The Slate truck has spent months as a set of numbers and renders, and now someone has actually driven one. Auto Focus got first hands-on and first drive time with the compact electric pickup, and the headline figure has not moved: a starting price of $24,950 for what the channel calls the blank slate. For that money the video says you get a rear-wheel-drive truck with a roughly 65 kWh battery that charges at up to 120 kW on an NACS port, 181 horsepower, and a claimed 205 miles of range. Beyond that, very little. No power windows, no speakers, no center screen. Every truck leaves the factory in the same gray finish, and the colorful versions you may have seen are vinyl wraps. The idea is that you add only the parts you want, when you want them, instead of paying upfront for features you may never use.
The pitch lands at a specific moment for cheap EVs in the United States. With federal purchase incentives in flux, a sub-$25,000 sticker that does not lean on a tax credit is unusual. The nearest mainstream comparison is the Chevrolet Equinox EV, which starts higher but includes a conventional cabin with screens and speakers as standard. Slate is doing the reverse: stripping the base truck down and selling the equipment back as modules. The approach rides a broader industry shift toward repairability and owner customization, where buyers add or change parts themselves over a car's life. Auto Focus reports the truck rides on 17-inch steel wheels, has a five-foot bed, and includes a lockable front trunk, which matters because secure storage is genuinely scarce in pickups at any price. The open question for buyers is the total. A bare truck is cheap, but a power-window kit, a sound system, a wrap, and a second row all add up, and Slate has not published a full accessory price list yet, so the real out-the-door cost is still unknown.
On the modular side, Auto Focus shows the same underlying truck reconfigured as a five-seat SUV using a bolt-in roll cage with built-in airbags and a second row, a change the channel says owners can make after purchase or spec at the configurator. The host points out rows of mounting points across the bed and cabin for rails and accessories, and shows an open-air SUV variant where the front passenger seat folds to reach the rear bench. Wraps are framed as the cheap way to change color, with the host citing a starting range of roughly $500 to $700 for a full wrap rather than thousands for paint. Inside, the only screen sits behind the wheel and shows speed, range, and regen. The stereo starts as a single Bluetooth speaker, with a multi-channel system offered as an upgrade, and touches like a stackable center console, a phone mount, and an optional iPad-style center display are all extras. The driving impressions were the surprise. The host describes the single-motor, rear-drive setup as quicker than its 181-horsepower figure suggests, with one-pedal driving on by default and tuned firmly, closer to how Tesla handles regen. The suspension, on McPherson struts up front, felt firmer than expected on rough roads, though the host says larger bumps were handled fine, and at 6 foot 3 he still had room to reach across and touch the far door.
Bottom line: this is the most interesting cheap EV idea in years, and the first drive suggests the basics are sound. The catch is that starting at $24,950 and the truck you actually want may be two different prices, and the gap stays hidden until the full accessory list is public. If you want a no-frills electric runabout for short trips and light hauling, the blank Slate looks like enough truck, and you can grow it into an SUV later. If you need range, seats, and comfort features now, budget for the build, and wait for real configurator pricing before you get attached to the headline number. The concept is sound. The math is the part still missing.
Commentary on a third-party video. Figures and claims are as presented in the source and have not been independently verified. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it.