I doubt that will sell around here. Even though there are plenty of choices in the compact pickups, Ranger, Maverick, Colorado, there are far more full-size F150s, Silverados, and Rams tooling around out there. Empty of course. And they are usually optioned all the way up. Not to mention the huge knobby snd noisy tires. This thing would get swallowed up. And the people who may want this because of the price will have no way to charge it at home because of their financial situation. Not to mention it is coming from a brand-new company that has never built anything.
I wonder if today’s times wil be like.the late.1950s. The United States was in a recession. Many people swapped their big sedans for Volkswagen Beetles. With the big pickup.craze todsy, if a recession does happen today, maybe instread of big.pickup
trucks, many buyers will.buy these electric .pickups instesd just.as buyers bought VWs back in the late 1950s recession.
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Did you not read where it can be charged at a normal 110 outlet at home?
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My BIL bought a maverick. He’s a ford fan. Had to wait quite a while but he’s happy with it. I don’t remember the exact sticker he showed me but the price was in the mid 20s. He loves the acceleration being the hot rod type. No charging, electric till about 45 mph, then gas. Want to plug a power saw in in the woods, no problem. Can pull a 4500 pound car hauler for his classics, etc. that’s the competition to no radio. And ford dealers are everywhere. I’m not a fan yet but it is impressive. So careful where you invest.
I know people without as much as a driveway. They park wherever they can in an apartment complex, or maybe on the street. No outlets of any kind to charge. These are the folks driving <$20K vehicles. We’ve got Teslas and Mach-Es around my neighborhood. And lots of F150s.
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If they live in the apartments, they charge at a commercial charging station unless the apartment complex has its own charging station.
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If this truck actually makes to production and gets sold, I suspect the company will fail in a few years
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Who needs to add the chore of charging at a public charging station to their life? I know I don’t.
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I see a limited market and huge startup costs. Eventual corporate failure likely, even if it’s a good truck.
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If I was in the market for a small EV truck (I’m not, however), I would choose the Telo, rather than the Slate. However, both might meet the fate of Lordstown Motors and Nikola, among the EV makers that… didn’t make it.
where are materials for batteries mined? in the US? no way we can “cheaply” make batteries in the US. to many regs.
The rare earth minerals are mined mostly in China. There’s a little bit mined in the US and the administration is trying hard to get mines and refineries started. I’m thinking a decade is about right for this production to be fully on line.
It might sell if they market it well to people who want a tough, no-frills work truck — but at $20,000, it really depends on how reliable and durable it proves to be.
… and its reliability/durability wouldn’t be known for at least a couple of years after they begin selling them.
But, it appears that some people like their vehicles, even if they aren’t reliable. Consider the case of Rivian, whose vehicles have the highest customer satisfaction rating of any marque, even though they are currently near the bottom of the barrel when it comes to reliability.
This truck seems to be targeted at the old Ford Ranger market, but with a shorter bed and charging requirements. The businesses that used the Ranger around here don’t seem to be a good match for that.
Mazda is mulling a return to the small pickup market.
If they do, I wonder whether Ford will partner with them on that effort.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a64529588/mazda-execs-muse-on-future/
Mining the materials needed for those batteries is apparently very destructive for the environment
There’s a cost to be paid for everything
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Range Rovers are the epitome of that. There’s a retired automobile test journalist that said his favorite vehicle was the Range Rover Sport, and he didn’t care at all how unreliable it was.
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I think this cheap EV truck might make the perfect pool service truck. Pool guys I see around my neighborhood snag old S10s and Rangers for their equipment. Low beds are easy to lift chemicals out and the bed sizes seem adequate. I would think 150 mile range would be enough for their routes.
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I agree. As I noted above, these would be perfect for many people in the “light duty” trades. Not “heavy duty” where you need heavy duty power/weight/towing capacity. But yeah - pool guys, painters, electricians, plumbers and so on. My painting beater work truck was a Ranger.
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