Still Leary of getting my Slate

[Granite]

Just to be a broken record... my only real two issues with the Slate platform is the low tow rating and the 5-foot bed length. IMO, the bed should be 6-foot and the tow rating @3,500 pounds. This makes Slate more competitive with the extended cab Tacoma and extended cab Frontier.

There you go. You just added $5,000 to the cost.

 

[E90400K]

There you go. You just added $5,000 to the cost.

How? The truck is only $1,748 per-foot...

I come up with just $355.98 more.

 

[Shrink36s]

It's purpose built. That purpose was not for towing and hauling. It was built for customization, minimalism, and a market where the vast majority of truck owners never haul or tow a damned thing. They didn't make this for a worksite.

 

[E90400K]

It's purpose built. That purpose was not for towing and hauling. It was built for customization, minimalism, and a market where the vast majority of truck owners never haul or tow a damned thing. They didn't make this for a worksite.

I'll have to disagree. It appears based on the numerous posts regarding Slate showing up at various commercial work truck/fleet events recently, Slate believes there is a commercial market for the pickup version. Historically, commercial fleet use of Rangers, S10's, etc. has been to transport heavy materials to work sites or tow heavy equipment to work sites (think powered road work billboards as an example). While the Slate's load capacity at 1,400 pounds is reasonable and within industry offerings, its 1,000-pound tow rating is far below its ICEV competitors. Other than a range hit, the 200-HP chassis should easily and safely be able to tow 3,500+ pounds.

My opinion of course based on my experience with my pickup trucks owned since the late 1980's and review of the current small truck market. For example, the 2-door extended cab 300-HP 2WD Frontier has a 7,160-pound tow rating.

 

[Shrink36s]

Commercial does not mean contractor/construction work site. Commercial can be a fleet of local delivery trucks for smaller loads. Local use of a truck for workers to get to various sites with some gear that is too bug for a car, and still not so heavy or large that a $50,000 truck is warranted.
Commercial is a spectrum.
Your experience as an owner does not make you authoritative in Commercial work and the automotive industry either. Nor me. I'm not in that industry. I have been, however, that industry adjacent where these types of trucks would have been perfect, and far more cost effective than current alternatives.

 

[Kopsis]

Based on Ford's track record, you won't get one in 2027 and you won't get one for anywhere close to $30k. I would assume a 2028 MY trickling out at the end of 2027 with *real* availability in 1H2028. And while they might offer a base-model on paper for close to $30k, the only thing on dealer's lots will be the higher trims (probably pushing $40k for a mid-level trim package).

 

[sidneyhornblower]

If both a single cab compact EV pick-up and a 4 door compact EV pick-up existed today, which form factor would you prefer?

Single cab, two doors, basic truck. That's what I want. EV or ICE, don't care particularly, though I'm intrigued by the electric power since this would be the first EV I'd own. Nothing against large trucks with four doors, but that's not what I like looking at, not what I like driving and definitely not high on my list of things to own.

 

[E90400K]

Commercial does not mean contractor/construction work site. Commercial can be a fleet of local delivery trucks for smaller loads. Local use of a truck for workers to get to various sites with some gear that is too bug for a car, and still not so heavy or large that a $50,000 truck is warranted.
Commercial is a spectrum.
Your experience as an owner does not make you authoritative in Commercial work and the automotive industry either. Nor me. I'm not in that industry. I have been, however, that industry adjacent where these types of trucks would have been perfect, and far more cost effective than current alternatives.

I think my experience as an owner does count, as does yours. If the Slate has a 1,000-pound towing capacity, that takes it out of use for a lot of use cases where one rents a trailer. A trailer rental company will not take on the liability of renting a trailer that exceeds the towing capacity of the vehicle it will be towed with, so I think it does matter. I don't think Slate has to make any mechanical changes to the chassis to increase the tow rating, I think they just have to change the rating; it's too conservative, IMO.

Increasing the tow rating does not add cost and does not offer a truck to the commercial fleet market that is over-spec'd for light-duty work.

 

[Shrink36s]

I think my experience as an owner does count, as does yours. If the Slate has a 1,000-pound towing capacity, that takes it out of use for a lot of use cases where one rents a trailer. A trailer rental company will not take on the liability of renting a trailer that exceeds the towing capacity of the vehicle it will be towed with, so I think it does matter. I don't think Slate has to make any mechanical changes to the chassis to increase the tow rating, I think they just have to change the rating; it's too conservative, IMO.

Increasing the tow rating does not add cost and does not offer a truck to the commercial fleet market that is over-spec'd for light-duty work.

What you seem to fail to understand is that this is not a truck for everyone in every situation, and was never intended to be. If you listen to the interviews with all the players, it is clear they have a target market. The people you speak of are simply not in their wheel house, and I think they are okay with that.
I think there is a failure to understand start-ups as well. In a start-up environment (my experience is in tech, though still relevant), you have an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) that hits enough marks at the lowest cost to really prove that what you have is going to gain market share and be profitable. What comes next expands that offering to bring in more people. Spending millions more to ensure they please every Tom, Dick, and Harry is a risk of millions of dollars of unnecessary loss that an investor would not be happy with.
The Facebook was minimal, until it took over from My Space, and then it expanded tremendously. Google was just a search engine, then they went to email, now they own the planet. The Ridge Wallet was a great minimalist wallet, and once it gained a following expanded to knives, pens, and other EDC products.
Minimum to prove you can, then expand. You're complaining about a startup not meeting every demand, and that just doesn't stack up to the reality of the game.

 

[KevinRS]

Based on Ford's track record, you won't get one in 2027 and you won't get one for anywhere close to $30k. I would assume a 2028 MY trickling out at the end of 2027 with *real* availability in 1H2028. And while they might offer a base-model on paper for close to $30k, the only thing on dealer's lots will be the higher trims (probably pushing $40k for a mid-level trim package).

I think it's pretty clear from what's been quoted directly from Ford that that timing isn't even going to be considered late, that timing is the plan. If they run late, then it will be later than that.

 

[sodamo]

Just to be a broken record... my only real two issues with the Slate platform is the low tow rating and the 5-foot bed length. IMO, the bed should be 6-foot and the tow rating @3,500 pounds. This makes Slate more competitive with the extended cab Tacoma and extended cab Frontier.

While understandable, very likely just a small niche. For as many trucks I‘ve had and used over my driving life, heck even adding my youth and my Dad’s trucks, if I were to count the times a load extended past the down tailgate on my hands with fingers left over. Add in towing and even more fingers. Just a quick rationalization, perhaps my usage changes as do the trucks? Of course, your needs vs my needs…

now if you had some real numbers. Hey, maybe do a poll here on forum, but not just pick a number, pick and justify.

 

[zipn]

I’ll note that some are considering the SLATE ( or some other EV) as a 2nd vehicle so are willing to compromise with bare bones and two doors.

FWIW when we got our first EV( 23 Chevy Bolt) we also purchased it as a 2nd car.

within a week the EV became our primary car and we’ve never looked back. The EV is our choice unless it’s a road trip, or we’re hauling or towing (25 maverick hybrid is our rarely used 2nd car).

Your EV will probably also become your first choice go to for almost every drive.

 

[E90400K]

What you seem to fail to understand is that this is not a truck for everyone in every situation, and was never intended to be. If you listen to the interviews with all the players, it is clear they have a target market. The people you speak of are simply not in their wheel house, and I think they are okay with that.
I think there is a failure to understand start-ups as well. In a start-up environment (my experience is in tech, though still relevant), you have an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) that hits enough marks at the lowest cost to really prove that what you have is going to gain market share and be profitable. What comes next expands that offering to bring in more people. Spending millions more to ensure they please every Tom, Dick, and Harry is a risk of millions of dollars of unnecessary loss that an investor would not be happy with.
The Facebook was minimal, until it took over from My Space, and then it expanded tremendously. Google was just a search engine, then they went to email, now they own the planet. The Ridge Wallet was a great minimalist wallet, and once it gained a following expanded to knives, pens, and other EDC products.
Minimum to prove you can, then expand. You're complaining about a startup not meeting every demand, and that just doesn't stack up to the reality of the game.

Okay, but you are missing my point entirely. To give the truck a 3,500 tow rating is completely Slate's choice and they do not need to add any cost to the vehicle; it is simply a matter of giving the truck a higher tow rating number.

And obviously no one vehicle meets the entire span of the market's use cases, but when your trucks competition betters your specs by a significant margin, you possibly lose sales to your competitors.

 

[Shrink36s]

Okay, but you are missing my point entirely. To give the truck a 3,500 tow rating is completely Slate's choice and they do not need to add any cost to the vehicle; it is simply a matter of giving the truck a higher tow rating number.

And obviously no one vehicle meets the entire span of the market's use cases, but when your trucks competition betters your specs by a significant margin, you possibly lose sales to your competitors.

So are you a structural and/or automotive engineer? Do you really think a tow rating is just a made up number that they can pick out of thin air? I'm pretty positive that a tow rating has some engineering behind it and it has that rating for a reason.

EDIT: I'll add this for education purposes. https://www.kbb.com/car-advice/towing-capacity-guide/

 

[KevinRS]

Tow rating used to be just a number, as high as a manufacturer figured they could get away with. Now vehicles have to be certified by passing a number of tests with max load. Acceleration tests, grade tests, grade test in high temperatures, braking tests, and more.
Slate may have "picked" 1000 lbs, but they then engineered to that 1000 lbs. Going to 3500 lbs might bend the frame, overheat the drivetrain or cause other damage.
If you absolutely need 3500 lbs towing, then this just isn't the truck for you.