Top Gear’s Slate test drive review: it does exactly what it says on the tin

[WV Slateman]

The top speed being limited to 90 keeps coming up in videos and articles, and really, unless you have a car you take to a track, that shouldn't be a problem for anyone. If you need more than 90 to pass, you probably shouldn't be passing. Battery drain will increase geometrically with speed anyway, probably best keeping it to the speed limit and staying in the right lane if necessarily rather than adding a charging stop.

I can't see this being an issue for someone who just wants a small, everyday use, truck. It's been decades since I've gone over 85 mph on the ground. That's cars, truck, or motorcycles. There's just no need to do that.

 

[AZFox]

It seems to me that they don’t get the point of the Slate, which is customization.

I think the point of the Slate is more like affordable, reliable transportation you can customize to your preference.

 

[KevinRS]

Interesting, and I've not read EVERY states driving laws, but in my State of Virginia, when passing (i.e. overtaking) another vehicle on a two lane road, one cannot exceed the posted speed limit. That means passing a vehicle in front of you going say, 40 MPH, hitting 90 MPH to get the pass accomplished within the marked passing section of the road is illegal. I'm not sure my fellow Virginians understand that rule.

I think that is every state. But you still get the "but you are obstructing traffic" "the accident is the fault of the slow driver MAKING the fast one pass" etc.
I know no one wants to give up control, but most traffic deaths wouldn't happen if all cars were governed to the speed limit of the road they were on.

 

[d.h.]

It's been awhile since I found the floor board with a gas pedal,(except my neighbors prius) 90 is plenty for me.

 

[AZFox]

Eric Keipper, LinkedIn post from 7/28:

Thanks for posting!

He flies through a lot of things including a slightly mysterious mention of "flash over the air via your phone" which I'm going to assume means we'll be updating software from our phone over Bluetooth or something, no USB cable or telematics module required.

Over-the-air means via cellular as opposed to taking it somewhere to be flashed.

Even when flashing a consumer router you should always do it wired, not wireless.

If the FN will Bluetooth for the app connection I think that would have have been mentioned by now.

 

[Moe]

I don’t own an EV but my Segway eScooter gets updates, settings, custom sounds, and planned trips for turn by turn navigation via Bluetooth from its awesome phone app. It also has coast and two levels of regen which I’m using on the lighter because I’m still in the seasick level of regen skill.

 

[tubes]

Over-the-air means via cellular as opposed to taking it somewhere to be flashed.

Even when flashing a consumer router you should always do it wired, not wireless.

If the FN will Bluetooth for the app connection I think that would have have been mentioned by now.

Ah, thanks. Mr. Keipper, if you are reading this, post something on LinkedIn clarifying.

So perhaps what he means is getting the update "over-the-air" on the app, then tethering it to the network in that USB port behind the panel, then doing the update.

Believe it or not, this was something I did for about 15 years from 1995 to 2010. We used I2C protocol to flash-update EEPROMs in our devices. This updated the software. We then updated the actual hardware by re-flashing an FPGA. This is all old news, and I'm dead and done with that work. It was really interesting, but I'm sure it is much different today so I'm babbling like the old man from 1890 who was a horseshoe expert trying to explain how to update the spoke wheels on the new carriages in 1910.

 

[solartogo]

Since he posted this publicly and it isn't like a copyrighted magazine, I think it is fair to re-paste directly.

Thanks. I'd guess the "over the air via your phone" means the phone is connected to the truck via USB, and provides the "over the air" updates without the phone needing to have a wired connection.

 

[EV Trek]

I took a trip in my Equinox EV today, the range estimate at the beginning showed 327 miles, when I got home it showed 141 miles or a reduction of 186 miles. Actual miles driven was 213. The difference was the initial estimate was based on my previous driving which had a lower mi/kWh than what I actually got on my trip. It can also go the other way where you use more miles on the estimate to go fewer miles in reality. Because your current trip is less efficient than you previously drove. Oh and that can change also as you drive.
That is why you should just use the % charge whenever you can just like a gas gauge. I like my % charge not only shows in digital form but as a bar graph that changes color the closer you get to empty.

 

[Nojoe]

https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/slate-auto/truck-prototype/first-drive

Let’s face it Car and driver is owned and operated by BMW and Porsche driving aficionados. They never would get their leather driving gloves dirty loading 38 sheets of drywall into a pickup truck. The fact they can’t understand aggressive regenerative braking clearly indicates the lack of experience with EV’s and yet folks continue to listen to them.

 

[cadblu]

It does its job. It does it well. It doesn’t exceed expectations.

While I appreciate the brutally honest review from Top Gear, it still doesn’t sit well with me to say the Slate is just ‘ok’ - hard to get excited over; completely adequate; and ‘meets expectations.’ I have no doubt the production ready model will be fine tuned in braking and ride characteristics.

Thinking back to performance evaluations, I once recall asking Human Resources for a reading on “meets expectations.” I was advised anyone receiving that rating should be looking for another job.

 

[Doctors Do Little]

While I appreciate the brutally honest review from Top Gear, it still doesn’t sit well with me to say the Slate is just ‘ok’ - hard to get excited over; completely adequate; and ‘meets expectations.’ I have no doubt the production ready model will be fine tuned in braking and ride mannerisms.

Thinking back to performance evaluations, I once recall asking Human Resources for a reading on “meets expectations.” I was advised anyone receiving that rating should be looking for another job.

Top gear being brutally honest but on a prototype. I add to the evidence but did not assign them as jury, so…we are at recess for several months.

 

[Doctors Do Little]

Apparently you have a LinkedIn account, I don't, so feel free to share such nerd details here.

There are dumbasses everywhere. LinkedIn isn’t exempt. Good content and trolls coming out of the woodwork to snipe at what they never researched (“My model 3 has the same towing capabilities….” to which I naturally responded “how about 3/4” x 8 sheets of plywood? Show us a pic of your Model 3 without a trailer carrying a fridge or dryer or big screen from Costco…”). Same tired tropes. I was kind in my response bc that draws more positive attention to the Slate than antagonists do.

 

[Johnologue]

It boggles my mind how much stock people put in the real-time range guesstimates. It's not just Slate. I see new EV owners of all makes frequently questioning why the number on the dash is "inconsistent" or doesn't match what was listed on the window sticker.

I read a post a couple days ago from someone who wished EV makers would allow you to turn off the range estimate and just leave us with a "gas gauge" and I'm inclined to agree. Within a week of driving, everyone would know how far down they can let it go before they need to "fill up". Light up a "low battery" indicator when the (hidden) estimated range is below 30 miles just like on an ICE vehicle.

This is a good point, they should just put kWh/percentage on there with an optional estimate. I certainly don't take the range estimate seriously on my ICEV, but EVs are sold with such an emphasis on the range estimate that it makes sense people tend to fixate on the numbers they're given.

 

[ClayJar]

I'll just say, never has a pickup truck handled like a sports sedan or sports car. Physics.

My uncle had a GMC Syclone for a while.