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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Slate, Rivian, Lucid face pricing pressure as tax credit repeal disrupts EV market
Even before delivering its first vehicle, Slate Auto has raised the price point of its bare-bones electric pickup, a sign of tough times ahead for EV startups as federal subsidies end. Rivian and Lucid, which launched their first vehicles in 2021, also face tough pricing choices as they prepare to launch new crossovers next year without government help. Switch Auto Insurance and Save Today! Great Rates and Award-Winning Service The Insurance Savings You Expect Affordable Auto Insurance, Customized for You A key selling point for Slate, backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, was its planned price of under $20,000 after federal incentives, undercutting gasoline cars, the company said at its April reveal event. With Congress ending the $7,500 EV credit Sept. 30, the two-door pickup now has a price target in the 'mid-20s' ahead of its late 2026 launch, Slate said on its website. Slate is targeting annual production of 150,000, but analysts say the revised pricing makes that goal — already ambitious — even harder to reach. Only two EVs reached 150,000 U.S. registrations last year: the Tesla Model Y and Model 3, according to S&P Global Mobility data. 'With the incentive gone, buyers are going to do a rational analysis of what they're going to pay and what they're going to get from the Slate,' said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars. Sign up for the weekly Automotive News Mobility Report newsletter for the latest developments at the intersection of transportation and technology. Given a range of combustion vehicles and hybrids under $30,000 with far more equipment, Slate is likely to struggle winning over value-conscious buyers. 'I just don't see it,' Brauer said. While automotive journalists have gushed over Slate's retro design and low price, they're poor predictors of what sells because most buyers care more about practicality than novelty, Brauer said. Slate CEO Chris Barman said the EV credit wasn't part of its business plan, despite its 'under $20,000″ marketing. 'Our plan never counted on that,' Barman told Crain's Detroit Business in July. 'That is something that obviously we would love to be in place so that our car is even more affordable for consumers, but that was never part of our plan.' Retro-style Slate EV tries to different route for sales Slate said it has over 100,000 reservations in the U.S., each secured with a refundable $50 deposit, but analysts caution that only a small fraction typically convert into vehicle orders. Even with the higher price, Slate represents a bold attempt to chart a different course from market leader Tesla, offering a stripped-down, retro-style EV instead of a premium model. 'It's impressive for a U.S.-built vehicle to be under $30,000,' said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions. 'And then you add in that it's electric — that's even more impressive.' Slate is betting on the nostalgia factor of its pickup, which is called the Blank Slate since it comes in one configuration from the factory. A wide range of accessories includes a cargo bed kit that converts the pickup into a five-seat crossover. 'People are looking at Slate because it's a throwback, with roll-up windows and no radio,' Fiorani said. At the same time, the company hopes buyers 'will pay a little more for a better wrap, accessory panels, or anything that adds profit,' he said. Slate is offering over 100 accessories, including vinyl exterior wraps, since the pickup comes unpainted from the factory. Other available add-ons include a power-window kit and wireless speakers. It hasn't disclosed prices. Competitors to feel price pinch sooner While Slate's moment of truth on pricing won't come until next year, Rivian and Lucid will feel the squeeze much sooner. Both rely heavily on leasing, using the $7,500 federal credit to lower monthly payments on their high-priced luxury vehicles. Legacy automakers selling battery-electric vehicles, along with Tesla, will face similar pricing pressures starting in the fourth quarter. But Rivian and Lucid are already burning through billions of dollars in annual losses, without the cushion of non-EV revenue. Cox Automotive warned in July that 'the training wheels are coming off, and the transition to electrification will no longer be buoyed by incentives alone.' The firm also cited higher industry costs tied to the Trump administration's new tariff regime. 'Automakers and retailers alike will need to navigate this next chapter with agility, as the EV landscape becomes more complex and demanding of true market resilience,' Cox said. Rivian and Lucid recently raised prices for the new model year. Rivian said the 2026 R1T pickup starts at $72,885, up from $71,700 for the 2025 model. The R1S base rises to $78,885 from $77,700. All prices include shipping. Lucid raised the starting price for its 2026 Air sedan by $1,000 to $72,400 with shipping. The recently launched Gravity crossover remains at $96,500 with shipping. Rivian and Lucid did not comment on future pricing. Both have announced more affordable $45,000–$50,000 crossovers for delivery next year. In the meantime, neither Rivian nor Lucid is likely to cut sticker prices after the tax credit ends. Rather, they'll have to boost incentives or accept lower sales, Fiorani said, as most buyers already factor in discounts. 'Manufacturers are going to have to lower the prices, whether it's through incentives or interest rates or lease deals, whatever it is,' Fiorani said. 'Basic economics says you either match that price or you build fewer vehicles.' Rivian forecast deliveries of 40,000 to 46,000 vehicles this year, down from 51,579 in 2024. Lucid forecast production of 20,000 vehicles, up from 9,029 last year. Lucid has said growth will come from its Gravity crossover that's new for this year. Brauer expects automakers to sell far fewer fully electric vehicles next year, cutting their share of the U.S. light-vehicle market to between 4 and 5 percent from about 8 percent. 'So they're only going to be left with the true believers,' Brauer said, referring to EV buyers unaffected by the tax credit repeal. Send us a letter to the editor Have an opinion about this story? Tell us about it and we may publish it in print. Click here to submit a letter to the editor. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Independent
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Independent
Bezos backs basic EV pick-up where radio, back seats and power windows will cost you extra
Slate Auto, an electric pick-up brand backed by Jeff Bezos, will build its no-frills vehicle, where a radio and power windows cost extra, at an old Indiana printing plant. Slate announced on Monday that it is taking over the historic plant in the small town of Warsaw that closed in 2023. The new facility is expected to create 2,000 jobs, the company said. The truck originally had a $20,000 price tag after federal EV incentives – much less than the average new vehicle, which sells for above $45,000. But Donald Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill' killed the federal EV credit, now likely adding an extra $7,500 to the cost. The brand is selling its truck on the concept that it 'can change into whatever you need it to be – even an SUV.' 'Made in the USA at a price that's actually affordable (no really, for real), their website boasts. The baseline truck is small, measuring 15 feet long, which is smaller than a Honda Civic hatchback. The standard truck also only features two seats, for a driver and a single passenger, and will be built with gray panels, cutting costs by forgoing additional paint. Standard versions of the truck also come with roll-down windows and manually adjustable rearview mirrors, according to Car and Driver. However, customization will allow customers to change countless features of the vehicle. Slate says more than 100 accessory items will be available when deliveries of the truck begin at the end of 2026. Possible upgrades include power windows, a stereo and a center console. There's also an SUV kit, which adds a roof panel to the truck's bed, a three-across rear bench seat, a roll bar, and airbags in the back of the car. It was not immediately clear how much each possible add-on would cost customers. The Michigan-based company has raised over $700 million from investors, including Bezos, and received over 100,000 reservations for its cars, which won't be delivered until late 2026 but can be reserved for $50. The truck comes at a time where the cost of a new car is out of reach for many Americans – and may only get worse under President Donald Trump's tariffs. 'There's a growing appetite, especially among younger drivers, for vehicles that are more honest, more modular and less over-engineered,' said Paul Waatti, director of industry analysis at AutoPacific. 'Slate taps right into that.'
Time of India
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
This Bezos-backed EV startup is betting you'll pay extra for a stereo in your petite pickup
When Will Haseltine saw images online of a small, boxy electric pickup from startup Slate Auto this past spring, he got on the waitlist right away. The sparse interior and crank windows reminded him of the no-frills pickups he grew up around in Memphis, Tennessee - but he was most enamored with the sub-$20,000 price tag. That price, though, factored in a $7,500 federal tax break, which is set to expire Sept. 30, a casualty of the budget package U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law earlier this month. Now Haseltine isn't sure the truck will fit his budget when it comes out, expected late next year. "The Slate was the first time that I looked at a car, wanted it, and could also really make it happen," said Haseltine, a 39-year-old musical instrument technician. Without the tax credit, he said: "That's just plain too much." Michigan-based Slate has raised $700 million from investors, including founder Jeff Bezos, and has racked up more than 100,000 reservations for its cars. But the company is launching into a tough U.S. market. A few years ago, the electric-vehicle space was awash in hopeful entrepreneurs looking to cash in on the global transition to electric cars. But U.S. EV sales growth has cooled as consumer interest has faded. The loss of federal tax breaks will further hurt demand, auto executives and analysts predict. Like other EV startups, Slate likely faces a long road to profitability. The EV business has proven to be a money loser for most industry players, partly because batteries remain relatively expensive. Even in China, where smaller, inexpensive EVs have proliferated and companies enjoy a cost advantage over Western automakers, most are unprofitable. Slate founders believe the company can overcome those obstacles by offering something that is in short supply in today's U.S. car market: affordability. The average new-vehicle selling price is above $45,000. "We are building the affordable vehicle that has long been promised but never delivered," Slate CEO Chris Barman said at a Detroit conference in July. The company has a chance to fill a void left by Tesla, which has backtracked on plans to introduce a mid-$20,000s electric vehicle. The startup has taken a bare-bones approach to its two-seat pickup, which is slightly smaller than a Honda Civic hatchback. How bare-bones? A stereo and power windows will cost extra. Slate hasn't disclosed the cost of such add-ons. 'It's a cool idea' Slate's creation started with an idea from Miles Arnone, the CEO of Re:Build Manufacturing, a Massachusetts-based startup that includes several former Amazon employees. Arnone believed workers needed better access to affordable vehicles. Arnone shared his idea with Jeff Wilke, the company's chairman and a former Amazon executive, and eventually, a small team was formed. The group hired Barman, who spent most of her career as an engineering executive at Fiat Chrysler, now part of Stellantis. Barman told Reuters recently that Slate will be able to absorb the loss of the $7,500 tax credit because the truck's price still will undercut competitors. The company plans to build the pickup at an old catalog factory in Warsaw, Indiana. Executives are taking steps to hold down costs, starting with a simplified design that uses about 500 parts in the truck's assembly, compared with a few thousand for a traditional truck. The plan to build all of its trucks in a basic package - what the company calls a "SKU of one" - allows customers to choose to add a stereo, center console, special lighting, and other features later. The pickup will be built with composite body panels in gray, with an option for a vinyl wrap. That will sidestep the need for a paint shop, which is one of the most expensive investments in a typical car factory. Slate's minimalist approach is a leap of faith that Americans will forgo creature comforts they have been increasingly willing to splurge on. Last year, U.S. buyers spent 33per cent above the base price on average, springing for higher-end trim packages and extra features, according to . That was up from 28per cent in 2014. But there is mounting evidence that new cars are becoming out of reach for many Americans. That could worsen under the effects of the Trump administration's tariffs, which threaten to increase prices on popular budget cars imported from Mexico, Korea and elsewhere. From that standpoint, Slate's price-conscious pickup might be hitting at the right time, said Paul Waatti, director of industry analysis at AutoPacific. "There's a growing appetite, especially among younger drivers, for vehicles that are more honest, more modular and less over-engineered," he said. "Slate taps right into that." Traditional automakers and startups have found mixed success rolling out larger electric pickup trucks in recent years. Now, startups like Slate and California-based Telo are focusing on smaller electric pickups. In a town hall meeting in early May, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Executive Chair Bill Ford told employees they admired the company's customer-centered ethos and focus on affordability. Tim Kuniskis, Stellantis' head of American brands, called Slate "super interesting" at a June event, while also questioning how affordable it would be for some shoppers once they added all the options they wanted. "The idea behind it, we've talked about that idea a million times," he said. "It's a cool idea."
TimesLIVE
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
Slate Auto still betting big on simplified, affordable EV pickup
When Will Haseltine saw images online of a small, boxy electric pickup from start-up Slate Auto earlier this year he immediately got onto the waiting list. The sparse interior and crank windows reminded him of the no-frills pickups he grew up with in Memphis, Tennessee — but he was most enamoured with the sub-$20,000 (R357,069) price tag. That price, though, factored in a $7,500 (R133,904) federal tax break, which is set, a casualty of the budget package US President Donald Trump signed into law earlier this month. Now Haseltine isn't sure the truck will fit his budget when it comes out, expected late next year. 'The Slate was the first time I looked at a car, wanted it, and could also make it happen,' said Haseltine, a 39-year-old musical instrument technician. Without the tax credit, he said: 'That's just plain too much.' Michigan-based Slate has raised $700m (R12.49bn) from investors, including founder Jeff Bezos, and has racked up more than 100,000 reservations for its cars. But the company is launching into a tough US market. A few years ago hopeful entrepreneurs were looking to cash in on the global transition to electric cars. But US electric vehicle (EV) sales growth has cooled as consumer interest has faded. The loss of federal tax breaks will further hurt demand, car executives and analysts predict. Like other EV start-ups, Slate probably faces a long road to profitability. The EV business has proven to be a money loser for most industry players, partly because batteries remain relatively expensive. Even in China, where smaller, inexpensive EVs have proliferated and companies enjoy a cost advantage over Western carmakers, most are unprofitable.
Yahoo
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
This Bezos-backed EV startup is betting you'll pay extra for a stereo in your petite pickup
By Kalea Hall and Nora Eckert (Reuters) -When Will Haseltine saw images online of a small, boxy electric pickup from startup Slate Auto this past spring, he got on the waitlist right away. The sparse interior and crank windows reminded him of the no-frills pickups he grew up around in Memphis, Tennessee – but he was most enamored with the sub-$20,000 price tag. That price, though, factored in a $7,500 federal tax break, which is set to expire Sept. 30, a casualty of the budget package U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law earlier this month. Now Haseltine isn't sure the truck will fit his budget when it comes out, expected late next year. 'The Slate was the first time that I looked at a car, wanted it, and could also really make it happen," said Haseltine, a 39-year-old musical instrument technician. Without the tax credit, he said: "That's just plain too much." Michigan-based Slate has raised $700 million from investors, including founder Jeff Bezos, and has racked up more than 100,000 reservations for its cars. But the company is launching into a tough U.S. market. A few years ago, the electric-vehicle space was awash in hopeful entrepreneurs looking to cash in on the global transition to electric cars. But U.S. EV sales growth has cooled as consumer interest has faded. The loss of federal tax breaks will further hurt demand, auto executives and analysts predict. Like other EV startups, Slate likely faces a long road to profitability. The EV business has proven to be a money loser for most industry players, partly because batteries remain relatively expensive. Even in China, where smaller, inexpensive EVs have proliferated and companies enjoy a cost advantage over Western automakers, most are unprofitable. Slate founders believe the company can overcome those obstacles by offering something that is in short supply in today's U.S. car market: affordability. The average new-vehicle selling price is above $45,000. 'We are building the affordable vehicle that has long been promised but never delivered,' Slate CEO Chris Barman said at a Detroit conference in July. The company has a chance to fill a void left by Tesla, which has backtracked on plans to introduce a mid-$20,000s electric vehicle. The startup has taken a bare-bones approach to its two-seat pickup, which is slightly smaller than a Honda Civic hatchback. How bare-bones? A stereo and power windows will cost extra. Slate hasn't disclosed the cost of such add-ons. 'IT'S A COOL IDEA' Slate's creation started with an idea from Miles Arnone, the CEO of Re:Build Manufacturing, a Massachusetts-based startup that includes several former Amazon employees. Arnone believed workers needed better access to affordable vehicles. Arnone shared his idea with Jeff Wilke, the company's chairman and a former Amazon executive, and eventually, a small team was formed. The group hired Barman, who spent most of her career as an engineering executive at Fiat Chrysler, now part of Stellantis. Barman told Reuters recently that Slate will be able to absorb the loss of the $7,500 tax credit because the truck's price still will undercut competitors. The company plans to build the pickup at an old catalog factory in Warsaw, Indiana. Executives are taking steps to hold down costs, starting with a simplified design that uses about 500 parts in the truck's assembly, compared with a few thousand for a traditional truck. The plan to build all of its trucks in a basic package – what the company calls a 'SKU of one' – allows customers to choose to add a stereo, center console, special lighting, and other features later. The pickup will be built with composite body panels in gray, with an option for a vinyl wrap. That will sidestep the need for a paint shop, which is one of the most expensive investments in a typical car factory. Slate's minimalist approach is a leap of faith that Americans will forgo creature comforts they have been increasingly willing to splurge on. Last year, U.S. buyers spent 33% above the base price on average, springing for higher-end trim packages and extra features, according to . That was up from 28% in 2014. But there is mounting evidence that new cars are becoming out of reach for many Americans. That could worsen under the effects of the Trump administration's tariffs, which threaten to increase prices on popular budget cars imported from Mexico, Korea and elsewhere. From that standpoint, Slate's price-conscious pickup might be hitting at the right time, said Paul Waatti, director of industry analysis at AutoPacific. 'There's a growing appetite, especially among younger drivers, for vehicles that are more honest, more modular and less over-engineered,' he said. 'Slate taps right into that.' Traditional automakers and startups have found mixed success rolling out larger electric pickup trucks in recent years. Now, startups like Slate and California-based Telo are focusing on smaller electric pickups. In a town hall meeting in early May, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Executive Chair Bill Ford told employees they admired the company's customer-centered ethos and focus on affordability. Tim Kuniskis, Stellantis' head of American brands, called Slate 'super interesting' at a June event, while also questioning how affordable it would be for some shoppers once they added all the options they wanted. 'The idea behind it, we've talked about that idea a million times,' he said. "It's a cool idea.' Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
