Tesla Raj Shares Inside Look At Rivian R1T Electric Truck

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Tesla Raj, whose channel on YouTube is about EVs and Tesla, got to test drive the new Rivian R1T electric truck and shared his review. Raj started his video by sharing who Rivian’s target market is and noted that Rivian’s mission is similar to Tesla’s. Both companies are focused on transitioning the world towards sustainable energy.

“Rivian’s putting a lot of weight into the concept of adventure — the idea that electric vehicles are great for the planet and mother nature, so use them to enjoy mother nature.”

The Rivian R1T starts at $67,500 and has an EPA estimate of 314 miles. It has quad motors, a 0–60 mph time of 3 seconds, and towing capacity up to 11,000 pounds. The EV truck also has Wi-Fi capability, LTE, Bluetooth, six USB outlets, four 120-volt outlets, and Amazon voice commands. It also includes 11 cameras, 5 radars, 12 ultrasonic sensors, and a 360-degree field of vision. Raj shared what he thought were some really cool features about the R1T that he thought set it apart from any other truck that he’s ever seen. He started with the gear tunnel.

“It’s a storage tunnel that runs through the width of the vehicle in between the rear seats and the bed. This tunnel has lights and two 120-volt outlets that make storing things like surfboards, golf clubs, and even people — yes, I could fit inside. […] The gear tunnel doors can actually support up to 250 pounds, so you can use it to sit on or stand on to load things onto the roof or in the bed or just climb into the bed.”

Raj noted that while riding in the truck, he stored his bag in the gear tunnel and it slid from one side to the other, and that he wasn’t able to reach the bag when he tried to retrieve it later. Rivian has a shuttle sled system that enables you to pull it out on a drawer, a problem that Rivian anticipated and solved, but doubling as a neat way for customers to organize it for their purposes.

“Ideally, a contractor could have all of their power ready to go on this pull-out drawer and everything fully charged. Rivian wants you to use the gear tunnel shuttle with their camp kitchen. Yes, they have a mobile, bespoke kitchen which includes a titanium, 30-piece kitchen set from Snow Peak, two-burner induction cooktop, and a removable sink with an extended hose for the sink and for hosing whatever else you want off.”

Raj also explored the bottom of the truck bed, which has a spare tire that, once removed, can function as a cooler with a drain.

“Essentially the best tailgating experience.”

The right side of the bed has two 120-volt outlets and the tailgate drops down to extend the bed from 54 inches to around 84 inches. The truck also has a cargo crossbar for purchase. Raj noted that it was impressive to see how easy it was to install by just one person.

Adventure Lifestyle & Attention To Detail

At the beginning of the video, Raj pointed out that Rivian was focused on enhancing the adventure lifestyle, and what he thought was really cool was its partnership with Yakima — Rivian provides a tent that easily mounts to the top of the bed. The tent is also easy to fold and store.

“I found it to be super roomy and airy and it has a two-and-a-half-inch thick wall-to-wall foam mattress.

“The more and more I saw the truck, the more I started to get excited at how fun and practical this vehicle could be to just take off the grid. Like any electric vehicle, the lack of an engine allows room for more storage, and boy does Rivian love utilizing every nook and cranny.”

Raj pointed out that the frunk is large enough for a 5’10”, 160-pound guy. Raj knows because he might have experimented. The frunk is also a powered lift that can be activated from the key fob, app, or a button hidden in the front. The doors are somewhat similar to the Tesla Model S in function — the handles self-present. Raj also spoke about the beauty and attention to detail he found in the interior.

“There’s a hidden Bluetooth speaker, there are ventilated seats, there’s a panoramic roof, USB-C ports behind the headrests. The stitching, the wireless charging, the etched Rivian brand in the wood — I mean, it was all just beautiful attention to detail.”

Raj pointed out that Rivian seems to have a love for storage. There’s storage in the floor compartment between the driver and passenger seat, and also under the rear seats along with a meridian subwoofer for the sound system.

“While we’re on the topic of storage, you remember the gear-tunnel doors? Yeah, well, there’s storage in them as well.”

The icing on the cake is the flashlight hidden inside the driver’s side of the door.

Raj’s Review On Driving The R1T

The course Raj took was mainly off-roading, and he said that it ended with a 0–60 mph launch. After settling in and making sure he was in Off-Road Mode, Raj began to drive. Raj, who has never off-roaded in his life, was having fun.

“Going off-road in the R1T is a whole lot of fun. You can hear it in my voice. One thing that was really cool was the ability to use the camera in the front of the vehicle to see on the screen, especially when you go over ledges. However, was a little disappointed by the resolution on the screen. It didn’t even seem to be 720p — it seemed almost like a 480p resolution and it didn’t do the site justice, especially as you came upon a hill you were overlooking — it’d just be kind of nice if that was HD.”

This will probably be improved over time. Raj wasn’t alone when off-roading. Some folks from Rivian were with him and they shared the difference between Off-Road Mode and All-Purpose Mode.

“In Off-Road Mode, the gas pedal gets a bit more sensitive, so you get a lot more travel to have really good resolution over what the pedal is doing.

“And then it puts it automatically into high ride height. It softens the dampers. In All-Purpose, it’s kind of in the middle. It’s the best of everything.”

You can watch Raj’s full review and experience in the Rivian R1T here.


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Johnna Crider

Johnna owns less than one share of $TSLA currently and supports Tesla's mission. She also gardens, collects interesting minerals and can be found on TikTok

Johnna Crider has 1996 posts and counting. See all posts by Johnna Crider