R1T Review After 1 Week / 1,000 miles as Owner

[Engi_Nerd]

We've had two Model Ys; a 2020 LR with the Induction wheels and a 2021 with the 19s. Despite driving small sporty vehicle for the last 10 years, I found the ride on the Inductions to be shockingly bad. We showed family the vehicle and they asked if it was broken because the ride was so bad. That vehicle was totaled and we ordered the replacement with 19s. The ride is considerably better but still a mixed bag. Impressively buttoned down on the expressway or when driving like a jerk but still feels very harsh cruising around town. It's like the lovechild of a spaceship and a covered wagon.

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[VHRivian]

Reading this description of the suspension on the R1T makes me really excited about my R1S (s00n).

I recently owned a Chevy SS Sedan (Holden Commodore) with the magnetorheological dampers and it was my favorite part of the vehicle (side note - one of the best cars General Motors has made this century). I expect that Corvette and some Cadillac owners would agree. The system on the R1 platform is more complex overall but will allow for similar performance AND comfort in a vehicle that is so big and heavy it shouldn't be possible to have both.

Can't wait to try it

 

[Jeeves]

but still feels very harsh cruising around town. It's like the lovechild of a spaceship and a covered wagon.

That is both hilarious and accurate

 

[Jeeves]

I recently owned a Chevy SS Sedan (Holden Commodore) with the magnetorheological dampers and it was my favorite part of the vehicle (side note - one of the best cars General Motors has made this century). I expect that Corvette and some Cadillac owners would agree

Yes, as a C8 owner with MR dampers I can agree. The C8 rides better than it has any right to with those dampers, and I think (using a different technology blend) the R1T accomplishes something similar for a 835hp 7 ton rock crawler.

 

[Jeeves]

In terms of 911, I can only compare to my 997.2 S with DSC (now sold) which I kept for several months alongside the M3P.
THE M3P felt much more composed on bumpy back roads compared to the 911.

997.2 S was my first ever 911, and I loved it, but the weight imbalance in that car makes a comfortable ride a difficult thing to achieve. You have the dichotomy of a stiff and planted rear end with a light and ‘nodding’ front end which makes for a fun ride but not necessarily a relaxing one.

 

[Bravado21]

After a week and a thousand miles with my R1T I feel like I have a good handle on the car.

My comments will primarily compare it to my Model Y Long Range with acceleration boost, but it has such a broad range of capabilities that I’ll ultimately compare certain aspects to other cars I’ve owned, including three Porsches, a Ferrari, an NSX, C8 Corvette, and the last two generations of Mercedes E-Class.

Performance
Of course it surpasses my MY, but between 4 and three seconds in an electric vehicle it’s thrilling either way off the line. The R1T does a better job of sustaining the thrust as speeds climb. I have the road tires and the way it puts down traction in a straight line is phenomenal, but honestly so was the Tesla system.

Cornering
One of the revelations of the car. The ability to maintain a flat cornering stance in soft suspension mode is uncanny. It definitely shares characteristics with McLaren in that respect.
Having said that it can’t corner at the same speeds as the MY. Ultimately it’s physics. Too much weight and too much tire sidewall. Do I want to corner that fast? No. The way this truck glides around it actually changes how I drive. More relaxed, and using the abundant thrust only when needed.

Steering
Wow. Don’t know how they dialed this in so well. Perfect. If the Tesla felt like a typical dead epas system (albeit with a great steering ratio), the Rivian feels like a hybrid between an epas system and a hydraulic system. I picked this up pretty quickly in a test drive and 1,000 miles with my own car hasn’t changed my perspective.

Ride
Another revelation. I’ve experienced air suspension systems that get much firmer and more fidgety as you raise the ride height. The R1T is smoother than either one of my Mercedes in soft mode.
Firm mode? I don’t use it. I don’t like it. On the highway it produces front-to-rear rocking almost like porpoising. It can probably be recalibrated with SW, and IMHO it should. Thankfully the soft setting is peerless.

Storage
Beats anything I can think of in both the combination of storage locations and their usability.
Frunk - weather sealed and fits two sets of golf clubs. Powered system is great.
Gear tunnel - taller than expected, seems bigger in reality. Golf clubs are easier to get in and out than I expected. My son’s telescoping fishing rod fits in there fully extended.
Trunk - it’s a trunk, really. Can’t say much else. The power and the compressor make it more usable. I set a 37 inch LED TV in there so my son could watch basketball while practicing basketball. For me the powered tonneau is a must.
Under-seat storage in rear. No more or less room than you’d imagine. What matters here is that the folding seat mechanism works really well.

Noise Suppression
Surprisingly good. Better than my Mercedes.
Where it excels is in suppressing tire and road noise.
In the simplest sense on the highway a traditional car noise is engine + road + wind. My MY was road + wind. My R1T is primarily wind. Of course if you don’t like the variability of wind noise you will ‘hear’ it more, so it’s a more subjective experience than the story a decibel meter might tell.

Paint and Fit & Finish
The paint quality is about 100 times better than my MY and I unusually got to post that from a number of cars at the service center. Even measuring all MYs with a paint depth gauge my example still wasn’t close to the luster and evenness of flake and flop of the Rivian.
Fit and finish is much better than my Tesla. A couple of really small serviceable issues like the PPF on one side of the gear tunnel having a stretch mark in it, and a little nick in the plastic surround trim on the passenger side mirror. Small, easily swappable things.

Interior
Probably the best part. Everything is functional but the feeling and sense of occasion beats everything I’ve experienced. My last E-Class was my last benchmark for that.
Don’t fear the black interior. In reality it’s a great selection of shades and textures vs. monolithic black. The wood has gray and brown tones. The alcantara-ish roof lining almost has some gray-purple tones.
Seat comfort is on par with the MY, which is saying a lot because that had the best seats I’ve ever experienced.
Seat cooling is Porsche-good. That’s in comparison to my wife’s MDX which is really weak, and, say, a Mustang which just seems to make fan noise.

Charging
The Tesla charging network is (currently) a massive advantage. It just is. It works, the charging rates are consistent.
Also compared to the MY they both have about 300 miles or range, but I don’t think that tells the story…
The R1T has a ‘real’ 300 miles in my experience. I can actually rely on it. The MY’s 300 was more like 240 to me and the range estimate randomly tumbles.
On the other hand, the Tesla range is based on a much smaller battery pack, meaning (with the same KWH charger) the R1T would take much longer -and cost more - to replace, say, 100 miles. That’s just reality from my vantage point. I’m good with it.

App
Basic. Really basic. Sometimes the proximity opening works well. Sometimes, not so much. The Tesla system wasn’t perfect, but it was better. The Tesla app is more sophisticated and - currently - just looks better and works better.

Conclusion
It’s the most complete vehicle of any type I’ve ever owned. By a margin. An enormous margin. No matter what the use case it’s the car I want to drive. My C8 obviously has it’s own strong qualities, but right now it’s sitting in the garage.

Disclaimer
I own no Rivian Stock. I own no Tesla stock. Maybe there’s some of either buried in funds but not that I’m aware of.

Excellent comparisons, especially someone with experience in high-end (both EV & ICE) vehicles. .

 

[kevinR1Tx2R1Sx1]

After a week and a thousand miles with my R1T I feel like I have a good handle on the car.

My comments will primarily compare it to my Model Y Long Range with acceleration boost, but it has such a broad range of capabilities that I’ll ultimately compare certain aspects to other cars I’ve owned, including three Porsches, a Ferrari, an NSX, C8 Corvette, and the last two generations of Mercedes E-Class.

Performance
Of course it surpasses my MY, but between 4 and three seconds in an electric vehicle it’s thrilling either way off the line. The R1T does a better job of sustaining the thrust as speeds climb. I have the road tires and the way it puts down traction in a straight line is phenomenal, but honestly so was the Tesla system.

Cornering
One of the revelations of the car. The ability to maintain a flat cornering stance in soft suspension mode is uncanny. It definitely shares characteristics with McLaren in that respect.
Having said that it can’t corner at the same speeds as the MY. Ultimately it’s physics. Too much weight and too much tire sidewall. Do I want to corner that fast? No. The way this truck glides around it actually changes how I drive. More relaxed, and using the abundant thrust only when needed.

Steering
Wow. Don’t know how they dialed this in so well. Perfect. If the Tesla felt like a typical dead epas system (albeit with a great steering ratio), the Rivian feels like a hybrid between an epas system and a hydraulic system. I picked this up pretty quickly in a test drive and 1,000 miles with my own car hasn’t changed my perspective.

Ride
Another revelation. I’ve experienced air suspension systems that get much firmer and more fidgety as you raise the ride height. The R1T is smoother than either one of my Mercedes in soft mode.
Firm mode? I don’t use it. I don’t like it. On the highway it produces front-to-rear rocking almost like porpoising. It can probably be recalibrated with SW, and IMHO it should. Thankfully the soft setting is peerless.

Storage
Beats anything I can think of in both the combination of storage locations and their usability.
Frunk - weather sealed and fits two sets of golf clubs. Powered system is great.
Gear tunnel - taller than expected, seems bigger in reality. Golf clubs are easier to get in and out than I expected. My son’s telescoping fishing rod fits in there fully extended.
Trunk - it’s a trunk, really. Can’t say much else. The power and the compressor make it more usable. I set a 37 inch LED TV in there so my son could watch basketball while practicing basketball. For me the powered tonneau is a must.
Under-seat storage in rear. No more or less room than you’d imagine. What matters here is that the folding seat mechanism works really well.

Noise Suppression
Surprisingly good. Better than my Mercedes.
Where it excels is in suppressing tire and road noise.
In the simplest sense on the highway a traditional car noise is engine + road + wind. My MY was road + wind. My R1T is primarily wind. Of course if you don’t like the variability of wind noise you will ‘hear’ it more, so it’s a more subjective experience than the story a decibel meter might tell.

Paint and Fit & Finish
The paint quality is about 100 times better than my MY and I unusually got to post that from a number of cars at the service center. Even measuring all MYs with a paint depth gauge my example still wasn’t close to the luster and evenness of flake and flop of the Rivian.
Fit and finish is much better than my Tesla. A couple of really small serviceable issues like the PPF on one side of the gear tunnel having a stretch mark in it, and a little nick in the plastic surround trim on the passenger side mirror. Small, easily swappable things.

Interior
Probably the best part. Everything is functional but the feeling and sense of occasion beats everything I’ve experienced. My last E-Class was my last benchmark for that.
Don’t fear the black interior. In reality it’s a great selection of shades and textures vs. monolithic black. The wood has gray and brown tones. The alcantara-ish roof lining almost has some gray-purple tones.
Seat comfort is on par with the MY, which is saying a lot because that had the best seats I’ve ever experienced.
Seat cooling is Porsche-good. That’s in comparison to my wife’s MDX which is really weak, and, say, a Mustang which just seems to make fan noise.

Charging
The Tesla charging network is (currently) a massive advantage. It just is. It works, the charging rates are consistent.
Also compared to the MY they both have about 300 miles or range, but I don’t think that tells the story…
The R1T has a ‘real’ 300 miles in my experience. I can actually rely on it. The MY’s 300 was more like 240 to me and the range estimate randomly tumbles.
On the other hand, the Tesla range is based on a much smaller battery pack, meaning (with the same KWH charger) the R1T would take much longer -and cost more - to replace, say, 100 miles. That’s just reality from my vantage point. I’m good with it.

App
Basic. Really basic. Sometimes the proximity opening works well. Sometimes, not so much. The Tesla system wasn’t perfect, but it was better. The Tesla app is more sophisticated and - currently - just looks better and works better.

Conclusion
It’s the most complete vehicle of any type I’ve ever owned. By a margin. An enormous margin. No matter what the use case it’s the car I want to drive. My C8 obviously has it’s own strong qualities, but right now it’s sitting in the garage.

Disclaimer
I own no Rivian Stock. I own no Tesla stock. Maybe there’s some of either buried in funds but not that I’m aware of.

I also believe it is the most complete vehicle I have ever owned. Considering selling my hot hatch and my pickup. Already sold the Volvo. When I walk into the garage, I just can’t come up with a good reason to drive any vehicle other than the Rivian.

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