When Slata Auto, Start-up, introduced about 25,000 electric trucks last month, social media explained comments. Many people have seen a vehicle without a frills with an easy -to -repurative body and nostalgic windows as a refreshing antidote to today’s overrated and increasingly inaccessible cars.
How unavailable? The average monthly payments for new cars rose to $ 739 in March of 537 USD in January 2019, according to COX Automotive. The average new car costs $ 47,400, with electric models around $ 59,200. High interest rates, now around 9.4 percent for a 72 -month loan, have caused cars even more financial section.
“Prices and interest rates are high and stuck,” said Mark Schirmer, director of industrial knowledge for COX Automotive. “If you haven’t been on the market since 2018, it must be shocking what the car costs.”
President Trump’s tariffs of 25 percent on imported cars and parts have consumers who are trying to buy than prices even more increase. Cars that cost less than $ 30,000 are particularly vulnerable – almost 80 percent of them are subject to tariffs. They include consumer clamps such as the American Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, which relies on imported parts. Budget models are expected to shrink and automakers can stop importing certain models completely.
Enter Slate, a company based in the suburbs of Detroit supported by risky capital companies and Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.
Chris Barman, former engineer Fiat Chrysler and SLATE CEO, said that the slate car was explicitly designed to alleviate the shock of the stickers, even if it is not available until the end of 2026.
In accordance with its name, the truck is designed to be an empty slate to which buyers can add more than 100 accessories such as electric windows and heated seats because their budgets allow or need change. There is no built -in stereo or touch screen display, but there are docks for phones or tablets, saving money and avoiding digital obsolescence, which often suffers from automatic entertainment and navigation systems.
“We think the Americans are looking for good value for money,” Mrs. Barman said in a recent interview.
This report appealed to Liv Leigh, 41 years, who during the public debut at Long Beach airport in California in April jumped into a slate truck. Mrs. Leigh, a biomedical designer and electric car enthusiast, paid $ 50 for a slate reservation.
She watched the company’s employees converting two-seater pickups into a five-line sports utility vehicle in about one hour, with a smart conversion set focused on DO-IT-YourSelf owners. Mrs. Leigh appreciated the tidy size of the truck, shorter than the civic and its modest range of 150 miles.
“I love the idea of an absolute base, a whipped truck where I can stick a dog or muddy wheels or plywood in the back,” Mrs. Leigh said. “I don’t need a giant vehicle to pull things out.”
Mrs. Barman said that efficient design and production were the key to the promised low prices of the company. Gray body panels of the plastic composite of the car eliminate any need for a steel race or painting shop that can cost automakers many millions of dollars.
Where the Ford Model T, an equality car of another age, has only come in black, it offers a slate of vinyl body in a number of colors and styles. Buyers can also choose a larger battery installed with a 240 miles factory.
“All this keeps costs, but it is also brought to provide customers with the freedom of choice,” said Mrs. Barman. “They can equip the vehicle as they want it, not the way the manufacturer suggested it.”
Slate hopes that the US supplier chain, including batteries manufactured by SK ON, South Korean company, causes the pick -up to cause a federal tax credit of $ 7,500. On Monday, Republican legislators published a budget law to remove this motivational and dismantle other climatic and energy policies from Biden.
All this depends on the successful navigation of the SLATA on a treacherous path for start -ups of electric vehicles. Several young cars, including Fisker, Nikola and Canoo, were looking for protection against bankruptcy and off.
With or without a subsidy has a viable business plan, Mrs. Barman said.
The company hopes that the price of its truck in the middle of 20,000 years before government incentives that would undermine the Nissan List, which is the most affordable electric car for $ 29,300, but is no longer eligible for tax loans. Chevrolet plans to offer a redesigned screw SUV by the end of the year for about $ 30,000. The General Motors brand intends to qualify for a tax credit and reduce its effective price to about $ 22,500.
Erin Keating, a powerful COX Automotive analyst, appreciated the ingenuity of the slate truck. She said, however, that picking up with two seats, a short range and the interior of bones may not like American buyers of cars who have become accustomed to having a lot of technical and creatures of comfort.
“There is nothing wrong with trying to break the availability crisis, but I don’t see it as a massive volume seller,” said Mrs. Keating. “In the end, it is an extremely small EV with almost nothing in it, on the market with a growing number of possibilities available with a much longer reach.”
Ford Maverick is a potential opponent who can argue or against slate’s prospects. This compact sensor is two feet longer than slate. Five passengers sit and offer many more features. The hybrid version can reach 40 miles per gallon and travel more than 500 miles to a full tank.
Ford sold 131,000 Mavericks last year, suggesting that there is a strong demand for small energy -efficient trucks. Since 2024, the company has increased the initial price of the hybrid version of the truck by $ 4,200 to $ 28,150, including the increase in last week, recognized by the Ford Motor, partially a response to a truck tariff that is compiled in Mexico. The company said it did not pass on the full cost of tariffs to customers and offered all its cars at the same price that it sells them to employees until the beginning of July.
Like any category of vehicles, American pickups embody how cars have changed in the last few decades, mostly by becoming larger, stronger and much more expensive. Some rich sensors can cost the same large European luxury sedans. Electric trucks by Tesla, Rivian and Ford range from $ 70,000 to more than $ 100,000.
Mrs. Barman sees the opening of the market for truck fans at the basic level, families buying a second car, empty nests and businesses such as landscapes, suppliers and delivery people. The company expects to sell many trucks to people who would otherwise buy a used car whose average price is $ 26,000.
One of the big challenges for Slate or other companies hoping to sell more affordable cars is that despite what they say, many Americans seem to not buy such cars.
Mrs Keating noted that about two dozen models on the market are starting to less than $ 25,000. All are small cars or SUVs, including the lowest market price, $ 18,300 Nissan Versa.
Almost every medium -sized family sedan starts at less than $ 30,000, including Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Hyundai Sonata. However, many Americans refused these cars in favor of larger vehicles. SUVs, sensors and minivans now account for more than 80 percent of the market.
Mr. Trump’s business policies remain a wild card. Analysts expect tariffs to add thousands of dollars to the prices of new cars and increase the demand and prices for used cars.
The Americans bought 1.5 million new cars in April 400,000 more than in April 2024. However, analysts said that people are now buying to avoid being handed over later. Jonathan Smoke, Chief Economist of Cox Automotive, said that new cars have dropped to the lowest level in two years, indicating that prices could rise because dealers have reached cars before they come into force. S&P Global Mobility, another research company, has reduced its forecast for the sale of new cars and now expects to drop by 4 percent this year.
For people looking for a safe harbor in a financial storm, electric cars are an intelligent choice, said Mrs. Keating. On average, new electric cars were on average by 13.3 percent between the government and cars incentives in March, which is almost $ 8,000.
Mrs. Leigh recently rented Chevrolet Equinox for two years and paid $ 5,500 in advance, based on a monthly payment of $ 230. The electric SUV has a speed range of 319 million. “Some people do not realize how many incentives are out,” she said.
