Slate's $24,950 Electric Pickup Takes Aim at Compact-Truck Hauling

According to Engadget, the Slate's bed holds 35.1 cubic feet, and a front trunk adds another 7 cubic feet. The truck is rated for 2,000 pounds of towing. By comparison, the cheapest 2026 Ford F-150 starts north of $40,000 and has a 5.5-foot bed with up to 52.8 cubic feet of volume, a 13,500-pound towing limit and a 2,440-pound payload. Engadget instead points to the base 2026 Ford Maverick, which is rated for a 1,500-pound payload and 2,000 pounds of towing but has a shorter 4.5-foot bed. For routine supply runs, the report says, the Slate is the better choice.

Engadget says the vehicle could suit drivers who occasionally carry bikes, personal electric vehicles, furniture, moving boxes or camping equipment. Buyers often choose SUVs for those tasks, but a truck bed is easier to load and unload, and the Slate is cheaper than many SUVs, according to the report. The truck can also be configured as an SUV.

The report cautions that electric trucks lose range under load. A Rivian R1T with the Adventure Quad-Motor Large Pack has up to 328 miles of range, but towing at its 11,000-pound maximum cuts that by 50 percent to about 164 miles. The Slate has a maximum range of 205 miles, so towing at its 2,000-pound limit could leave 100 miles or less. Filling the bed with cargo could still reduce range by as much as 25 percent, based on the Ford F-150 Lightning, Engadget says.

Engadget also notes that the Slate is extremely barebones in its default configuration. Even an integrated speaker is a paid add-on, and suspension adjustments are extra. Meeting specific needs will almost certainly push the price above $24,950, while SUV configurations can start above $30,000, according to the report. Engadget says final judgment on hauling capacity must wait for post-launch testing; for now, it says the Slate appears to match other compact pickups if buyers can accept the range loss and fewer standard features.