Slate Marketing is making me lose interest.

[KevinRS]

I expect the advertising to expand greatly once they actually have trucks rolling off the line. For one thing they could then in one shot show 20+ different trucks, in as many colors and externally visibly different sets of accessories, suv, different heights, wheels, tires, etc. Right now they may not have a demo truck available that is even compatible with a lift kit to make an ad with it.

 

[Rider Performance]

Three of those are likely to cost you 20 - 30% of your range. You may be ok with that, but many wouldn't be. Much of what you're seeing with Slate that seems to go against "traditional" truck design has nothing to do with intended use and everything to do with the realities of EVs.

You are right on the tire portion of it at least, though this might be somewhat optimizable with higher quality tires run at optimal tire pressures. I don't see rims making any difference, and I doubt a lift kit will make a huge difference running local errands. There will always be trade offs in doing something like this. Same thing with having an open pickup box with the tailgate up - not exactly optimized for slicing through the air. Or having an open SUV topper - more weight and turbulence. For me it's a moot point, as this won't be our primary vehicle and won't be used for extended trips or commuting. It all falls back on what a person is going to use the vehicle for and how they want it to look and feel. That's the beauty of this platform, we're on the cutting edge of something brand spanking new. Now I'm getting excited.

 

[ScooterAsheville]

>> I have found them to be very responsive and pleasant.

Exactly the characteristic of a chatbot that has been fed a bucket of information about Slate that it is allowed to divulge. Absolutely polite and patient. My bet is an AI chatbot. Hmm, now I'm tempted to ask an absolutely nonsensical and irrational question of Slate, just to see if I get a polite AI answer. Like, "Will I be able to buy my Slate with the new Michelin hexagonal tires?"

 

[Doctors Do Little]

I'm with you on this. Its 12-second advertisement videos are little bit too man-bun'ish for me too. I just need a pickup truck that will get occasional local (rural) use, mostly to haul my homestead (lol) trash to the county dump, pick up liquid fuels for my equipment, and occasionally tow rental equipment. I like the idea Slate is offering a 2" lift kit for the suspension, and some ORV tires, like BFGoodrich K03, will provide plenty of off-road clearance and traction for my needs. To be a broken record, Slate needs to bump the tow specs by 1,500 to 2,000 pounds to attract a broader audience. EV efficiency is great, and also great is the scar-absorbing MIC plastic body and simple industrial-grade interior. Perfect.

Not sure what city people need a pickup truck for...

Agree 💯 on towing specs. My trailer is 750#. Can’t load it much if tow rating is 1,000#.

 

[Luxrage]

I think the biggest reason we haven't gotten many 'proper' ads is that Slate is using the prototype trucks for everything. They're being damaged from man-handling by people at the meet and greets, so I doubt they'd hold up to heavier truck commercial style usage. I bet once they get some fully built ones we'll get more than just the small 'instagram' style ones.

That being said as an overweight pickle ball playing xillenial that one pickleball ad was laser targeted at me and I don't like it!!!

Not sure what city people need a pickup truck for...

Don't make me post that Ford Maverick tailgate laptop DJ party pic again!

 

[Nivek]

I'm guessing my use profile is similar to the OP. Small homestead, job in town, farmer's markets on Saturdays. My Slate will have the lift kit and All-terrain/Mud-terrain tires.

For me the Slate is going to replace my Tesla for my commute, it will relieve 90% of the use from my 3/4 ton pickup (still need to tow a cattle trailer from time to time). My Polaris Ranger needs a new engine so I'm thinking that the Slate might just work for driving around on the ranch fill that role.

Would I like to see the Slate doing that kind of stuff in commercials? Sure, but I'm not concerned about it yet either.

Pretty much the same for us. Still have things to tow when necessary, but commuting in a big truck isn't super efficient. Plus my work in town has free charging.

Im curious to see if people use slates around their property for throwing things in the back and running around. The plastic panels, little to no tech, built in outlet, and non carpet floor seem to fit well with such a use case. I envision my slate to be a jack of all trades.

 

[sodamo]

Pretty much the same for us. Still have things to tow when necessary, but commuting in a big truck isn't super efficient. Plus my work in town has free charging.

Im curious to see if people use slates around their property for throwing things in the back and running around. The plastic panels, little to no tech, built in outlet, and non carpet floor seem to fit well with such a use case. I envision my slate to be a jack of all trades.

Not me. Running around the property, 21 acres, would be 4wd/awd only. Just too many slopes. That will be reserved for my tractor or Mule.

 

[RevMS]

Pretty much the same for us. Still have things to tow when necessary, but commuting in a big truck isn't super efficient. Plus my work in town has free charging.

Im curious to see if people use slates around their property for throwing things in the back and running around. The plastic panels, little to no tech, built in outlet, and non carpet floor seem to fit well with such a use case. I envision my slate to be a jack of all trades.

A friend in the area who runs a high fence exotic ranch uses a Hybrid AWD Maverick for this purpose. Most ranchers aren't using Rangers and Mules to do difficult off road duties, just driving around on ranch roads and hauling bags or bales of feed out to feed and check on livestock. An enclosed small truck with air conditioning and heat that can also drive into town to the feed store makes a lot of sense whether it's and EV, hybrid, or ICE.

AWD would be a plus.

 

[E90400K]

Pretty much the same for us. Still have things to tow when necessary, but commuting in a big truck isn't super efficient. Plus my work in town has free charging.

Im curious to see if people use slates around their property for throwing things in the back and running around. The plastic panels, little to no tech, built in outlet, and non carpet floor seem to fit well with such a use case. I envision my slate to be a jack of all trades.

I have a jacked up electic golf cart that does some of that, like bring tool boxes over to my house from my shop.

But I just got to thinking about ordering the off-road tires (K03's) from Slate. That option (err... customization) automatically adds the 2" suspension lift. So, how will that work? They flat pack ship me the springs, struts, and shocks, and four un-mounted K03's? Seems a bit stupid to pay for shipping tires to me when I can just buy them locally. Hopefully the struts come loaded (i.e. pre-built with springs).

Maybe Merch CEO Faricy can figure it out.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

Maybe Merch CEO Faricy can figure it out.

OR at least let us know the plan on the what, where, how & how much! I figure Slate has hired others to figure things out (at least I hope so!)

 

[E90400K]

OR at least let us know the plan on the what, where, how & how much! I figure Slate has hired others to figure things out (at least I hope so!)

If I was CEO Barman, I'd hired Faricy to do it.

Sorry, I'm still pissed they gave Chris the boot from the C-Suite.