the worst part is that it drops all comms to the servers for diagnostics or remote starting or unlocking.

Hoping the 12V is easy to access for trickle charger, battery pack boost pack, or plain old fashioned jump starting.

Thus any 12V / USB A / USB C accessory I plan on installing will have it's own 12V supply and solar charger.

 

[ElectricShitbox]

You have to be extra careful not to connect: accessories, cigarette lighter stuff, USB phone chargers, nor any parasitic drawing 12V energy on an EV like dash cams, garage door openers, etc....

With all EVs, the 12V battery is the weakest point - causing all types of issues with engaging/starting the EV motors, unlocking door locks, releasing electronic parking brakes, and on board CPU failure which will not allow it "move".

My 12V battery in the Ford EVs have been small 35AH AGM batteries not meant for cranking on an ICE starter, but to allow it to power up the on board electronics.

Here's how small these EV 12V batteries are:

NOTE:
Once the 12V charge drops to a certain point, it won't start, unlock nor allow it be place in neutral for towing. And the worst part is that it drops all comms to the servers for diagnostics or remote starting or unlocking.

Hoping the 12V is easy to access for trickle charger, battery pack boost pack, or plain old fashioned jump starting.

Thus any 12V / USB A / USB C accessory I plan on installing will have it's own 12V supply and solar charger.

As long as Slate's logic for the DC/DC converter works, this isn't an issue you have to worry about. A few EVs (leaf and early hyundai/kias come to mind) have had issues with the DC/DC not kicking on when it should, which causes the 12v to drain until nothing works. But those issues seem to have been sorted out.
As for the battery size, unless it's minuscule you won't be stressing it with the power draw from accessories unless you were planning on filling it with subs early 2000s style. Even then, if you're concerned upsize the battery. Lots of frunk room for a 65 series battery and a capacitor to run your bed full of MTX jackhammers.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

Cigarette lighter was between the center and RH console on the Slate I saw:

That is the flux capacitor port.

 

[RetiredOnPaper]

You have to be extra careful not to connect: accessories, cigarette lighter stuff, USB phone chargers, nor any parasitic drawing 12V energy on an EV like dash cams, garage door openers, etc....

With all EVs, the 12V battery is the weakest point - causing all types of issues with engaging/starting the EV motors, unlocking door locks, releasing electronic parking brakes, and on board CPU failure which will not allow it "move".

My 12V battery in the Ford EVs have been small 35AH AGM batteries not meant for cranking on an ICE starter, but to allow it to power up the on board electronics.

Here's how small these EV 12V batteries are:

NOTE:
Once the 12V charge drops to a certain point, it won't start, unlock nor allow it be place in neutral for towing. And the worst part is that it drops all comms to the servers for diagnostics or remote starting or unlocking.

Hoping the 12V is easy to access for trickle charger, battery pack boost pack, or plain old fashioned jump starting.

Thus any 12V / USB A / USB C accessory I plan on installing will have it's own 12V supply and solar charger.

At 4 yrs I replaced my 12V battery in my Model 3 with a Ohmmu Li-ion 12V battery. And yes it is touchy...I had to do a total hard reset, disconnect 12V and Main battery, wait 3 minutes and reconnect. (Part of this can be done via software in the Ohmmu battery through an app.) It occasionally has a glitch and doesn't recharge the 12V. They gave me an updated program ti try and good so far. BTW the original 12V 100AmpHr lead acid is now 8years old and lives in my shed as a solar backup system. I wonder what Ohmmu will come up with for the Slate? Slate seems to be more like my Golf cart...It only charges the 12V battery when turned on.

 

[AZFox]

If basic functions require 12v availability, maybe some sort of built-in backup battery could be used, similar to Antigravity's re-start feature.

The RE-START function is essentially the world’s first built-in Jump Starter. Our one-of-a-kind RE-START Technology intelligently monitors its voltage and will put itself to sleep if it senses over-discharge, yet amazingly saves just enough reserve energy to start your vehicle.​

https://antigravitybatteries.com/restart-technology/

 

[metroshot]

As long as Slate's logic for the DC/DC converter works, this isn't an issue you have to worry about. A few EVs (leaf and early hyundai/kias come to mind) have had issues with the DC/DC not kicking on when it should, which causes the 12v to drain until nothing works. But those issues seem to have been sorted out.
As for the battery size, unless it's minuscule you won't be stressing it with the power draw from accessories unless you were planning on filling it with subs early 2000s style. Even then, if you're concerned upsize the battery. Lots of frunk room for a 65 series battery and a capacitor to run your bed full of MTX jackhammers.

All 200,000 Ford Mach E had recalls on the 12V DC-DC Recall #25S65
that could lock you out stranding you or worse, lock an occupant / pet inside.

Luckily, the DC-DC converter recall fix was done OTA via software so it saved me from having to go into a dealer.

 

[Hootowls]

When I bought my Scion Xb, my understanding was the wiring harness had been pre-wired to make customizing easier. This turned out not to be the case. Even accessories that Scion sold, you had to run the wires and install the switches. That was one of the main reasons that I never bought any of the add-ons.

Has Slate stated if their Truck will have wiring available for the radio and door speakers? How about for the power windows or heated seats? After my previous experience running wires in a vehicle, I would even accept conduits to run the wires.
HootOwls

 

[cadblu]

Pre-wiring for accessories was implied but never actually confirmed by Slate. To their credit, there is a huge accessory market that Slate is undertaking behind the scenes, with over 100 items expected at launch. Slate University is intended to make adding accessories a seamless process.

For example, I would love to see 'plug and play' audio systems with in-dash connectors and real wired speakers (not Bluetooth requiring occasional charging) And let's not forget the after-market accessories which will be announced around the same time, or likely before vehicle launch. Once Slate shares its dimensions, specs, and interfaces with third party suppliers, only then can we really put the DIY aspects into play.