Someone at Slate may have been spending too much time “vibe coding.” Or maybe they just forgot that obsessive fans will go to incredible lengths to find out everything they can about a vehicle, and that includes diving into the code of the company’s website searching for even the smallest crumbs of info.
Whatever the reason, Slate’s website mentioned a price in that code, and now we know exactly how much the electric pickup will cost. That is, provided the reports on the subject are accurate and Slate doesn’t decide to change it before the big June 24 announcement.
Slate Truck Gets A Low Price Tag, But Not As Low As It Could’ve Been
2027 Slate SUV “The Highway Hero” exteriorSlate Auto
The price was sitting in code on a page called How to Preorder. A reader found it there and sent it in to The Autopian, which first reported on it. Curiously, the price also allegedly appeared on Slate’s public-facing page in a frequently asked questions section and was shared in a Slate Facebook group. Before you ask, yes, we checked and all references are now gone from Slate’s website.
So how much is it? Slate said the price for the most basic truck – a bare slate, if you will – would start in the mid-$20,000 range. To the company’s credit, it hit that mark as close as possible: $24,950, destination charges not included. But that could still be a tough sell for price-weary buyers.
The Cheapest EV New In America, If The Leak Is Accurate
That would make it the lowest-priced new pickup in the US, as well as the cheapest EV overall. Ford’s own electric truck is expected to come in at just under $30,000 when it goes on sale, and the cheapest new EV is the $27,600 (before destination) Chevy Bolt.
Of course, the small truck has a small price because it won’t come with much stuff. It gets just 150 miles from the standard-range battery, though you can pay more for a 240-mile pack. The single rear motor puts out 201 horsepower, and it can tow just 1,000 pounds. It has crank windows, no stereo, the body is non-painted composite, and Slate has stripped out most of the features you take for granted on a modern vehicle. How else are you going to make it that much cheaper than anyone else?
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Was This A Leak Or A Stealthy Teaser?
2027 Slate Truck EV rear bed Slate
The way the $24,950 price tag leaked means it’s not guaranteed. However, it is highly suspicious whether it was an accident or intentional. The line of code read: “The Slate Truck has all the essentials for the CONFIDENTIAL price of $24,950 (reminder: we’re all still under NDA and prohibited from sharing this.”
Why would you put confidential (their all-caps) in the header? And why would you remind everyone who might read it in the code about the NDA? Typically, automakers (and every other company) have learned that fans will dive into site code looking for hints and have taken steps to prevent it. This feels like a step taken to make sure it was seen.
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Even if it undercuts Ford’s upcoming truck by a full $5,000, Slate could have a tough time. Ford’s truck, after all, has four doors and a back seat. And while we can’t confirm this, we’re pretty sure it will have power windows and a radio, too. Plus, Ford has the advantage of a network of nearly 3,000 dealers nationwide. Slate, as of this moment, has zero showrooms or (more importantly) service centers.
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
Slate has held off announcing the final price because costs had gone up, and it was working to get them back down. That the company has done it and managed a $24,950 price is impressive. Yes, it had to cut just about everything to do it, but Slate’s proponents say that’s what they want. And having one of the world’s most prominent billionaires is involved on the backside means Slate isn’t exactly a starving start-up.
This price is actually lower than what Slate originally had penciled in for the truck. The $20,000 price at launch included $7,500 in federal tax credits which have since disappeared. That, in 2026, is almost a miracle. Now Slate just needs those trucks to finally reach customers.
Source: The Autopian
