Here's Why the Slate Truck Only Costs $25K

• What's new: The Slate Truck is one of the cheapest cars on sale right now, starting at just $24,950 (not including an unknown destination charge).
• Why it matters: The Slate brings a ton of customization and flexibility to a truly bare-bones vehicle canvas. 
• Edmunds says: We spoke to Slate's head of engineering to find out what it took to keep costs low. 

Slate's engineers also reduced the total number of parts in the truck. Slate says a typical truck has around 1,840 "major components," but this small electric truck has approximately 800. Think body panels, energy control modules, doors, suspension components — big-ticket items like that. Plus, the body panels themselves aren't made from metal, but a much cheaper plastic polymer that's both dent-resistant and easy to swap out should you find yourself in a minor crash. 

Keipper also mentioned the team made specific content choices very early on in development to keep that "bill of material" cost as low as possible. The truck's limited driver assistance systems (it only comes with regular ol' cruise control) meant no costs for complicated sensors, and the lack of an infotainment interface reduced the need for wiring and control modules. The Slate doesn't even have a heat pump like so many other EVs. That might make living with one in colder climates more difficult, but just using a standard heater keeps things simpler and cheaper. 

A large chunk of what makes up the Slate is off-the-shelf bits, meaning the company didn't have to develop key components in house. The electric motor, some vehicle control electronics, the steering column and more were all sourced from other companies and suppliers, and then Slate tuned those parts to best fit its truck's needs.

The suspension is a good example of how Slate cut costs. "[The truck] has a simple MacPherson strut suspension in the front and we've got a De Dion [non-independent] axle in the rear," Keipper told us. De Dion axles aren't very common in passenger cars anymore because, frankly, they're a little archaic. But they are also much cheaper than a more sophisticated independent rear suspension would be.

Servicing is also part of the deal. When a brand launches a car, it has to support what its customers buy — this is something Rivian found out the hard way when it launched the R1T and R1S. Slate is also taking an off-the-shelf approach here, though less literally. The company is partnering with RepairPal, which will offer 3,000 locations across the U.S. that will be able to service Slate's trucks. Launching your own service network is a hugely costly endeavor, and this is yet another way the company is pairing things back to minimize overhead.

The Slate is an interesting exercise in how small, very deliberate decision-making can lead to huge savings, and not all of them will be obvious. No, you aren't getting the creature comforts that so many modern buyers have become accustomed to, but that's also part of this truck's appeal. If you've been craving something simple that you can customize to your heart's content, then this cheap little trucklet might be the one for you.