Rivian - Electric Adventure Vehicle [EV pickup, SUV, made in Illinoiis]

YouTube ^ | January 10, 2019 | Fully Charged

[SunkenCiv]

Rivian - Electric Adventure Vehicle | Fully Charged

[SunkenCiv]

Fully Charged is mostly a two man effort from England; the younger of the two men visited the LA auto show, and got and shot a nice intro to the Rivian SUV and pickup models (410 and 400 mile range, respectively). They are going to be built in Illinois and most of the parts are US sourced.

[SunkenCiv]

In before the snarking starts! Pays to post around 5 am.

[RoosterRedux]

MSRP $60,000?

[piroque]

Some of us are already up ;)

[RoosterRedux]

Since it is being compared to a Range Rover, I am guessing the MSRP is going to be closer to $90-$100K.

[RoosterRedux]

Due in late 2020, the R1S will be slightly more expensive than Rivian’s pickup truck when it goes on sale, with the base model starting at $72,500.

Source: theverge.com

[kingu]

I guess I gotta do more research on this; with the stats they're tossing around, sure seems to me like this platform could actually break the rural barrier, especially with a far more rational interior without 30,000 spaces for dirt and spiders to nest.

I mean, I know you don't bring the ‘work truck’ design to the auto show, but rationalize the interior, throw out the self driving systems, put in manual ‘frunk’ and tailgate, and aim for a much lower MSRP, and you could base a pretty good production line JUST selling them to fleet operations.

Plus I know a lot of rural post drivers who'd kill for a good right hand drive vehicle.

[SunkenCiv]

One of the ironies of longer range is, the charging time gets longer. If I had the money, I'd get the Tesla Model 3 with the package that has unlimited supercharging, because there's a supercharger at 28th St and I-96 (in Kentwood, just east of Grand Rapids) which is only a ten or twelve mile round trip from my workplace (and I have to drive home anyway), meaning I'd have what I consider an expensive vehicle but no or very little "fuel" bill for it, and do my weekly shopping right across the parking lot, at Meijer.

Mercedes has a hydrogen vehicle coming (two 4-liter carbon fiber tanks; 50 mile battery backup) and the fillup time is similar to gasoline (2 to 4 minutes) -- but there's no infrastructure for the hydrogen. Obviously, if the water "exhaust" were stored and traded in at the filling stations, since DC power is ideal for electrolysis, all the hydrogen could be made in situ without a big electric bill for the vendor. If the filling process is really simple, and the risk of death and dismemberment nil, I could see how hydrogen vehicles could prevail for any kind of distance driving.

EVs are ideally suited for most driving (being within 25 miles of home), and there's little barrier to just keeping the "tank" topped off with household electrical power. But having to budget 30-40 minutes (or more) every few hours during a trip is not going to fly, IMHO.

But I agree, these trucks look great, and typically a pickup is a work vehicle for people who are home at night (again, 25 miles from home), and SUVs are soccer-mom vehicles.

[SunkenCiv]

The electrics have fewer parts, meaning they've got a manufacturing cost advantage in most areas. Did you see the part about the towing capacity?

[SunkenCiv]

since DC power is ideal for electrolysis, all the hydrogen could be made in situ

Whoops, forgot to include "with photovoltaic arrays on the roof of the building,".. .

[RoosterRedux]

I did. Vy impressive overall.

[SunkenCiv]

Michigan-based startup Rivian unveils a pricey electric pickup - CNN
https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/06/success/rivian-electric-pickup/index.html

[SunkenCiv]

The Rivian R1S is an All-Electric, 700-HP Super SUV | Automobile Magazine
It offers up to 400 miles of range and can hit 60 in three seconds
By: Conner Golden November 28, 2018
https://www.automobilemag.com/news/rivians-r1s-electric-super-seven-seater-suv-ev/

Rivian Discusses Why It’ll Be Able To Kick Tesla’s Ass In Production And Development | Top Speed
https://www.topspeed.com/cars/car-news/rivian-discusses-why-it-ll-be-able-to-kick-tesla-s-ass-in-production-and-development-ar184079.html

Why I’m Rooting for EV Pickup and SUV Maker Rivian
https://www.automobilemag.com/news/rivian-r1t-pickup-truck-r1s-suv-ev/

[SunkenCiv]

I was amused by the British vlogger's attitude about pickups, that the box is only for catching rain and dead leaves (I guess they really, really don't do any manual labor in England), but how he was over the moon about that admittedly very handing stowing space behind the back seat.

The older man at Fully Charged often (maybe always, haven't watched all their vids) points out that one priority is small size of vehicles, due to parking availability in Britain. He's all fired up about the right-hand-drive version of the Tesla Model 3, because it's basically a compact car. The Nissan Leaf is the best-selling EV in the UK, perhaps in Europe, despite its pathetic range, I think primarily because it's easy to park.

[SunkenCiv]

I've joked about it before on some recent thread, but I really do think a good aftermarket product would be a 220/110 gasoline-powered generator on a trailer and with an over-and-under fairing would be a great idea, and even moreso for these trucks which will get used for family camping. Pick up a big can of gas or two, and run the generator at the campsite to charge up the vehicle (assuming the state parks and KOAs restrict the use of campsite electricity) for the return trip...

[SunkenCiv]

Meanwhile, Ford stock is under $9, Fiat-Chrysler (which sell Chryslers in the US, but almost no Fiats) is back above $16. The Fiat 500 is available EV (but only in CA and OR I believe). I haven't seen one of the 500s (gas or EV) close up, but I suspect I couldn't get much more than my big toe inside one. Fiat will have to do a lot better than that, even if it undersells the competition (they run about $34K, probably there are better choices; most EVs are available used though).

[Fresh Wind]

And it’s sure to be more reliable and trouble-free than the Range Rover.

But that’s not saying much.

[SunkenCiv]

I'm going back to bed, but I'd imagine the torches and pitchforks mob will arrive while I nap. :^) Enjoy the topic!

[Vaquero]

Great time to introduce it with gas prices plummeting.
I’ll be riding comfortable in my Ram 1500 big horn.
I’ll wait for them to install induction chargers in the hiways before I buy an electric vehicle. I have places to go and can’t wait more than a couple of minutes to get a 300 mile fill up.

[norwaypinesavage]

"Obviously, if the water "exhaust" were stored and traded in at the filling stations, since DC power is ideal for electrolysis, all the hydrogen could be made in situ without a big electric bill for the vendor. If the filling process is really simple, and the risk of death and dismemberment nil, I could see how hydrogen vehicles could prevail for any kind of distance driving."

I don't understand the value of saving the water. Distilled water is dirt cheap. I just bought a gallon of it at Walmart for a buck, retail price, in its own jug. The actual cost of the water had to be close to zero. To collect it in a hydrogen vehicle would require condensing it, saving it, and storing it in volume in the vehicle. None of that is cheap.

The biggest disadvantage of hydrogen powered vehicles is creating, storing, and dispensing the hydrogen. It does not liquify at anything but cryogenic temperatures. Even at 10,000 psi storage pressure, hydrogen requires 7 times the volume as the equivalent energy in gasoline, and that does not include the volume of the tank. My 3,000 psi storage tank for oxygen (for a torch set) weighs close to 100 lbs., and has less than a gallon of volume. It would take more than 567 of these to store the same amount of hydrogen energy as the gas tank on my pickup truck.

That would be 57,000 lbs. of fuel tank. Granted, the carbon fiber tanks discussed would weigh less, but the volume requirements are the same. And where do you put 189 gallons specific shaped fuel tanks in a vehicle with a 27 gallon tank fitted around frames and suspension members? And all of the plastic tanks could come unglued with a HUGE bang (think Hindenburg) in a relatively minor collision.