Anyone Rallycrossed a R1S?

[Phoenix864]

Searching around, I've only found very limited info on if the R1S is reasonable for rallycross. There's an event ~2 hours from me that will allow the Rivian, but advised against it due to the size and weight of the vehicle. Before I make a final decision, I was wondering if anyone has had experience rallycrossing a R1S. I've found that the R1S hides its weight and size very well, but as I've never rallycrossed before I'm not sure if it hides it enough to be reasonably fun for rallycross.

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[Cycliste]

Maybe https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...y-shield-r1-rollover.27586/page-4#post-535949

If you do this, please post a report and photos. I’m going to, gasp, drive a gravel road (level 1 trail) this month.

 

[SeaGeo]

I know of some folks who've done it in their R1T. You'll have fun, but it does have all that weight so you'll need to be cognizant of inertia.

 

[iansriv]

Rally? I used to go to the events as a kid. Most of the cars were a lot smaller. I can see the R3X in a Rally but not so sure about a R1. All the best.

 

[JamboF4]

Does stomping a Raptor, then hitting a puddle count as rallycross? Haha

 

[KBabione]

If you do this, please post a report and photos. I’m going to, gasp, drive a gravel road (level 1 trail) this month.

Do be careful...I took our R1S on a gravel road last November and, while traumatic, we did survive (although I'm still finding mud in crevices that I never knew the Rivian had).

My wife had to have the AT's because of the look, but a gravel road is as far as she's willing to take the vehicle exploring.

 

[Phoenix864]

Thanks for the responses, sounds like it'll be fun and is worth a shot. The organizers are asking that I drive the R1S in the lowest ride height to minimize the rollover chance - while I definitely agree with minimizing rollovers, I'm a little concerned about hitting the suspension hard while in lowest. Any concerns with thrashing the vehicle on a rough course while in the lowest suspension height?

 

[No_Name5330]

Thanks for the responses, sounds like it'll be fun and is worth a shot. The organizers are asking that I drive the R1S in the lowest ride height to minimize the rollover chance - while I definitely agree with minimizing rollovers, I'm a little concerned about hitting the suspension hard while in lowest. Any concerns with thrashing the vehicle on a rough course while in the lowest suspension height?

That could be a pretty rough ride! I’d recommend going into rally mode and sticking with standard ride height.

 

[mkg3]

Thanks for the responses, sounds like it'll be fun and is worth a shot. The organizers are asking that I drive the R1S in the lowest ride height to minimize the rollover chance - while I definitely agree with minimizing rollovers, I'm a little concerned about hitting the suspension hard while in lowest. Any concerns with thrashing the vehicle on a rough course while in the lowest suspension height?

Interesting comment from the organizer.

All BEVs have lower center of gravity than ICE vehicles. Even at the "high" setting, R1 cg is much lower than other trucks or SUVs. Clearly, Sedan and hatchback based rally vehicles have lower cg.

Depending on your wheel size, I would be more concerned about tires and wheels being thrown around by 7klbs vehicle.

 

[Phoenix864]

Interesting comment from the organizer.

All BEVs have lower center of gravity than ICE vehicles. Even at the "high" setting, R1 cg is much lower than other trucks or SUVs. Clearly, Sedan and hatchback based rally vehicles have lower cg.

Depending on your wheel size, I would be more concerned about tires and wheels being thrown around by 7klbs vehicle.

Yeah, the organizer is (understandably) very concerned about rollovers and wants the vehicle as low to the ground as possible, hence the request to drive it in lowest. Looking at the other vehicles registered, based on the NHTSA rollover tests (which the event uses as a benchmark for entry), the R1S isn't too far off - 1-3% in most cases. I'm not sure how that translates in reality, though.

I'm rolling on the 21in wheels - the concern of debeading a tire is definitely in the back of my mind. However, if I understand correctly, the course generally stays between 20-30mph, so I'm hoping that speeds are low enough to mitigate the risk of debeading.

 

[kanundrum]

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...-review-mexico-trip-report.14001/#post-310543

 

[BUGWILLY]

ADVENTUROUS FOREVER

 

[Riptonite]

I live on a dead end dirt road off of a dead end dirt road and bomb Vermont forest roads on a regular basis. Comments are no guarantee of anything, but at least based on frequent off pavement experience and a bunch of autocrosses (no rallycross) and track days before I had kids.

If the course is relatively smooth dirt/gravel, I would use drift/low ride/reduced stability/medium or stiff suspension.

The vehicle rotates better in drift vs rally and the throttle is more responsive.

Lowest is really unforgiving over any bumps and can upset the handling.

While stability off is just silly fun for spraying gravel, Reduced is notably quicker straight line and the handling feels more predictable.

Medium or stiff suspension will reduce roll versus soft and keep things more responsive.

If you encounter bottoming, stiffen the suspension first, then raise ride height.

Higher tire pressures will reduce chance of debeading but likely reduce grip by a nominal amount - probably worth the trade.

Take it easy(er) if a particular corner has deep ruts or a harsh berm on corner exit, go thrash the toy and have a blast! Share pictures and feedback!

Chris

Edit P.S. : empty out the interior and frunk before your runs or whatever it is will get scrambled/broken or end up under the brake pedal. I recommend a couple of tough boxes or bins to keep things covered and sorted while you play.

 

[Phoenix864]

I live on a dead end dirt road off of a dead end dirt road and bomb Vermont forest roads on a regular basis. Comments are no guarantee of anything, but at least based on frequent off pavement experience and a bunch of autocrosses (no rallycross) and track days before I had kids.

If the course is relatively smooth dirt/gravel, I would use drift/low ride/reduced stability/medium or stiff suspension.

The vehicle rotates better in drift vs rally and the throttle is more responsive.

Lowest is really unforgiving over any bumps and can upset the handling.

While stability off is just silly fun for spraying gravel, Reduced is notably quicker straight line and the handling feels more predictable.

Medium or stiff suspension will reduce roll versus soft and keep things more responsive.

If you encounter bottoming, stiffen the suspension first, then raise ride height.

Higher tire pressures will reduce chance of debeading but likely reduce grip by a nominal amount - probably worth the trade.

Take it easy(er) if a particular corner has deep ruts or a harsh berm on corner exit, go thrash the toy and have a blast! Share pictures and feedback!

Chris

Edit P.S. : empty out the interior and frunk before your runs or whatever it is will get scrambled/broken or end up under the brake pedal. I recommend a couple of tough boxes or bins to keep things covered and sorted while you play.

I appreciate the advice! Sounds like rally/drift, standard ride height, stiff suspension is a good starting point (only see soft/firm and standard/high as the options for rally and drift). Looking forward to putting the R1S through its paces tomorrow.

I was hoping to suction cup mount a camera to the roof to record during runs, but I'm having second thoughts after feeling how heavy the mount is (almost 2lb) and how flimsy the Rivian roof glass is known to be. Has anyone had any luck with mounting a camera in the cabin? I don't have a drive on hand to setup the drive cam, otherwise I'll try that in the future.

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