Slate's $25,000 electric pickup, Polestar banned from US, Tesla FSD crash, and more
About this episode
Hosts Fred Lambert and Seth Wintrom dive into the highly anticipated Slate electric pickup truck, now officially priced at $25,000. They debate whether this bare-bones, minimalist EV can compete with used Ford Mavericks and discuss how state incentives could slash its price even further. The duo also breaks down the implications of Polestar's impending US ban under new Chinese connected vehicle rules, Lucid's recent job cuts, and the latest Tesla news, including a Full Self-Driving crash and a new virtual power plant partnership with Sun Run.
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss Slate's $25,000 electric pickup, Polestar being banned from the US, Tesla FSD crashes coming into focus, and more.
Slate pickup
"But before that, we're going to talk about the slate pickup truck this week. The full unveiling, mostly the price that was needed to be confirmed..."
A new, very cheap electric truck that costs $25,000. It is designed to be simple and basic, without fancy screens or power windows, focusing on getting the job done.
An upcoming ultra-affordable all-electric pickup truck starting at $25,000. It features a minimalist design, a 5-foot bed, and a 65 kWh battery pack delivering around 205 miles of range.
Polestar
"Pulse tar being banned from the US in the first one to bite the dust from the new Chinese connected vehicle rules..."
A premium electric car brand that started out as a special performance division of Volvo, known for its clean, modern designs.
An electric performance car brand established by Volvo Cars and Geely Holding. Originally Volvo's racing partner and performance division, it was spun off as an independent EV brand focusing on minimalist Scandinavian design and high-tech performance.
Lucid Motors
"And then we can also talk about Lucid that the new CEO made his first move. And it's unfortunately a big job cuts for employees."
An American company that makes high-end, luxury electric cars with extremely long-lasting batteries.
An American electric vehicle manufacturer specializing in luxury EVs, famous for its ultra-efficient electric powertrains and the Lucid Air sedan. The company is heavily backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.
Ford Maverick
"The main criticism I've seen so far are from people saying like, oh, you can get a used Maverick for basically the same price like a two years old Maverick..."
A small, affordable pickup truck made by Ford that is very popular for its great gas mileage and practical size.
A compact, highly popular pickup truck offered by Ford, available with a fuel-efficient hybrid powertrain or a traditional gasoline engine. It serves as a key benchmark for affordable, small utility vehicles in the North American market.
Chevrolet Bolt
"It's bigger than a, you know, it's like the size of a Chevy Bolt battery pack. It's not like a compliance car."
A small, affordable electric hatchback made by Chevrolet that was popular for offering a lot of driving range for a relatively low price.
An all-electric subcompact hatchback produced by Chevrolet, known for offering practical range and affordability. It served as GM's entry-level EV benchmark for several years before its temporary discontinuation and planned revival.
compliance car
"It's bigger than a, you know, it's like the size of a Chevy Bolt battery pack. It's not like a compliance car."
A basic electric car that a traditional car company builds only because the government forces them to sell a certain number of zero-emission vehicles, rather than because they actually want to make a great EV.
An electric vehicle built by a traditional automaker solely to meet government zero-emission vehicle mandates rather than to satisfy genuine consumer demand. These cars are typically produced in limited quantities and often feature compromised designs adapted from gas-powered platforms.
Tesla Model Y
"Obviously, if you're buying a, you know, $40,000 Molo Y, $2,000 doesn't go that far, but if you're buying a $25,000 truck, $2,000 is almost 10% of the price."
A popular mid-sized electric SUV made by Tesla that is known for its spacious interior and high-tech features.
An all-electric compact crossover utility vehicle (CUV) built by Tesla. It shares its platform with the Model 3 and has become one of the best-selling vehicles globally due to its range, tech, and cargo space.
Geely
"And Polestar is obviously owned by Gili and Gili is, owns a bunch of other companies, including Volvo."
A massive Chinese car company that owns several well-known European brands like Volvo, Polestar, and Lotus.
A major Chinese multinational automotive company headquartered in Hangzhou. It owns several prominent global brands, including Volvo Cars, Polestar, Lotus, and Zeekr, making it a powerful player in the global EV transition.
Lucid Gravity
"We, we review the gravity. If, if you guys want to check out the gravity, Bastini posted his review."
A large, high-end electric SUV with three rows of seats made by Lucid, designed to offer a very smooth ride and lots of luxury features.
An all-electric luxury three-row SUV produced by Lucid Motors, featuring advanced aerodynamics, long range, and high-performance electric motors. It represents Lucid's expansion into the highly competitive luxury SUV segment.
Tesla Model 3
"and it's a very dramatic event, very sad event where a driver, a Tesla Model 3 driver in Texas, in Katie, Texas, was driving in a residential neighborhood..."
A smaller, more affordable electric sedan made by Tesla that is very common on the roads today.
An all-electric four-door compact sedan manufactured by Tesla. It is credited with bringing electric vehicles to a broader global mass market with its competitive pricing and impressive range.
Ashok Elluswamy
"And of course, Elon and Ashok were quite mad at the media reporting around it, that it was ridiculous to suggest that autopilot, the full self-driving, had anything to do with it."
The head engineer at Tesla who is in charge of writing the software that helps the cars drive themselves.
The Director of Autopilot Software at Tesla. He leads the engineering team responsible for developing Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) systems.
Elon Musk
"And of course, Elon and Ashok were quite mad at the media reporting around it..."
The billionaire boss of Tesla who is famous for pushing the world to adopt electric cars and self-driving technology.
The CEO and product architect of Tesla, Inc. He is a polarizing figure in the automotive industry, known for driving the mass adoption of electric vehicles and advancing autonomous driving technology.
Full Self-Driving
"They actually confirmed that full self-driving was on, at least Ashok said self-driving. I assume it's full self-driving he's talking about."
A premium software feature for Tesla cars that can steer, accelerate, and brake on city streets, but still requires the driver to pay attention and take over at any second.
Tesla's advanced driver-assist system (ADAS) that builds upon Autopilot. Despite its name, it is classified as a Level 2 system, meaning it requires active driver supervision and does not make the vehicle fully autonomous.
pedal misapplication
"Secondly, to me, the crash itself and the Tesla's interpretation of the log that they released point to a clear pedal misapplication situation."
A mistake where a driver accidentally steps on the gas pedal when they actually meant to step on the brakes, causing the car to speed up suddenly.
A driving error where a driver mistakenly presses the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal, often leading to sudden unintended acceleration. This phenomenon is a frequent subject of investigation in crashes involving driver assist systems.
virtual power plant
"Tesla's idea, Tesla's Sunrun and Renew Home, is to create a giant virtual power plant of distributed energy system..."
A system that connects many home solar batteries together so they can act like one big power plant, sending electricity back to the main power grid when demand is high.
A network of decentralized, medium-scale power generating units, flexible power consumers, and electricity storage systems (like home batteries) grouped together and controlled by a central system to support the electrical grid.
Fisker
"Isker had a massive tech problems. RIP Lucid has some tech problems."
An electric car startup that recently went out of business after struggling with software bugs and money problems.
An American electric vehicle startup founded by automotive designer Henrik Fisker. The company faced severe software issues, supply chain disruptions, and financial distress, leading to bankruptcy in 2024.
Ford Explorer
"All right. I want to, Slate, it reminds me of my old two-door Explorer."
A very popular mid-sized family SUV made by Ford.
A mid-size SUV manufactured by Ford. Originally introduced as a body-on-frame SUV in 1990, it played a massive role in popularizing the SUV segment in North America.
Land Rover Defender
"But he says I want all wheel drive, Defender looking one with rear tire on the back..."
A famous, boxy off-road vehicle made by Land Rover that is built to handle tough dirt trails and rough weather.
A rugged, highly capable off-road utility vehicle produced by Land Rover. Known historically for its utilitarian design, the modern iteration combines luxury with extreme off-road performance.
LFP battery
"There are LFP that can achieve that high, but only China."
A type of electric car battery that is cheaper to make, lasts a very long time, and is less likely to catch fire, though it holds slightly less energy than other types.
Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery chemistry. LFP batteries are known for their safety, long cycle life, and lower production costs because they do not use cobalt or nickel, though they have lower energy density than NMC batteries.
Aptera
"...'s biggest impact may be killing the prospects of Aptera and Tello. Lots of overlap in their fan bases and..."
The Aptera is a unique, three-wheeled electric vehicle shaped like a futuristic pod to help it slide through the air easily. It has solar panels on its body so it can charge itself using sunlight while parked outside.
The Aptera is a highly aerodynamic, three-wheeled solar electric vehicle (SEV) designed for extreme energy efficiency. It features integrated solar panels across its bodywork that can generate up to 40 miles of daily driving range directly from the sun, minimizing the need for traditional plug-in charging.
Ford Bronco
"Bronco is starting at 45k or 45k. Slate all wheel drive, 35k."
A tough, retro-styled SUV made by Ford that is built for off-roading and has a roof and doors you can take off.
A rugged, body-on-frame SUV produced by Ford, revived in 2021 to compete directly with the Jeep Wrangler. It features removable doors and roof panels, designed specifically for serious off-roading.
Rivian R2
"Why is Rivian stock not seen to go up even though the R2 rollout has gone so well? I think some of that was baked in."
A new, smaller, and cheaper electric SUV being developed by Rivian to appeal to more everyday buyers.
An upcoming mid-size electric SUV from Rivian, designed to be more compact and affordable than the flagship R1S. It is built on a new platform and aims to compete directly with high-volume electric crossovers.
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