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Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

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Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#161

Post by bryanlarsen »

roysting wrote: post #148
alistairSH wrote: post #14

Just built a "hatchback" Slate with what I guess will be common options (speakers, wheel upgrade, spare wheel carrier, and a few other odds and ends) and it came to $35k. So, still pretty inexpensive, but also getting close to some existing EV sedans that are known entities and have pretty decent interiors. So, I'm not totally sold on these, but not not sold either. Need to see one in person, I think.

> still pretty inexpensive Can we stop being so out of touch and/or deluding ourselves to believe $35k is “pretty inexpensive” for people not living in a bubble; whether that is the Americas bubble or the tech bubble within the bubble or the urban bubble within that; let alone for a tiny two seater electric truck that has a 200 mile range. The 45th percentile, i.e., the bottom 90% have a median income of roughly $40,…

There are lots of vehicles available for $22K. On the used market. Buying new is a privilege.

A $35K vehicle will reach $22K on the used market a lot faster than a $60K vehicle will.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#162

Post by SoftTalker »

freedomben wrote: post #31

The color options are a much bigger deal than I think many people realize. It's been too many years since I saw the studies so I have no hope of being able to cite it, but in a marketing class in college I remember reading about how much people value picking a color they really like, that they feel matches their personality. It increases satisfaction, significantly reduces the cognitive dissonance (aka "buyers remors…

I'm not sure they are. I don't think most people give two shits about the color of a vehicle, that's why most of them today are white or silver.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#163

Post by llm_nerd »

chucksta wrote: post #127
llm_nerd wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The four most common vehicle colours in the US are white, black, grey and silver. I believe this covers like 80%+ of vehicles. Canada is worse still (so much so that many makers basically just offer the shades of grey, sometimes with a special-order red or something for the rebels), and a few days ago I was on a walk and saw a light turn red and a dozen cars that pulled up to stop and every single one was white. Peop…

It also just so happens grey scale is almost always cheaper. Car color historically correlates with prosperity in the US https://magazine.northeast.aaa.com/daily/life/cars-trucks/au... https://www.ppg.com/en-US/autocoatings/color/history-of-colo...

I really don't think that's a big factor in this, at least in modern times. Maybe it was once the case where colour was difficult or something.

I mean I see the inverse as true, and entry level vehicles seem to have the most colour diversity in their sales. It is cars like the Nissan Versa where you see real colour variations.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#164

Post by SoftTalker »

vablings wrote: post #144
xattt wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is great if you have a garage to do it in. This is terrible if you’re an apartment dweller and have no workshop space!

Parking garage, a friend's house etc.. You make it work.

Or take it to a vinyl shop and pay to have it done properly in an afternoon.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#165

Post by x3qt »

keanukerr wrote: post #152
x3qt wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought only poor people used phone cases. Otherwise, what’s the point of having an iPhone Air or any other premium built phone at all?

How many people have an iPhone Air?

That’s exactly why I added “or any other premium.” Why buy a sleek phone made of premium materials just to bury it in the cheapest, ugliest, chunkiest plastic case you can find?

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#166

Post by bell-cot »

Schiendelman wrote: post #63
bell-cot wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not quite that simple. "Normal" home outlets (120v, 15A) charge EV's very slowly. And even then, non-trivial driving will show up on your electric bill.

As someone who does non-trivial driving: When I switched over, I was floored - that electric bill increase was less in a month than gas was in about three days. And yes, I also have a dedicated 240V/50A circuit, 120/15 is only fine for normal commuters. In Seattle, we also went from flat 13.4c/kWh to a new variable rate with 8c/kWh available from 12-6am. My electric bill just dropped by about 30%.

What did you switch from and to? Even Tesla's Charging Calculator is far less optimistic than that:

https://www.tesla.com/charging-calculator

"Seattle" may be a critical bit here. The Fed thinks the "U.S. City Average" cost of electricity is far higher than yours:

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU000072610

Based on how many of my friends followed their first EV purchase with an electrical outlet upgrade - even those with very short commutes - I suspect your "120/15 is only fine for normal commuters" is still a tad optimistic.

EDIT: Re-reading comments here - I'd bet a leading reason to upgrade from 120/15 to 240/50 charging is to get much more of your charging done within the 12am - 6am "lowest rate" time window. Or whatever that window is, locally.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#167

Post by bryanlarsen »

bitexploder wrote: post #138
ben-schaaf wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yet it still has a relatively tall, straight hood that tends to drag people underneath the car. These designs are terrible in pedestrian accidents; to a significantly greater degree when children are involved.

The hood is very short and you sit way closer to the ground. I have driven one of their comparison vehicles (the 1985 toyota) with a very similar profile. There is no way you are missing someone in front of you compare to other vehicles. This thing sits lower and gives better visibility than many SUVs people are driving. This truck is small.

It's still square rather than sloped, and higher than massive vehicles like the Pacifica. It might be low enough that it'll bounce an adult off the hood rather than drag them underneath, but it'll still drag kids underneath.

That 1985 Toyota had a radiator in the grill so had a reason for that shape. This truck doesn't.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#168

Post by volkk »

SoftTalker wrote: post #162
freedomben wrote: post #31

The color options are a much bigger deal than I think many people realize. It's been too many years since I saw the studies so I have no hope of being able to cite it, but in a marketing class in college I remember reading about how much people value picking a color they really like, that they feel matches their personality. It increases satisfaction, significantly reduces the cognitive dissonance (aka "buyers remors…

I'm not sure they are. I don't think most people give two shits about the color of a vehicle, that's why most of them today are white or silver.

I think people care more than you think and it's mostly an effect of the limited options setting the tone/culture for most of society so when "exciting" colors randomly come out, nobody wants to stand out amongst the sea of silver/black/white. I bet if cars became more funky on average, people would exercise a lot more freedom in selecting wilder colors. An example of a culture of fun selection is snow sports. Colors rule the landscape, and yes sometimes for safety, but it's also because it highlights personality.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#169

Post by aidenn0 »

alistairSH wrote: post #14

Just built a "hatchback" Slate with what I guess will be common options (speakers, wheel upgrade, spare wheel carrier, and a few other odds and ends) and it came to $35k. So, still pretty inexpensive, but also getting close to some existing EV sedans that are known entities and have pretty decent interiors. So, I'm not totally sold on these, but not not sold either. Need to see one in person, I think.

Compared to gas cars: Kia K4 hatchback is $26k with a lot more creature-comforts. Gets 34mpg, so if $6/gal gas is here to stay that's $0.17 per mile of fuel costs. My EV gets almost exactly 4miles/kW average and I pay $0.21 per kW so that's about $0.05 per mile.

So $0.12 per mile saved in fuel costs implies about 80k miles for break-even.

This excludes costs of servicing, which should be higher on the gas car.

[edit typo'd an extra 0 it's 80k miles for break-even]

[edit2]

After looking up my energy bill I pay $0.27 so it's between 10 and 11 cents per mile saved. Break-even is still under 100k miles.

Re: Slate EV truck starts at $24,950

#170

Post by chaostheory »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #153

I wish the design was more function over form. Why is the grill so large? A lower front end would improve efficiency (and thus probably give another 10-20 miles of range), improve visibility, and kill fewer pedestrians. I know why, the market is nostalgia and it wouldn't sell well if it looked more like a mini kenworth which has a hood that slopes down and in and less like a pickup truck. That low range is going to t…

They have a lowering kit, but it’s “coming soon” and it costs extra
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