What's the Slate's maintenance like?

[Dorbiman]

I never said the ICEV miles were maintenance free. I originally commented that more moving parts doesn't necessarily mean less reliability. The actual moving (rotating) parts of an ICEV drivetrain rarely fail when the vehicle is correctly maintained. Lots of people jumped on my case about that statement, bringing in manufacturing defects and such - LOL.

I can't speak to your BMW experiences, but I've had 5 BMWs from the E30 to the E90. I have a Z3 1.9L (M44) that's the 200,000 mile car, and my Z4 is basically an E46. I owned an E46 330i Cabrio for about 30-months, which I brought off a friend at the 100,000 mile mark. I drove it to 135,000 miles, it had a similar maintenace history as any of my other BMWs that I bought new (or used, the Z4 at 23,000 miles).

I agree with you. On paper the Slate should be relatively maintenance free. It all depends on how good the engineering is. I look forward to buying mine. But I've never really had a bad experience owning an ICEV. EV do run at lower operating temperatures, about 90 deg. F less from my research, that doesn't mean ICEV are not engineered to run at 220+ deg. F. I know I'll be dead long before my Slate will run out of miles and heat cycles.

I have such a sweet spot for Z3s. I've had a 96 Z3 with the 1.9L, and my brother owned an '00 with the 2.8L. Mine was manual, his automatic. Both were truly awesome cars, and I miss mine ALL the time. I'd own another one in a heartbeat.

 

[E90400K]

I have such a sweet spot for Z3s. I've had a 96 Z3 with the 1.9L, and my brother owned an '00 with the 2.8L. Mine was manual, his automatic. Both were truly awesome cars, and I miss mine ALL the time. I'd own another one in a heartbeat.

My wife bought hers new in 1997. We still have the gold, complimentary James Bond promotional license plate hanging on the garage wall.

 

[AZFox]

I never said the ICEV miles were maintenance free. I originally commented that more moving parts doesn't necessarily mean less reliability. The actual moving (rotating) parts of an ICEV drivetrain rarely fail when the vehicle is correctly maintained. [...]

This is thread's topic is "What's the Slate's maintenance like?".

Consider starting another thread for discussing BMWs and ICEV Longevity in FORUMS > MISCELLANEOUS > Other Vehicles.

 

[E90400K]

This is thread's topic is "What's the Slate's maintenance like?".

Consider starting another thread for discussing BMWs and ICEV Longevity in FORUMS > MISCELLANEOUS > Other Vehicles.

I was discussing moving parts and reliability rather than specifically BMW. I was using my experiences with some of the ICEV cars I had, the best reliability/longevity performers have been the BMWs I have owned.

But thanks for the tip.

I stated early on in this thread Forbes had data that says EV = $0.06 per mile and ICEV = $0.10 per mile. A $0.04 difference.

 

[AZFox]

I was discussing moving parts and reliability [...]

We can read for comprehension.

Find somewhere else to discuss ICEV Moving Parts and reliability.

Edit: Not trying to be harsh, it's just frustrating. People are going to search for information about Slate Truck maintenance and then find paragraph after paragraph regarding your opinions about how ICEVs can be reliable if well-maintained. We get it! And they're valid opinions! They're just off-topic for this thread.

 

[E90400K]

We can read for comprehension.

Find somewhere else to discuss ICEV Moving Parts and reliability.

Just like a few years ago when the internet tried to say fewer moving parts in an EV make them less costly to build vs. ICEV. LOL.

 

[AZFox]

Just like a few years ago when the internet tried to say fewer moving parts in an EV make them less costly to build vs. ICEV. LOL.

Yes. OFF TOPIC just like that.

🤦‍♂️

Please. I beg of you. Let it go.

 

[E90400K]

Yes. OFF TOPIC just like that.

🤦‍♂️

Please. I beg of you. Let it go.

But I didn't bring it up today. Why did you?

Again, I'm just trying to explain that less moving parts of an EV doesn't necessarily mean EV are more reliable. Other members here changed the discussion to ICEV and oil leaks and thermal impact of ICE and the need to change fluids more often, etc. I do not disagree with that. EV have a lower thermal operating condition, which most likely means less stress on gaskets and thermal load on coolant. But the coolant and gasket materials are most likely the same materials and chemicals developed during the gestation of ICEV for the past 100+ years, since that is what automotive engineers know to use.

While EV trade less moving (rotating) parts for more electronic devices/components that control current flow (in both directions) there are MTBF for those components as well. Given the Slate uses a smaller battery (in both cases - with slower charging) and has just a 200HP electric motor and is light weight (respectively) it should create less heat in the electrical distribution system because the EV drivetrain is not dumping huge amount of current to get 3-second 0 to 60 times and moving far less mass. With all those considerations, the Forbes quoted 6-cents/mile maintenance cost might even be less for a Slate. All good news.

Most people who are new to EV have a baseline or knowledge base of ICEV maintenance. Discussion of moving parts and (thermal) ICEV maintenance requirements may help some readers of this thread better understand why the Slate may have very low maintenance costs. Most part failures (outside of manufacturing errors) are caused by heat and/or dirt (i.e. contamination), EV drivetrains generally make less of both. Yet, if the Slate gets a cut CV boot and loses the grease in the joint, the axle will fail just as much so as an ICEV. Same for a wheel bearing, if the Slate driver curbs his Slate and damages a wheel bearing, the bearing will fail just as much in an ICEV (as examples).

I'm just trying to relate the two paradigms. Cool?

 

[AZFox]

But I didn't bring it up today. Why did you?

Because I want the thread to stay on topic and be helpful for someone who's looking for the answer to "What's the Slate's maintenance like?"

 

[Driven5]

People are going to search for information about Slate Truck maintenance and then find paragraph after paragraph regarding your opinions about how ICEVs can be reliable if well-maintained.

Because I want the thread to stay on topic

Oh... Well, if YOU want it to...

Regardless of what you want, others may find value otherwise. It is a public forum after all.

Information about Slate truck maintenance" does not yet exist to find. The best anybody is going to get is some generalities about EV maintenance mixed with rampant speculation, which was already pretty well covered on the first page. So what does it really matter, if the conversation has gone a bit off-topic 5 pages of rehashing the same old circumstantial arguments later?

It's like post to stay on-topic just go further off-topic.
Isn't it ironic?

 

[JoeUser]

Joe! Way to cut through the fog here. Can't help but ask you questions I've had for a few years. When E-bikes came out the motors and controls were all over the map with many crappy suppliers and assemblers jumping into the market. Most bike shops simply wouldn't allow any E-Bike service on anything they didn't sell. Not entirely because of fire concerns which is what they told the owners on junk bought over the internet. It had a lot to do with a total lack of repair parts and serviceability. Will EV's of various brands begin using the same suppliers for their E-systems so independent mechanics can do cost effective repairs at some point? And will there be enough service for EV independent garages to begin popping up in larger markets? How do you see EV service playing out in the coming years? Any hope of plug-n-play battery replacements?
With E-bikes, there are about 5 proven drive suppliers who sell to a wide range of bike brands. And about the same for disc brakes that will safely stop a heavy E-bike. That allows a shop of brand A to service brand B since it might have the same Bosch or BaFang drive as his brand A. Now that he's got brand B customer in the door, he can sell him unlimited accessories and even service "packages".

The standardization of components, like the the ebike industry has done, is not going to happen. Bicycles are relatively modular and of similar size/component location. Vehicles have wildly different packaging needs, voltages, communication interfaces, etc...

The difficulty in third-party repairs on an EV has very little to do with it being an EV. It has to do with the industry shift to software-defined-vehicles, of which EVs happen to the vanguard. Bicycles are not generally 'software defined'.

Independent shops already do exist for EVs, but are rare, and specialize in the low-volume EVs of the 2010s. The reason is that the vast majority of all EVs have been sold in the last few years and still have active warranties, and owners who can afford to pay dealer rates.

The number of independent EV shops will grow rapidly as more EVs come off warranty/transition to second owners.


And back on topic, Slate should be a different case, due both to the company 'DIY' ethos, and the extremely limited feature set. I once spent 8 hours trying to solve a Model X 'Holiday Party Light Show' functionality, involving syslogs, CAN graphs, sensor readouts... The blank slate will never have that problem, because that feature doesn't exist. Perfect.

 

[E90400K]

Because I want the thread to stay on topic and be helpful for someone who's looking for the answer to "What's the Slate's maintenance like?"

And zero people on this Forum can answer that question because (a) the truck hasn't yet been built and (b) the manufacturer hasn't published the maintenance requirements.

So all any of us can do is extrapolate using maintenance requirements for other EV and contrast it with ICEV maintenance, of which is what most people have an understanding.

 

[Trace26]

The standardization of components, like the the ebike industry has done, is not going to happen. Bicycles are relatively modular and of similar size/component location. Vehicles have wildly different packaging needs, voltages, communication interfaces, etc...

While I agree with this as far as EVs in general, I'm hopeful that Slate sticks with Standardized parts across their future lineup.
Such a 2027 Slate Truck has the same wheel hub, shocks, headlights, ect. as the 2037 Slate (fill in the blank). Or at the very least have them be compatible, so you can put the 2037 brakes on a 2027 as an upgrade.
Looking at what they've done so far, I think they will, but all it takes is a change in leadership and all that could go out the window.

 

[sodamo]

Let’s hope Right to Repair is the rule, not the exception.

 

[AZFox]

And zero people on this Forum can answer that question because (a) the truck hasn't yet been built and (b) the manufacturer hasn't published the maintenance requirements.

To the contrary, It's been answered pretty well.

As a former Tesla master technician, I would compare the Slate to a 2018-2020 model 3 in terms of complexity.

Tires and cabin filters should be the only maintenance items for the first 100k.

I suspect that the slate will be similar. tires, cabin filter, washer fluid, wipers, and just inspections for the first few years, then change the coolant and gearbox oil.

Normal ICE-related automotive maintenance expenses and hassles (oil changes, transmission service, timing belts, etc.) won't be necessary. Brakes probably won't wear out, too.

If Slate does what they're setting out to do, we should be able to expect very low maintenance requirements for a good long while.

@Trace26 provides a bonus salient point:

But if you did zero maintenance on both, the EV could be perfectly fine for more than 100,000, but the ICE engine will probably seize up after 30,000miles.
The

To me, this insight means a used Slate Truck is a less risky used-car purchase than one with an ICE engine because lack-of-maintenance risk exists for the ICEV that doesn't exist for the EV.

(b) the manufacturer hasn't published the maintenance requirements.

Are you speculating that the Slate will require some maintenance that other EVs don't require?