America’s car market keeps smashing records, and not the good kind. These are not the sorts of uplifting achievements that are fun to read about in the Guinness Book. Like the world’s smallest living dog (Pearl, the 3.5-inch-tall Chihuahua). Or the fastest time to eat a whole raw onion (just shy of 30 seconds, a number I’ve always thought I could beat if I put my mind to it). The milestones we’re seeing in American car-buying today are no fun at all.
This year, the average monthly payment for a new car purchase hit a whopping $773. The typical amount financed reached $43,899. Nearly a quarter of shoppers are now signing up for 84-month-or-longer car loans. These are all all-time highs, according to Edmunds. Meanwhile, the average new car will run you close to $50,000, up about $10,000 from 2019. All the data points to the same stubborn affordability problem.
Gallery: Slate Auto EV Truck
Slate Auto is betting that people are fed up enough to consider something radically different. On Wednesday, the Michigan-based EV startup revealed the final pricing and specifications of its first model, a staggeringly basic pickup truck shipping later this year. At $24,950, the Slate will be both the country’s cheapest new electric vehicle and its lowest-priced pickup. But will it be an automatic slam dunk? Featuring crank-up windows, modest electric range, and virtually limitless customization options, the vehicle will test just how far outside of their comfort zone Americans are willing to go in the name of a cheaper set of wheels.
