4695 Batteries + Structural Pack

[DuoRivians]

What are people’s thoughts about voltage, charge/discharge rates, fast charging capabilities?

Also, can we expect this in R1 vehicles soon?

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[emoore]

more energy than Tesla's that's why I expect some snide Musk comment on X in a few days.

 

[jjswan33]

The press release said 10-80% in less than 30 min.

If less than 30 minutes actually means 20 minutes then we are ok. If it's really 30 min then it's not likely to be 800 volts in my opinion.

Edit: I mean the SEC release (https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1874178/000187417824000016/ex-991r2reveal.htm)

 

[SANZC02]

The press release said 10-80% in less than 30 min.

If less than 30 minutes actually means 20 minutes then we are ok. If it's really 30 min then it's not likely to be 800 volts in my opinion.

Edit: I mean the SEC release (https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1874178/000187417824000016/ex-991r2reveal.htm)

Ioniq 5 can do 18 minutes but it is only a 77 kWh battery so 10-80% is about 54 kWh.

If the R2 gets 3 miles per kWh then it would need at least a 100 kWh battery so it would need to charge 70 kWh Going 10-80%.

At an average of 3 kWh per minute for the Ioniq 5, if R2 could get the same rate it would be almost 24 minutes for a similar charge.

 

[jjswan33]

Ioniq 5 can do 18 minutes but it is only a 77 kWh battery so 10-80% is about 54 kWh.

If the R2 gets 3 miles per kWh then it would need at least a 100 kWh battery so it would need to charge 70 kWh Going 10-80%.

At an average of 3 kWh per minute for the Ioniq 5, if R2 could get the same rate it would be almost 24 minutes for a similar charge.

Agree with all your reasoning. I at first thought about the Ioniq 5 because I have a few thousand miles on mine now but that would be a better comparison for R3 probably.

Then I looked up the EV9 and that claims 10-80 in 24 min, and the pack there is ~100 kWh. So your math checks out. Of course the EV9 has similar battery voltage to the R1 so a true 800V class car could probably swing 20 minutes.

 

[DuoRivians]

Rivian is apparently staying with 400v batteries.

 

[shrink]

Rivian is apparently staying with 400v batteries.

I just read that, too - as posted by someone who was in attendance and said they spent several hours viewing and talking to Rivian staff.

 

[Supratachophobia]

Tesla hasn't had good luck with 4680's in CT and Y so I *guess* temper expectations for 4695's?

 

[KootenayEV]

To be repetitive from other threads, unless they can really improve the thermal performance of the pack itself, it doesn't matter if it is 400v or 800v in practical terms, since at the cell level the voltage is the same (hence same amps etc into each cell and same amount of heat generated).

 

[KootenayEV]

Tesla hasn't had good luck with 4680's in CT and Y so I *guess* temper expectations for 4695's?

I'm pretty curious who the supplier is!

 

[DuoRivians]

To be repetitive from other threads, unless they can really improve the thermal performance of the pack itself, it doesn't matter if it is 400v or 800v in practical terms, since at the cell level the voltage is the same (hence same amps etc into each cell and same amount of heat generated).

Hyundai can do this now. So can a lot of Chinese brands. There’s no reason Rivian’s car coming out in 2026 shouldn’t be able to.

 

[KootenayEV]

Hyundai can do this now. So can a lot of Chinese brands. There’s no reason Rivian’s car coming out in 2026 shouldn’t be able to.

I've yet to see concrete reasons for why to do it though that are customer facing. Maybe if we were talking a really large pack where we wanted 350kW charging speeds (for a significant length of time) I suppose you might because otherwise the cables become too thick to handle those kind of amps at 500V, but at the moment, a charging cable capable of 250kW (e.g. Supercharger v3/4) is available and that charge rate stretches the reasonable C-rate that chemistries with good energy density are capable of.

I would love to see honest analysis of the issue from someone at Rivian (or another company) - otherwise it just strikes to me of being a stat-line that the PR people can point to and people get excited over - "bigger = better".

 

[DuoRivians]

I've yet to see concrete reasons for why to do it though that are customer facing. Maybe if we were talking a really large pack where we wanted 350kW charging speeds (for a significant length of time) I suppose you might because otherwise the cables become too thick to handle those kind of amps at 500V, but at the moment, a charging cable capable of 250kW (e.g. Supercharger v3/4) is available and that charge rate stretches the reasonable C-rate that chemistries with good energy density are capable of.

I would love to see honest analysis of the issue from someone at Rivian (or another company) - otherwise it just strikes to me of being a stat-line that the PR people can point to and people get excited over - "bigger = better".

If the only reason were that the competition can say:

“Charge your car from empty to 80% in less than 20 minutes versus 30 minutes on the Rivian.”

I think this would matter a lot as the EV space gets more and more competitive. In 2026, the mid size suv market is going to be crowded. Hyundai/Kia, Ford, GM, VW, Scout, Jeep, Tesla, Toyota(?)

 

[SeaGeo]

Agree with all your reasoning. I at first thought about the Ioniq 5 because I have a few thousand miles on mine now but that would be a better comparison for R3 probably.

Then I looked up the EV9 and that claims 10-80 in 24 min, and the pack there is ~100 kWh. So your math checks out. Of course the EV9 has similar battery voltage to the R1 so a true 800V class car could probably swing 20 minutes.

The EV9 doesn't charge at a raw speed requiring 800v. The secret sauce they have is being able to push their cells really hard very deep into the pack.

 

[KootenayEV]

If the only reason were that the competition can say:

“Charge your car from empty to 80% in less than 20 minutes versus 30 minutes on the Rivian.”

I think this would matter a lot as the EV space gets more and more competitive. In 2026, the mid size suv market is going to be crowded. Hyundai/Kia, Ford, GM, VW, Scout, Jeep, Tesla, Toyota(?)

That isn't related to 800v vs 400v, that is related to one or more combination of:
- thermal performance of the pack (ie how much heat can be removed per unit time)
- cells that are optimized for power rather than energy
- a willingness of the company to push the cells hotter

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