Update: Ford's EV 'Model T moment' Announced

[Letas]

I'm most actively watching Slate, and remotely watching Scout and then distantly watching F and Telo. Which ones are you most interested in?

I'd say Slate #1, Rivian R2 is #2, Scout #3, and just keeping an eye out for Ford news.

 

[Doctors Do Little]

I'd say Slate #1, Rivian R2 is #2, Scout #3, and just keeping an eye out for Ford news.

I completely forgot the R2, and that's the one most likely to appear!

 

[ScooterAsheville]

• The Slate appeals to me only at a very, very low price. So I'm on hold waiting for numbers.
• The Ford is too much of a mystery right now to form any kind of opinion, but I'm driving a Maverick, and I could go the same thing only electric. I love what Ford is saying. AWD available, 300+ miles range available, castings, LFP battery, self-driving tech available. I'm intelligent enough to realize you don't get all those things at $30,000.
• If I were asked which one I most lust after - it's the hinted at Rivian R2T, especially if they can bring it in under 200" long. The R2S is gonna be a runaway best seller.
• The one I think is the most fun and quirky - it's gotta be the 152" long Telo. I'm just skeptical they ever reach the market beyond California.

I loved what I saw in the Rivian R1S test drive videos. I'll drop $45,000 for a Rivian R2T in a heartbeat. Yea, I know that's two Slates. I'd still do it. If an R2T was dropped today, I'd buy it.

As long as we're talking about our automotive fantasies, I'm still paying close attention to the Donut Labs battery controversy. They're saying "more information coming 20 Feb". I get it - half the internet thinks it's a scam. The other half thinks the first half are haters. I'm just looking for some actual facts one way or another.

 

[Letas]

I completely forgot the R2, and that's the one most likely to appear!

I intended to put in a reservation months ago... and never did. Im sure the waitlist now after recent press is probably 2-3 years minimum!

Give em time to work out the tooling... my current car will be at ~190-210k miles by then, so it won't feel bad to replace it If I don't get a slate of course!

 

[Driven5]

R3 is currently the next most interesting EV to Slate IMO.

 

[cadblu]

The R2S is gonna be a runaway best seller.

Agree…I also have the R2 on my ‘radar.’ Supposedly it’s being launched next month to early reservation holders. However I think it best to wait for the Gen3 hardware that includes LiDAR.

It’s like Rivian’s history repeating itself with Tesla. I waited months for HW4 to be released, since it was reported that HW3 would not be fully upgradable to FSD. Sometimes, as they say, patience is a virtue.

If Slate has taught us anything, the word “patience” comes to mind.

 

[AZFox]

R3 is currently the next most interesting EV to Slate IMO.

R3T pickup especially.

 

[beatle]

I also pine for an R2T. The R1T is just too big in an urban environment, and the R2 platform looks every bit as good as the R1 in all the right places. I don't think Rivian would make an R3T unless it's a single cab. The R3 is actually just a few inches bigger than the Slate. If an R3T had 4 doors (and it probably would), the bed would be like 2 feet long.

The R3X is the car I'd have as a daily driver if I didn't already have a Miata. It'll be just a touch bigger than the Slate and it has that killer early GTI / Lancia Delta Integrale silhouette. Lots to love there!

 

[ScooterAsheville]

R3T pickup especially.

Yup, the only thing that would fill me with car lust more than an R2T would be a two door R3T.

 

[cadblu]

No discussion on the R2 would be complete without Doug weighing in.

Doug reviews the R2

 

[ScooterAsheville]

The one thing that makes me pause on the Rivian side is whether or not their service network scales as the R2 rolls out. I live in Asheville, NC, and the nearest Rivian service (last time I checked) is two hours away in Charlotte. I expect that to get better over time.

That's why dealer franchises first happened, btw - franchises enable fast capital scaling over the USA, because the OEM doesn't have to do it (tens of billions of capital). The dealers do it for nothing. At a cost, of course, in a share of the future profits.

 

[Letas]

The one thing that makes me pause on the Rivian side is whether or not their service network scales as the R2 rolls out. I live in Asheville, NC, and the nearest Rivian service (last time I checked) is two hours away in Charlotte. I expect that to get better over time.

That's why dealer franchises first happened, btw - franchises enable fast capital scaling over the USA, because the OEM doesn't have to do it (tens of billions of capital). The dealers do it for nothing. At a cost, of course, in a share of the future profits.

Valid concern. Their customer satisfaction is off the charts (I believe it was #1 actually). Wonder if that’s because people who buy it make sure they are near service centers, or they have good remote support.


I’m sure they’ll beat Slates support network!

 

[Doctors Do Little]

Valid concern. Their customer satisfaction is off the charts (I believe it was #1 actually). Wonder if that’s because people who buy it make sure they are near service centers, or they have good remote support.


I’m sure they’ll beat Slates support network!

I subscribe to Consumer Reports, and its amazing how much they hate Rivian's reliability (1/5), but say that customer satisfaction is 5/5. It's also amazing how 6 months changes things. Last year, CR only believed that Ridgeline and Maverick were reliable trucks.

Suddenly, Santa Cruz, Maverick, Ridgeline, F150 Hybrid (was horrible in 2024-2025), Frontier, Lightning (RIP), and F150 (in that order) are ALL reliable enough to be recommended. (No Toyotas?)

Go figure...I guess we are left to pick/parse our trucks by model year in addition to brand/model. For those who worry about reliability and ease of repairs!

 

[Letas]

I subscribe to Consumer Reports, and its amazing how much they hate Rivian's reliability (1/5), but say that customer satisfaction is 5/5. It's also amazing how 6 months changes things. Last year, CR only believed that Ridgeline and Maverick were reliable trucks.

Suddenly, Santa Cruz, Maverick, Ridgeline, F150 Hybrid (was horrible in 2024-2025), Frontier, Lightning (RIP), and F150 (in that order) are ALL reliable enough to be recommended. (No Toyotas?)

Go figure...I guess we are left to pick/parse our trucks by model year in addition to brand/model. For those who worry about reliability and ease of repairs!

Ahh yes, thats where I saw it. My take on the whole 1/5 reliability but 5/5 satisfaction is... they must take care of issues pretty well. Or, their users are all cult-like and would never say a bad thing about them, but I don't see Rivian having that following, unlike other EV Mfgs...

 

[Doctors Do Little]

Ahh yes, thats where I saw it. My take on the whole 1/5 reliability but 5/5 satisfaction is... they must take care of issues pretty well. Or, their users are all cult-like and would never say a bad thing about them, but I don't see Rivian having that following, unlike other EV Mfgs...

Maybe they are rich Jeep folks? Jeeps have traditionally had horrible reliability and have a SERIOUS cult of die-hards. (CR rates Jeep Wrangler as a 30/100 overall with 36/100 road score, 2/5 reliability, and yet 4/5 owner satisfaction!)

Folks just like what they like, regardless of data or logic.