In the United States, affordable automobiles are right there with the red wolf, California condor, and black-footed ferret on the endangered-species list. Just two dozen of the hundreds of new car, truck, van, and SUV models for 2025 sticker for less than $27,000. Not one is a pickup or an electric vehicle. Upstart automaker Slate aims to fill those voids with its Truck, a battery-powered pickup boasting a starting price that we estimate will be around $25,000.



