Will Slate provide an AWD Retrofit Kit for the OG Slate Truck?

Will Slate provide an AWD Retrofit Kit for the OG Slate Truck?


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JoeUser

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Anyone who thinks this is even a remote possibility has clearly never worked on an EV or any modern vehicle.

The only possibility is a tiny air-cooled 'helper motor' a-la Toyota Prius AWD, but the vehicle would have had to be designed from the start for such a system. The HV battery would need to have a dedicated output for that system, the LV harness would need provisions for the large harness, the chassis designed for that rigidity and half shafts... All of that would add significant cost to every vehicle. And if you wanted to add a full-sized motor, then you would need to re-design the cooling system to accommodate nearly double the heat load.
 

1yeliab_sufur1

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They said before that they plan on making a fwd and are looking into it but won’t be available at launch and looking at the front suspension it can be done but you might loose fronk space I bet
 

Daemoch

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Lots. Just....lots.
Anyone who thinks this is even a remote possibility has clearly never worked on an EV or any modern vehicle.

The only possibility is a tiny air-cooled 'helper motor' a-la Toyota Prius AWD, but the vehicle would have had to be designed from the start for such a system. The HV battery would need to have a dedicated output for that system, the LV harness would need provisions for the large harness, the chassis designed for that rigidity and half shafts... All of that would add significant cost to every vehicle. And if you wanted to add a full-sized motor, then you would need to re-design the cooling system to accommodate nearly double the heat load.
You just described all the planning that went into my Mercedes. Or a ton of other cars going back to the very first assembly line cars. We aren't reinventing the wheel here, just repackaging and remarketing one.

I could spin that on its head and say that if we had always had electric cars I could be freaking out about how to transport a flammable liquid, fit various versions of internal combustion engines with different RPMs and power curves (I'd have to invent and fit a transmission, too), and "what are we going to do with all that smoke?"

As someone that designs solutions constantly, no, this isn't some big problem; It's just "Tuesday". You build in allowances early (which they said they are doing) and know that not everyone will have the same capacity threshold. Then you tune the solution for the need/market.
 
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AZFox

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I could spin that on its head and say that if we had always had electric cars I could be freaking out about how to transport a flammable liquid
You could, but i think that may be missing @JoeUser's point.

I think what @JoeUser is saying is that for the OG Slate Truck to accept a DIY AWD Kit the truck -- that specific model -- would need to have certain attributes that may not be (and likely aren't) built into the truck. @JoeUser even explains what some of those attributes are and why you shouldn't expect them to be absent (in a word: cost).
 

Daemoch

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That's fair, and I get that, but its also not accurate. Just because @JoeUser doesn't know how to do it doesn't mean its not possible, or even possible to do cheaply. Slate hasn't written it off. In fact, they have been very careful to not say it's not going to be possible. So I'm guessing its an issue of cost (obviously, we all agree on that), demand, and end-user ability. I mean, you can STILL buy a house from Sears and build it yourself, but I'd hate to see what some people end up with. Not everyone is that good or bad. What's Slate's threshold for what they are willing to call "DIY" or "Kit"? I really want to know. So far as I've seen they haven't elaborated. If its just bolt-on doodads and wraps though, I'm going to be very disappointed.

I just think it's short sighted to write anything off so easily based on one's personal opinion, skills, facilities, or budget. I know I've said this elsewhere, but what I consider DIY, what my wife considers DIY, and what anyone else considers DIY..... is going to look radically different. In my case, It just means there's nothing I cant access (blueprints/code) and even then all bets are off.

To that end, maybe they need to start a grading tier for how "DIY" something is: 1-5 scale for "Time", "Skill", "Resources".
  • Cup holder - 1/1/1 (screw driver, wrench, or double sided tape)
  • Basic '90s car stereo kit - 4/2/2 (lots of time running wires, some cutouts & basic tools)
  • AWD - 5/5/5 (Takes 40+ hrs or >1 person, Pro skills, properly equipped shop)
 

JoeUser

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I'm not saying that it couldn't be done. It could 100% be done. That's what every other EV manufacturer does for the models that are both 2WD and AWD. But those HV connectors, bus bars, chassis stiffening, cooling system and that engineering is expensive. That cost has to be added to every vehicle, regardless of drivetrain. Fine for a $50k vehicle with volume and margin, but I think Slate is cutting to the bone to achieve the value proposition the company is built on. Adding an extra $1k+ in cost to each vehicle for a hypothetical future retrofit path... I don't see it.


If Slate survives to production, I definitely think the AWD version will come out very soon after, I just don't think it will be a retrofit path.
 

Whitesands

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While watching the Munro video, I noticed the battery had three connectors, one for the charging, and two others. One of those is for the engine, but is there an extra one for an extra motor?
 

Trace26

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Watching the Munro video it seems like the front suspension has the space for the CV shafts, and they have a void under the frunk that everything seems to go around or over. The wheel hubs do lack a spline, but they are simply bolted to the uprights.
I think the platform is designed to have a small front motor but I doubt they plan on having a kit to install a motor.
I would guess it's leftovers from previous engineering when they decided to omit the front motor option or it's pre-planning for a future model that will share the same platform but have AWD.
The big tell will be if they have plugs at the front of the battery pack for the front motor. So we'll see.
 

E90400K

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Watching the Munro video it seems like the front suspension has the space for the CV shafts, and they have a void under the frunk that everything seems to go around or over. The wheel hubs do lack a spline, but they are simply bolted to the uprights.
I think the platform is designed to have a small front motor but I doubt they plan on having a kit to install a motor.
I would guess it's leftovers from previous engineering when they decided to omit the front motor option or it's pre-planning for a future model that will share the same platform but have AWD.
The big tell will be if they have plugs at the front of the battery pack for the front motor. So, we'll see.
I made the same observation several weeks ago when a prior video was posted here and noticed the steering knuckle seems to be designed to accept a halfshaft for a front drive. The Munro video shows the knuckle a bit more in depth and what I thought was an opening for a halfshaft it now seems more related to the bolt-on wheel bearing design they chose. It is a great design for the front wheel bearing as it makes for easy replacement if the bearing goes bad; one of my cars uses the same design (and can be had in AWD). But from the Munro video it seems there is a frame member in the axis of where a halfshaft would need to go to reach a central motor located under the frunk. It's hard to tell from the Munro video the geometry of the frame member if it is indeed in the way.

And I will comment that the brake setup and wheel bearing in the Munro video looks right straight off a BMW E90.

Slate Auto Pickup Truck Will Slate provide an AWD Retrofit Kit for the OG Slate Truck? Screenshot 2025-07-12 113523
 
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