Driving on soft sand / beach with Dual Motor?

[Airmoses]

I see rivian updated the dual motor performance to have soft sand, any chance they will do this for the regular dual motor?

Anyone have experience driving on the beach with the regular dual motor?

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[jjswan33]

I'm pretty sure if you get the AT upgrade it comes with soft sand even on a DM.

 

[R.I.P.]

I see rivian updated the dual motor performance to have soft sand, any chance they will do this for the regular dual motor?

Anyone have experience driving on the beach with the regular dual motor?

It's a gimmick (in the DM), you do not need it.

The QM needs various modes to help the computer guess at the surface it is on, to better react to it. Since the QM has no mechanical device to assist with this, the modes help a lot.

The DM has differentials that mechanically react to the surface in real time. It does not need any "modes" to help it guess. It reacts instantly left to right to changes in traction conditions. This, in turn, is concrete data the computer uses to vector torque. No guessing (modes) needed.

A great example of this is to take a QM and a DM out on ice or very slippery mud. The QM can be very difficult to control in this situation until you engage Snow Mode. This cue to the computer helps it deal with the surface, and the vehicle becomes more manageable.

Trade into the DM and the difference is dramatic. In All Purpose mode the truck handles just like any other pickup with a differential; Ford, GM, what have you. Snow Mode softens the torque to the wheels, but unlike the QM, the truck is very controllable even with no modes selected.

Compared to Snow Mode, sand mode is a less dramatic tweak. Again, the DM does not need modes to try to help the computer cope, the differentials handle the traction tasks mechanically. In the DM, all "sand mode" does is reduce traction control to allow more wheel speed. Turning Traction Control to "Reduced" does the same thing.

Oh... for those just tuning in, yes; I have thousands of miles of testing in both flavors in the sands of Baja and elsewhere. I am intimately familiar with how these things handle in the sand (snow/mud/ice/water/jello).

 

[BCondrey]

Great explanation. Does off road mode in the DM have any benefit?

 

[R.I.P.]

Great explanation. Does off road mode in the DM have any benefit?

Yes. It "locks" the vehicle in 4-wheel drive, and lets you use the highest suspension setting. It also disables the parking sensors, so the vehicle does not freak out when you are ploughing through brush.

I recently tested the DM on quite challenging trails while intentionally _not_ putting the vehicle into Off Road mode, and the computer simply engaged the 4-wheel drive any time it was needed. Because I did not need the higher clearance, I did not notice much of a difference.

I would note that by not putting the vehicle in Off Road mode on moderate trails you will save some energy, as it will only use 4-wheel-drive when you are actually slipping.

 

[Magicbus]

Finally took our R1T DM Performance out onto the soft sand beach where I patrol as a ranger. IMHO it performed better than the F-150 I drive when working. As for Soft Sand mode, it was nice to have Stability reduced by the setting, but I would have preferred to see Regen Off instead of reduced. There is really little reason to brake in soft sand.

As to the OP's concern, I wouldn't worry about Soft Sand mode, just deflate to 15 and adjust the manual settings.

 

[evdriver2016]

What are the exact settings in DM you’d set to get “sand mode”?

Off road node
regen low?
Stability off?
suspension soft?

it’s a shame they just don’t have it as standard and it is tied to performance pack.

 

[Magicbus]

I would turn regen and stability off. I think sand mode may add some dampening to the accelerator but I'm not sure if I actually felt a difference.

 

[BrianB]

I see rivian updated the dual motor performance to have soft sand, any chance they will do this for the regular dual motor?

Anyone have experience driving on the beach with the regular dual motor?

The 2025 Dual Motor models don’t have tow hooks. A 7000 lb vehicle with high pressure tires in soft sand isn’t the time to be without tow hooks.

 

[Magicbus]

The 2025 Dual Motor models don’t have tow hooks. A 7000 lb vehicle with high pressure tires in soft sand isn’t the time to be without tow hooks.

I'm a ranger on a refuge with 18 miles of sand trails and spend much of my shift pulling people out of the sand. If you don't have tow hooks at least have a trailer hitch, preferably with a shackle. As for the high pressure tires, we kick people off the beach who aren't aired down because they create washboards in the sand trails. I lower my R1T to 15 out of habit but tell Rivian owners I run into they can probably skate by at 20# since they get nervous since the tires are normally over 40. I tell them if they feel like they are getting stuck just lower to 15 or less, drive out, and air up.

 

[JeremyP]

My 2025 dual motor max pack came with tow hooks without the offroad package. I think the standard battery dual motor versions don't come with tow hooks. Also I don't have the performance upgrade so I prefer to use snow mode on mild trails and then switch to offroad mode when the terrain gets more aggressive, or when the vegetation or terrain is setting off the proximity warnings too much!

 

[DrBad]

My 2025 dual motor max pack came with tow hooks without the offroad package. I think the standard battery dual motor versions don't come with tow hooks. Also I don't have the performance upgrade so I prefer to use snow mode on mild trails and then switch to offroad mode when the terrain gets more aggressive, or when the vegetation or terrain is setting off the proximity warnings too much!

I was thinking the same thing for mild trails, putting it into snow mode vs off-road, we do a lot of non-technical jeep trails in the summer, 15-30 mph. Doesn't the off-road limit your speed and keep you in low "gear"? Assuming the truck can stay in high setting in snow mode and we could turn off the proximity sensors?

 

[JeremyP]

I don't know if the speed is limited in offroad mode. I know that the height drops from high to normal at 45; it will drop from highest at some speed less than that. I've been pleased with how smooth the dual motor is at low speeds through rough terrain, even in snow mode.

 

[evdriver2016]

I'm a ranger on a refuge with 18 miles of sand trails and spend much of my shift pulling people out of the sand. If you don't have tow hooks at least have a trailer hitch, preferably with a shackle. As for the high pressure tires, we kick people off the beach who aren't aired down because they create washboards in the sand trails. I lower my R1T to 15 out of habit but tell Rivian owners I run into they can probably skate by at 20# since they get nervous since the tires are normally over 40. I tell them if they feel like they are getting stuck just lower to 15 or less, drive out, and air up.

I have max and it came with tow hooks.. Which was great because I’m on the beach a lot. Didn’t get the off-road but probably should have. I also got the off-road recovery kit and boards, as well as usual shovel and jack.

In the manual it say 34 psi for off road . But I assume sand should be the usual lower but did have a fear that the tires could handle that low based on manual saying 34

Had someone tell me “Rivians don’t need to air down” I said “I’m not so sure about that“

 

[R1S-DMPerformance]

It's a gimmick (in the DM), you do not need it.

The QM needs various modes to help the computer guess at the surface it is on, to better react to it. Since the QM has no mechanical device to assist with this, the modes help a lot.

The DM has differentials that mechanically react to the surface in real time. It does not need any "modes" to help it guess. It reacts instantly left to right to changes in traction conditions. This, in turn, is concrete data the computer uses to vector torque. No guessing (modes) needed.

A great example of this is to take a QM and a DM out on ice or very slippery mud. The QM can be very difficult to control in this situation until you engage Snow Mode. This cue to the computer helps it deal with the surface, and the vehicle becomes more manageable.

Trade into the DM and the difference is dramatic. In All Purpose mode the truck handles just like any other pickup with a differential; Ford, GM, what have you. Snow Mode softens the torque to the wheels, but unlike the QM, the truck is very controllable even with no modes selected.

Compared to Snow Mode, sand mode is a less dramatic tweak. Again, the DM does not need modes to try to help the computer cope, the differentials handle the traction tasks mechanically. In the DM, all "sand mode" does is reduce traction control to allow more wheel speed. Turning Traction Control to "Reduced" does the same thing.

Oh... for those just tuning in, yes; I have thousands of miles of testing in both flavors in the sands of Baja and elsewhere. I am intimately familiar with how these things handle in the sand (snow/mud/ice/water/jello).

I'm glad to know you have had vast experience in both the QM and DM. I got myself a gen 2 DM performance with max pack. During my first month of ownership, it was in the shop for 1 month, so they loaned me a gen 1 QM r1s. I took it off reading, and it impressed me. I was 3 wheel titer totting, and no matter how scary the trail looked, this used to be a level 2 trail, now it was more like a 3.5 because of the rains of the last few years. The QM figured out every single obstacle out in all terrain mode.

Finally got my DM back and went off roading this time with a group.....man I got stuck 2 times, first one the r1s wouldn't go over some big rocks, had to get winched, then second time was a steep ascent, some 12 to 16 inch step ups, nope would not go up them, it felt like the computer just couldn't figure it out. I was quite disappointed, I had to get winched out again by a Jeep from the top of the hill. I was at 28psi. Using the AT factory 20 inch wheels and tires.

I tried all terrain most of the time, until I went to soft sand and then the vehicle seemed to start doing better climbing out of stuff.

My spotters were saying the wheels with no traction were spinning and no power was being sent to the wheel touching the ground or the boulder.

So I'm quite confused, with what you are saying, I shouldn't be struggling so much with the DM compared to the QM.
The trail we did was a 3.5 level run.

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