Rivian R1S First Drive from a car guy / Raptor owner

[SoCal Rob]

I've owned tons of sports/luxury cars and would like to post some of my thoughts after looking over and driving the R1S. I've had one on reserve for a couple years now, with the R1S going to be my primary vehicle. A lot of the comments will be versus my current 2023 Ford F150 Raptor with the 37" Performance Package (Price: $93K for comparison) [see photo next to R1T]:

Pro's:
1. R1S is a good looking SUV.
2. Having owned various Tesla's, I enjoyed the strong 1-pedal/regen driving.
3. SUV was quite quiet.
4. The acceleration is nice.
5. I miss having engine-less air-conditioning for the dogs that you obviously don't get with an ICE.

Con's:
1. In person, the R1S definitely felt smaller than I had imagined. At 6'4"/220, some areas were a bit tight. No way I could sit in the back/camp with the seats down.
2. The Frunk was smaller than it appeared in videos etc.
3. Really the only wheels I ended up liking in person were the 20" Black off-road. Interestingly, for an extra $1,700 over the bright ones, all you get is a tinted clear coat. Yikes.
4. The Driver+ is kinda a joke compared to my Ford. My Ford with Co-Pilot 360 2.0, has adaptive cruise with lane centering that works on ALL roads with zero fuss.
5. The seats in the Rivian were one of the biggest let-downs for me. Quite stiff. My Raptors seats felt completely luxury compared.
6. The Raptor rides far better (it's known as one of the most comfortable riding vehicles due to the baja style long-travel suspension).
7. The steering wheel on the Rivian felt thin, plasticky and cheap. The Raptor steering wheel and overall interior felt higher quality. Ford really has done an amazing job on their latest high end trucks. I was not that impressed with the Rivian interior for the money.
8. The Rivian tires looked absolutely tiny compared to the Raptors. And the Rivian small tires were already filling up the small wheel-wells. (Yes, for aerodynamics).
9. Rivian felt low to the ground in view and seat height. Suspension was on "Normal".
10. Rivian nav/controls compared to Raptor wireless Android Auto with wireless charging... well there is no comparison.

Overall, the R1S is decent but I think it's closer to the value of its pre-price increase cost versus post-price increase cost. I think once the early adopters run out, they will struggle to sell these at near six figures. With myself, fiancé, two German Shepherds, and a bunch of camping gear, the R1S is just too small. We also parked next to and looked at the R1T, and the bed size on that thing was absolutely laughable. It's smaller than my old Jeep Gladiator bed.

I also was quite surprised how I rated the colors in person versus online. The red wasn't near as nice as I had imagines, nor the Forest Green. Me and my fiancé both preferred the white and black. Both with the black 20" off-road wheels.

The R1S doesn't fit the bill for my use, especially against the absolute beast that the 37" PP Raptor is, but I may still proceed with the purchase of a white R1S for my fiancé. But even at the pre-price hike price, we are on the fence.

I asked two sincere questions in an earlier post but I don't think they ever got answered...

Regarding the black wheels being just a tinted clear coat:
Does anyone make black wheels where the metal is black so that scratches won't show a different underlying color? I guess I don't understand the issue with a tinted clear coat versus black paint on wheels. If going off-road and they get scratched then it's probably going to show more than on wheels with less contrast between the metal and the finished surface.

Regarding tire size and sitting high off the ground:
What new vehicles with factory equipment would exceed Raptor specs in these areas? I imagine there are some pickups, and maybe an SUV or two. I can't think of any 3-row SUVs which have bigger wheels or sit higher off the ground/have higher seat height than the Rivian from the factory.

Thanks in advance!

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[Kieran]

I don’t plan on taking my R1S out on the track at Leguna Seca, and I don’t plan on taking my BMW to the sand dunes at Pismo Beach.

OMG I hope you don't plan to go dune-running in the R1S, either! It.will.sink.
The R1x vehicles, despite all the hype and advertising as "go anywhere" vehicles, are NOT the same as typical off-road trucks and SUVs that have decent floatation for sand and mud. The R1 has relatively small tires and weighs a LOT. It will not float in mud or sand, and thus it will get stuck. Be prepared with someone else's vehicle with a winch or other rescue tools, if you should decide to try it out.

 

[Kieran]

What new vehicles with factory equipment would exceed Raptor specs in these areas?

I think OP was pretty clear that he was mostly focused on how little room there was to add larger aftermarket tires if one should want to. There are MANY factory new vehicles on the market that have plenty of room to up-size the tires (sometimes with a bit of body/chassis/suspension lift too) if the owner wants or needs that.

This is not an option with the Rivian, and if I were Rivian I would have designed it that way too. Too much tech and finely tuned systems that must work together, to give owners even an inkling that slapping some oversized rubber in there might be an option.

 

[Chewy734]

OMG I hope you don't plan to go dune-running in the R1S, either! It.will.sink.
The R1x vehicles, despite all the hype and advertising as "go anywhere" vehicles, are NOT the same as typical off-road trucks and SUVs that have decent floatation for sand and mud. The R1 has relatively small tires and weighs a LOT. It will not float in mud or sand, and thus it will get stuck. Be prepared with someone else's vehicle with a winch or other rescue tools, if you should decide to try it out.

Thanks for clarifying it for me! I wasn’t planning on going in the large dunes themselves, because I got stuck even while in a UTV last time I went. I was thinking about taking it along the beach there.

 

[WSea]

I don't really commit when I'm street racing as I don't want to be a total safety hazard on the road. I'll only really open it up if I can be pretty sure it's a safe place to do so meaning someplace flat an straight and that I can see really far ahead with wide lanes. Not too many places like that here so I don't really send it the way I would at a drag strip.

Was shocked to see a M5 does 0-60 in 2.8

 

[WSea]

OMG I hope you don't plan to go dune-running in the R1S, either! It.will.sink.
The R1x vehicles, despite all the hype and advertising as "go anywhere" vehicles, are NOT the same as typical off-road trucks and SUVs that have decent floatation for sand and mud. The R1 has relatively small tires and weighs a LOT. It will not float in mud or sand, and thus it will get stuck. Be prepared with someone else's vehicle with a winch or other rescue tools, if you should decide to try it out.

Have you tried? I've been in soft sand a handful of times and never had issues with 22s

 

[SoCal Rob]

I think OP was pretty clear that he was mostly focused on how little room there was to add larger aftermarket tires if one should want to. There are MANY factory new vehicles on the market that have plenty of room to up-size the tires (sometimes with a bit of body/chassis/suspension lift too) if the owner wants or needs that.

This is not an option with the Rivian, and if I were Rivian I would have designed it that way too. Too much tech and finely tuned systems that must work together, to give owners even an inkling that slapping some oversized rubber in there might be an option.

I guess, though I didn't see it as that since he led with how tiny the tires looked compared to the ones which came from the factory on his Raptor. I'm probably being too literal.

Overall, my take is that OP's comments say more about Raptors than they say about Rivians.

 

[electruck]

Overall, my take is that OP's comments say more about Raptors than they say about Rivians.

Probably says more about the OP than either the Raptor or R1S. We now know what he likes and doesn't like. Don't really recall any new info about the vehicles.

 

[computertom]

I didn't view the original post as particularly negative, but there's definitely a gap between the spin machine of all the reviews, videos etc and what the reality is for some drivers. After waiting this long with your hopes up, and other cars, trucks and whatever actually arriving, that delta can be real.

All that said, I never had an F150 Raptor. Too big for my needs and where I live. But I did have a 2022 R1T to go with my 2022 Bronco Raptor. So I kinda went the other way and went a lot further than a test drive with either. The R1T was darn quick from a dig and pulled hard up to and past legal speeds, and has that typical EV thing where you find yourself silently going over the local limit pretty much all the time, but it's not engaging when you do. It's just doing it and making that whiny whoosh as it does.

I loved the R1T, the gear tunnel, the room in the backseat for my kids, the user experience, the look of it, the wood dash, how solid it felt, and never getting gas. It's a great, great truck. But I found the Raptor significantly more fun and engaging for the everyday drives that I have to do and unflappably faster at that. Did that make the R1T a bad truck? No, not in the least. But it was an 8, where the Raptor is a 10 - fun. I've got too stressful a day job to not have all the fun I can when I'm behind the wheel. Raptor and its edginess won out. Oh, and the Front seats - not even a comparison for me. Raptor. Yeah they don't have cooling which is ridiculous at this price point, but I haven't missed that yet, but the bolstering the Rivian didn't have every time I tried to turn a bit too fast or do anything remotely athletic in that thing. Such a weird thing to miss on.

Suspension is also really a weird thing. What they can do with a 7K+ lb truck on off road tires is amazing. The R1T is just so technically proficient and you can feel it in corners, when it hunkers down, when you get on it, when you're letting it do it's thing on uneven surfaces, but I didn't come away thinking it was necessarily better. Significantly more complicated - yes. Better, no. The noise at less than 30 mph (that was "within spec") was not my cup of tea and not something I experienced in the Ford. I even let it coast with the engine off to see what it would be like if it were an EV .... quieter. And actually handling, oh man, not even the same zip code. The Raptor is just dumb, has feel where the Rivian does not and where no 5,000lb truck should, and is down right toss-able. It's evident that the designers were going for very different types of dynamics / experiences. I loved putting miles on the R1T as it made them go buy so easily, but the Raptor puts smiles on my face and makes me relish them. Similar but different. Maybe not fair of a comparison, but it's what was in my garage.

The big thing that I struggled with was that I really wanted an EV for this fun vehicle to fit this hole in my garage and I sure hoped it would also be cheaper. Where I live, it'll cost me $2,100 in gas to go 10K miles this year in the Ford. The Rivian was on track to be around $1,400 - if I nailed 2miles/kWh. So definitely cheaper and better for the environment. But not quite the slam dunk I thought it would be all things considered with tires, service trips etc and the higher than average electric costs here. There's a lot more grey than I thought in so many of these decisions and discussion.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

I didn't view the original post as particularly negative, but there's definitely a gap between the spin machine of all the reviews, videos etc and what the reality is for some drivers. After waiting this long with your hopes up, and other cars, trucks and whatever actually arriving, that delta can be real.

All that said, I never had an F150 Raptor. Too big for my needs and where I live. But I did have a 2022 R1T to go with my 2022 Bronco Raptor. So I kinda went the other way and went a lot further than a test drive with either. The R1T was darn quick from a dig and pulled hard up to and past legal speeds, and has that typical EV thing where you find yourself silently going over the local limit pretty much all the time, but it's not engaging when you do. It's just doing it and making that whiny whoosh as it does.

I loved the R1T, the gear tunnel, the room in the backseat for my kids, the user experience, the look of it, the wood dash, how solid it felt, and never getting gas. It's a great, great truck. But I found the Raptor significantly more fun and engaging for the everyday drives that I have to do and unflappably faster at that. Did that make the R1T a bad truck? No, not in the least. But it was an 8, where the Raptor is a 10 - fun. I've got too stressful a day job to not have all the fun I can when I'm behind the wheel. Raptor and its edginess won out. Oh, and the Front seats - not even a comparison for me. Raptor. Yeah they don't have cooling which is ridiculous at this price point, but I haven't missed that yet, but the bolstering the Rivian didn't have every time I tried to turn a bit too fast or do anything remotely athletic in that thing. Such a weird thing to miss on.

Suspension is also really a weird thing. What they can do with a 7K+ lb truck on off road tires is amazing. The R1T is just so technically proficient and you can feel it in corners, when it hunkers down, when you get on it, when you're letting it do it's thing on uneven surfaces, but I didn't come away thinking it was necessarily better. Significantly more complicated - yes. Better, no. The noise at less than 30 mph (that was "within spec") was not my cup of tea and not something I experienced in the Ford. I even let it coast with the engine off to see what it would be like if it were an EV .... quieter. And actually handling, oh man, not even the same zip code. The Raptor is just dumb, has feel where the Rivian does not and where no 5,000lb truck should, and is down right toss-able. It's evident that the designers were going for very different types of dynamics / experiences. I loved putting miles on the R1T as it made them go buy so easily, but the Raptor puts smiles on my face and makes me relish them. Similar but different. Maybe not fair of a comparison, but it's what was in my garage.

The big thing that I struggled with was that I really wanted an EV for this fun vehicle to fit this hole in my garage and I sure hoped it would also be cheaper. Where I live, it'll cost me $2,100 in gas to go 10K miles this year in the Ford. The Rivian was on track to be around $1,400 - if I nailed 2miles/kWh. So definitely cheaper and better for the environment. But not quite the slam dunk I thought it would be all things considered with tires, service trips etc and the higher than average electric costs here. There's a lot more grey than I thought in so many of these decisions and discussion.

Yeah the crazy thing is every reason you have for liking the Raptor I feel the exact opposite way and like the Rivian. I don't want that theatre and the production of something like a Raptor. I thought I did, that I wanted the loud motor and the rally type suspension. Turns out I much prefer the simplicity and the quietness of the Rivian. I like that it just goes when I want it to go and stops when I want it to stop.

The fact that it's so responsive in a way that ICE could never been is what makes ME feel connected to the vehicle instead of the noise and flash type thing. It's the quiet performance that I didn't even realize was a thing until I had my Rivian a while. Enough so that I won't buy ICE again if I can help it. I just think BEV is a technology that's more connected for me. What they can do technologically with EVs still amazes me every time I drive.

There's no engine spool up, it just goes and the pedal is perfectly linear every time. The overwhelming level of control I have in my Rivian won me over.

That doesn't make my opinion right, and the bronco raptor sure looks cool there's no question there. I just really really like the way my Rivian drives.

 

[Rivian on a Rampage]

Yes, a car person knows there is more to an overall vehicle than just straight line speed. I've owned both ICE and EV's that thrash a Rivian in both acceleration and certainly turning. The Rivian is "peppy", but by no means anything special this day and age.

Only pedestrians like you who've probably come to a Rivian from a Toyota Highlander or something think Rivians acceleration is something amazing.

And Rivians "top speed' of 110 MPH, I've gone faster than that doing most turns at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Road course.

haha you must be joking. What production trucks/suv are faster than a Rivian? How much do those cost? Lol does your Raptor trash a Rivian in both acceleration and turning?? Dont lie, I have owned one. Guess I am getting old and now look at the Raptor as a complete joke for daily driving. If you have the racing experience you claim, there is no comparison unless you are going over dunes.

I grew up racing junior drags, going to boat drags, nascar, and drag racing. We do not need cars going over 110 mph on the road.

Edit: and what's the top speed on your Raptor?

 

[iansriv]

Just goes to show people have different needs. My truck is a mall crawler and the most hardcore off road it goes is the Lowes parking lot to get plants or dirt or something for the wife. Getting there quick matters more to me than jacked up sky high. If I wanted something giant id get a TRX. I disagree with the OP that the Rivian has a limited use case. For all the smaller trucks I see on the road Rivian could replace each and every one of those.

Plants and dirt is one of the major reasons I'm getting the R1S. There are other obvious reasons but it is funny how different people have different priorities. Cheers.

 

[chandlerr85]

Yes, a car person knows there is more to an overall vehicle than just straight line speed. I've owned both ICE and EV's that thrash a Rivian in both acceleration and certainly turning. The Rivian is "peppy", but by no means anything special this day and age.

Only pedestrians like you who've probably come to a Rivian from a Toyota Highlander or something think Rivians acceleration is something amazing.

And Rivians "top speed' of 110 MPH, I've gone faster than that doing most turns at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Road course.

wtf. if you don't think the Rivian is special, then you're not a car guy.

sincerely,
a car guy

The tire size was more about off-roading, which I do a lot of. Tire size actually makes quite a difference when you get into hard stuff. The other part to that is the tires on the Rivian are already basically maxing out the wheel well from factory. A large negative if you wish to go larger tires for off-roading (but yes wreck efficiency).

also, I can't take you as a serious off roader sitting on BFG ATs. nothing wrong with those tires for all around use but not great if you're doing a lot of offroading. kinda sounds like you're larping at this point.

edit: to further expound upon this last point, have you even compared the ground clearance and approach/departure/breakover angles between the two? R1S beats the Raptor with 37's on all points.

 

[Milermore]

I've owned tons of sports/luxury cars and would like to post some of my thoughts after looking over and driving the R1S. I've had one on reserve for a couple years now, with the R1S going to be my primary vehicle. A lot of the comments will be versus my current 2023 Ford F150 Raptor with the 37" Performance Package (Price: $93K for comparison) [see photo next to R1T]:

Pro's:
1. R1S is a good looking SUV.
2. Having owned various Tesla's, I enjoyed the strong 1-pedal/regen driving.
3. SUV was quite quiet.
4. The acceleration is nice.
5. I miss having engine-less air-conditioning for the dogs that you obviously don't get with an ICE.

Con's:
1. In person, the R1S definitely felt smaller than I had imagined. At 6'4"/220, some areas were a bit tight. No way I could sit in the back/camp with the seats down.
2. The Frunk was smaller than it appeared in videos etc.
3. Really the only wheels I ended up liking in person were the 20" Black off-road. Interestingly, for an extra $1,700 over the bright ones, all you get is a tinted clear coat. Yikes.
4. The Driver+ is kinda a joke compared to my Ford. My Ford with Co-Pilot 360 2.0, has adaptive cruise with lane centering that works on ALL roads with zero fuss.
5. The seats in the Rivian were one of the biggest let-downs for me. Quite stiff. My Raptors seats felt completely luxury compared.
6. The Raptor rides far better (it's known as one of the most comfortable riding vehicles due to the baja style long-travel suspension).
7. The steering wheel on the Rivian felt thin, plasticky and cheap. The Raptor steering wheel and overall interior felt higher quality. Ford really has done an amazing job on their latest high end trucks. I was not that impressed with the Rivian interior for the money.
8. The Rivian tires looked absolutely tiny compared to the Raptors. And the Rivian small tires were already filling up the small wheel-wells. (Yes, for aerodynamics).
9. Rivian felt low to the ground in view and seat height. Suspension was on "Normal".
10. Rivian nav/controls compared to Raptor wireless Android Auto with wireless charging... well there is no comparison.

Overall, the R1S is decent but I think it's closer to the value of its pre-price increase cost versus post-price increase cost. I think once the early adopters run out, they will struggle to sell these at near six figures. With myself, fiancé, two German Shepherds, and a bunch of camping gear, the R1S is just too small. We also parked next to and looked at the R1T, and the bed size on that thing was absolutely laughable. It's smaller than my old Jeep Gladiator bed.

I also was quite surprised how I rated the colors in person versus online. The red wasn't near as nice as I had imagines, nor the Forest Green. Me and my fiancé both preferred the white and black. Both with the black 20" off-road wheels.

The R1S doesn't fit the bill for my use, especially against the absolute beast that the 37" PP Raptor is, but I may still proceed with the purchase of a white R1S for my fiancé. But even at the pre-price hike price, we are on the fence.

To each their own, and I have no problem with OP liking the Raptor they already have in their stable. If I were to go with an ICE pickup at that price range, though, I would 100% go with the TRX.
I definitely prefer the size, performance, and fuel economy of the R1T over either of them, though. I'll admit that I wouldn't be taking any of the three roaring over dunes offroad, and I don't need a lift-kit for any clearance or image reasons. So maybe there's that.
My neighbor has a TRX and it is loud, though. I always know when he's headed to the grocery store. And I don't think that thing has even seen a gravel road.
So I'll stay in Camp Rivian and enjoy being able to get there 11 seconds earlier (per quarter mile) and with $ in my pocket saved from not having to buy dino-juice.

 

[Atlrivian]

Forgive me i didnt scroll through 6 pages, but seems as if the OP really wants one of these. Most of the listed reasons for not likely the R1 have to do with size. R1T is the size of a Tacoma, and the R1S is definitely NOT a Yukon XL. No getting around that.

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