Does Ford’s cheap EV pickup make Slate obsolete?

Earlier today, Ford’s CEO Jim Farley announced the company’s new Universal EV Platform, which will underpin a new lineup of affordable EVs. This unibody platform utilizes Ford’s own LFP battery technology and is targeting a starting price of $30,000 when it goes on sale in 2027. Clearly comparisons are going to be made to the upcoming Slate electric pickup truck, which is expected to start around $27,500 and be one of the most affordable EVs on sale in the United States. But does that mean Slate is doomed? Ford is a big company after all.

Is Slate doomed?

Obviously, a large automaker building a vehicle that will target yours, with more space and more usability, would be an instant nail in the coffin for Slate. I’d tend to agree. But there are a few things that need to be pointed out before we officially declare the company dead.

First off, Ford did not show a product at all today. With an on-sale of approximately two years away, it’s a bit surprising they couldn’t put together a prototype for the public to see. During a live stream, they showed footage of a concept to employees, but the public didn’t see an actual teaser of the product.

When Slate announced it was a company and it would be building a truck, they had mockups and a prototype ready to go to show. Now that’s probably more important for a startup with no history, but it should be noted that they did, in fact, show a product.

Secondly, while Ford said that it is targeting the $30,000 price point, it is subject to change. To be fair, Slate can change its price too, but there is precedent for Ford to offer an affordable EV pickup truck and then shortly after raise the price. Remember when the Lightning started at under $40,000 before destination? Peppridge Farm remembers.

Ford has seriously rethought the manufacturing process, and this is an all-new platform that appears to be incredibly clever. With Doug Field running the show, I’m more apt to give the Blue Oval the benefit of the doubt. But Field says himself that it’s a challenge and that success is not guaranteed.

If Ford can deliver a 5-seat, four-door pickup truck that is the footprint of the Maverick with usable cargo volume, like it says it will, then for the small price increase of the projected price of the Slate, the Ford offering (possibly called Ranchero) will be far more compelling and relegate the Slate to a niche product.

But Slate might already be a niche product to begin with. Scaling up production is difficult, and it’s unlikely the company will be able to offer the truck in any real volume right away. Plus, it’s unclear how much the market demands a two-door, back-to-basics pickup truck.

There will be other competitors vying for the $30,000-ish EV segment. The new Leaf is interesting, though we don’t know pricing as of the time of publication. Plus, the Niro and Kona EVs from the Koreans are solid offerings. Lease deals right now put the bigger 800-volt utilities in the price discussion as well.

Competition is good, and I think there needs to be more of it. Additionally, I think it’s too early to discount Slate or count them out, because we have a lot of promises from Ford, but until we see an actual product, we won’t know for sure. Plus, it’s too early to tell on either product, honestly, because neither product you can’t buy yet.

Delivering on product promises is hard, but necessary.