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Defining what constitutes "truckness" may be above my pay grade. Does it have to be body on frame to be a truck? Not to me it doesn't, but it helps. Does it need to have a solid rear axle to be a truck? Definitely not. If so, the Slate Truck isn't a truck. Does it need a pickup bed to be a...

Same. I meant "in addition to" not "instead of".

No worries. It's Reserve Now, Configure Later

There's a name for cars with beds (unibody or not): "Coupe Utility Vehicle" The SUV Kits are CUV-to-SUV conversion kits.

My friend in high school's truck didn't have power steering, but he said it did. He called it "Armstrong Power Steering".

I'm curious how much difference lowering it an inch would affect the drag coefficient. I'm sure there will be "High Milers" lowering their Slates and installing lightweight tires and wheels that have whatever other attributes they think will be most efficient. See also:

OTOH I wonder how many people that want a basic, cheap truck won't find it online because they don't spend their time online. Early Slate Adopters will spread the word to those people in person.

Overlanding with a Slate is like running in a 10K race in Cowboy Boots. You could do it, but probably shouldn't.

Having owned an S-10 that was lowered, I can answer that. TL;DR: Lowering a truck slightly doesn't negate the purpose completely, or even much at all. Even bed of an El Camino or Ranchero is still pretty useful. I owned a 1989 S-10 that that had already been tastefully lowered before I bought...

I think you're referring to what's known as a "camper shell" in my neck of the woods -- as opposed to a bed cover / tonneau. If so, it begs a question: How does a tonneau cover affect aerodynamics?

That's taking it up a notch. :)

Cowl induction! ;)

Good catch. I think "batteries" should be "cells" a couple of places in the article.

That would need to be a short camping trip. Unless it's well insulated, which I doubt. There's a reason experienced campers buy those pricey rotomolded coolers.

Better yet: KWh per mile. For some reason it's inverted in the USA. I think the rest of the world does it in Units Per Mile, which makes a lot more sense.

It doesn't work the way you'd expect. AI query: Does lowering (opening) the tailgate of a pickup truck improve its coefficient of drag? Response: Lowering the tailgate of a pickup truck generally increases the drag coefficient and reduces fuel efficiency. Studies and expert opinions...

Add electronics to your list. AI query: What percentage of the cost of a new car is electronics? Response: According to various analyses, electronics account for approximately 40 percent of the cost of a new car. This significant increase from 18 percent in 2000 highlights the growing...

Super Beetle tire size on the left, stock Slate tire size on the right. VW Bugs had Pizza Cutter tires before Pizza Cutter tires were cool.

The article is good news. Thanks for sharing it here. No US consumer has bought a compact pickup in years. I wonder why. Could it be that none has been available, perhaps?

There are three ways on Slate Auto's Contact Page. I submitted a question about wheels and got a prompt reply. Way to go Slate Auto. :) 👍