R1S Split Hatch/Tailgate

[dleewla]

The bottom gate has to be opened AFTER the top gate. Then, close the top gate, leaving the bottom open is what I originally meant and did with XC90.

If the glass flips open or even cracks open, that would be wonderful. The airflow inside the cabin is dramatically increased if the tailgate window can be opened. The 4-Runner has this part right.

got it. makes sense.
they said it flips open so assuming that means more than a crack. i know... take it with a grain of salt.

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[SlaterGS]

This is just a guess...but I'm thinking the joke is that you're probably 5'10" and just tell yourself that you're 6' so you can feel taller than your wife. The general theory is that any male who claims to be exactly 6' tall is likely slighter shorter.

Again, I'm sure it was said as a joke and not an actual accusation

This guy gets it.

One of the saddest things I ever heard was one guy talking to another guy at lunch and he said "I mean I'm 5'11 and a half so I'm basically 6' tall. Being 6'5, anyone under 6'2 looks the same to me: short.

? you guys are great.

6' has generally been accurate for me but I have scoliosis and have gotten a bit older so sometimes it is harder to stand as straight as others.
My wife is probably a hair under 5'10" so I'd say regardless of either of those number we are about a 2" difference.

 

[ATX]

I’m coming from a 4Runner with a roll down rear window that I love. Wish we had that for the R1S, but a split tailgate adds some nice features too and will at least have a similar things-don’t-roll-out benefit. But I will miss being able to roll the back window down about 5 inches so my dog could look out.

 

[ATX]

as of a couple of months ago, CS told me that you cannot open the lower gate without first opening the upper gate. i asked again today but this person did not know. and new developmet, they said the glass in the rear does flip open! lets hope this CS rep wasn't guessing and thats indeed been added.

personally, i think having the rear glass being able to open is very useful. just gives you a lot of flexibility depending on what you want to load and what you might already have in the back. for example, on long roadtrip/camping, we might have stuff filled in the back space and we dont want to open the entire tailgate to access stuff or it to fall out, so things we need more immediately we'll place at the top of the "pile" and we can get to it easily through the rear glass. or maybe you have something long from Home Depot and its needs to stick out the back, its nice to be able to open the glass instead of having the entire back gate or even split gate open as you transport it.

This is the first I’ve heard about a flip open glass. Would be nice but I’m very skeptical this is true . . . If only the would send the “more details” info that was promised months ago.

 

[Zoidz]

There certainly is a lot of angst about the R1S tailgate. Here's a screen capture from the R1S video on Rivian's web site. The child is "height challenged" but can still see/reach over the bottom half. It's pretty clear from this picture that mom isn't going to be "height challenged" for the most part and will be able to reach anything inside, with the bottom gate down or up. Overall exterior height of the R1S is about 72", so that puts mom around 5'-6" or 7".

Now, the two pups, well, THAT'S height challenged!

 

[astonius]

There certainly is a lot of angst about the R1S tailgate. Here's a screen capture from the R1S video on Rivian's web site. The child is "height challenged" but can still see/reach over the bottom half. It's pretty clear from this picture that mom isn't going to be "height challenged" for the most part and will be able to reach anything inside, with the bottom gate down or up. Overall exterior height of the R1S is about 72", so that puts mom around 5'-6" or 7".

Now, the two pups, well, THAT'S height challenged!

This also doesn’t look like the lowest ride height setting, at least compared to the R1T stance we’ve seen.

 

[JeremyP]

I love the idea of the split rear; all three of our vehicles have full lift gates and we have had plenty of stuff fall out when opening them, especially on road trips or camping trips when the back is packed full. It's not fun when the vehicle is covered in slush and you have to slightly open the back and try to hold back the piles of (kid) stuff so it doesn't cascade out!
I would love for the top to open high enough to not hit my head on it but I'm doubtful (I'm 6'6"). My 4runner is lifted enough that my head just clears; not so much on our minivan! Maybe I'll set it to off-road max height every time I park, although my wife at 5'5" probably wouldn't appreciate it!

 

[Swilly]

I’m coming from a 4Runner with a roll down rear window that I love. Wish we had that for the R1S, but a split tailgate adds some nice features too and will at least have a similar things-don’t-roll-out benefit. But I will miss being able to roll the back window down about 5 inches so my dog could look out.

We have the roll down window in the Sequoia which as you say is great for the dogs and I like it for loading/unloading. Have a 100 series Land Cruiser with the split gate and love it for giving us a covered seat when on the road. We also use it a lot as a workbench for bikes and a changing table for babies. Wish they could figure out a way to give us both.

 

[dleewla]

This is the first I’ve heard about a flip open glass. Would be nice but I’m very skeptical this is true . . . If only the would send the “more details” info that was promised months ago.

agreed, grains of salt

 

[JeremyP]

We have the roll down window in the Sequoia which as you say is great for the dogs and I like it for loading/unloading. Have a 100 series Land Cruiser with the split gate and love it for giving us a covered seat when on the road. We also use it a lot as a workbench for bikes and a changing table for babies. Wish they could figure out a way to give us both.

That makes me think of our old family station wagon. The rear window would roll down and the back could drop down like a tailgate, or you could leave the window up and open it like a regular door.

 

[Zoidz]

That makes me think of our old family station wagon. The rear window would roll down and the back could drop down like a tailgate, or you could leave the window up and open it like a regular door.

My parents had that same Kingswood Estate wagon with the dual swing tailgate. And they subsequently traded it in on a newer model - everything retracted into the roof and floor.

 

[Chgroth]

While I am still eager and happy to get my R1S at some point before 2050, I was wondering people's thoughts on the decision to split the rear hatch?

For me the R1S is replacing a frequent grocery-getter vehicle so the rear hatch is used quite a bit by the lady of the house who is a bit height-challenged. She's already raised concerns of having to reach up and over into the frunk since it's not designed as some others where the front grill also lifts away when it's opened and now is asking about the split of the rear hatch and having a tailgate to lift things over as well.

I've felt the split rear was an odd decision since day 1, it's not enough to push me away from the vehicle, but I do think it's a really odd choice and I'm curious what others think, what benefits are there? I can see many downsides, mostly minor, but still downsides. What am I missing?

I do suspect the camp kitchen variant for the R1S attaches to it somehow and then rotates out of the back on the tailgate section but it seems like for the 99% of the rest of the time when you're not out camping and when most people have no intention of buying the camp kitchen - which is clearly gonna be a niche addition to an already niche vehicle - you're stuck with the gate just to enable that feature. I also realize it might be somewhat usable as a seat, or step - the gear tunnel door concept but applied to the R1S but it's a pretty damn high up step and a pretty short seat when you can generally just hop in the back and use the rear deck as a seat anyway with a traditional full hatch.

So what "good" things do people have to say about the split rear hatch?

I am a big fan of a split rear hatch. While I agree that opening both the top and bottom to load heavier items is a bit of an extra effort (not much though), the ability to have the extended floor room with the bottom open, and a “roof over your head” with the top open, it makes for a great work space or sitting area (useful for changing shoes, getting in and out of fishing waders, etc.). It’s one of the better design features of the R1S over say the new Defender.

 

[mike813]

I agree with many of the above. I had a 2000 Landcruiser with a split tailgate and loved it. 2008 sequoia and 2018 Nissan armada with full hatch, and missed the fold down. This arrangement won't be perfect for some but will be great for others, including me. I really like how clean and streamlined the rear bumper area is - looks very tight and efficient.

 

[FortyTwo]

My dad has had two Suburbans that allow the rear glass to open without the rest of the hatch being open, which was handy. For example, when we were in the pits on a race weekend and wanted to grab something out of the cooler, it could be done without running the risk other things falling out of the fully opened hatch.

Before that, he had a Chevy Astro with Dutch doors, which was both practical and weird in my experience.

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