Doug DeMuro -The Rivian R1T Is the Coolest Pickup Truck Ever Made

[HaulingAss]

It would be easier to get excited about it if someone had a chance to actually buy one within the next two years. I'm predicting they won't have put even 10,000 of these on the road by the end of next year.

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[Friday]

I'm still waiting for a "real owner" video; not the pro-Youtubers like DeMuro et al.
There were YT videos up within minutes from owners receiving delivery of the Mach E.
Rivian must have the "first delivery" people (employees I guess still) locked down tight on NDA's right now, or the content must be carefully curated. I've seen one or two Twitter type shorts showing "owners" of Rivians doing things, but nothing of substance.

I should have chased that Rivian car carrier more on Friday to see where it was heading. I don't think those were deliveries. My guess was it was going into the scenic Superstition Mountains for maybe a PR photo/video shoot. I'm fairly sure that truck was a little lost when I noticed it. He acted confused to where he was.

 

[Friday]

Ev Dave bought a Mach E and was painfully honest about it. I don’t know if I would paint all the owner reviewers with the same brush.

 

[Ogre]

You know, the Rivian R1T seems quite impressive. Except for almost the whole thing. Why is the front of the car so massive? All of that real estate for a frunk that is too tall to get into to be very practical (reaching over to get into it = getting dirt all over yourself).

Rivians frunk is sort of the worst of all worlds.If you are going to push a massive box Around, Ford definitely got that right. I kind of prefer Teslas low trunk myself all around because it preserves vision which makes the truck safer for those around it.

 

[Mini2nut]

A $70k Tri Motor Cybertruck with 500 + miles of range and a real 6.5 ft bed OR a $73k Rivian R1T with 318 miles of range and a 4.5 ft bed.

The only reason to pick the R1T is possibly a faster delivery time frame and you absolutely hate the exterior styling of the Cybertruck. I won’t even touch on the differences in service centers, body durability, charging networks, EV manufacturing experience, software, battery technology, etc.

 

[Ehninger1212]

They have a really sick tailgate hinge that extends the bed when open.. becomes more like 6.5'. But still.. this bed would not work for me either.The ct bed is gnna be basically 8'+ open am I right?

 

[Ogre]

They have a really sick tailgate hinge that extends the bed when open.. becomes more like 6.5'. But still.. this bed would not work for me either.The ct bed is gnna be basically 8'+ open am I right?

The Rivian will be able to reasonably haul 2x4 x8’s or thick plywood. You could put 2x4s under drywall or flimsy plywood and they would be fine too even hanging over a bit, just strap them down.

The Cybertruck will be able to reasonably haul 2x6 x10 lumber without any issues. You could haul any kind of plywood, drywall up to 8 foot without worrying about overhang.

Personally, the truck bed size is more about what you can get inside with the tailgate closed and/ or the vault closed. I can get 3 mountain bikes in a 6’5” truck bed with the tailgate closed or 1 motorcycle. In a 4’5” truck bed you can get 1 mountain bike or zero motorcycles. With the tailgate and the vault closed I can get at least 1 mountain bike, possibly 2 if placed carefully. I can’t see how I could get any bikes in the back of the Rivian with the cover closed. Heck… even with a truck cap I can’t see getting even 1 bike in the bed.

Obviously you can get a quad in the bed of the Cybertruck… You can also get a riding mower in there. I don’t think you can get either in the Rivian with the tailgate closed.

Everyone has their own gear they need to accommodate. A lot of people don’t need to kind of space the Cybertruck has. You have to ask yourself why you want a truck and go from there.

 

[Blue Steel]

Apparently I'm the only person here that enjoys Doug's videos. I enjoy how he goes deep into the quirks and features. However, EVs are a weak spot for him. Can you rate an EV in 2021 without mentioning the charging network? What about charging speed and curve, isn't that even a factor? Doug recognizes a range rating and the zero to 60 time and all the little gadgets and gizmos. That really limits the story for an EV.

For a real in depth review we need Kyle from Out Of Spec Motoring to get an R1T for a week or so. Throw his dogs in the back and do some cross country treks and offroading.

 

[Carlos Thomas]

Tesla has to be listening & observing the others. I like all the little features etc., but the big features that Tesla should figure out (in order):

1. V2H Charging - Power my home during an outage for 3 to 4 days (Ford)
2. Tow Charging - If you run out of power, get a tow, which charges the battery. (Rivian)

It seems like these features are well within Tesla's knowhow. It would not require a lot of design changes.

 

[Crissa]

It may require a shift in liability calculation from Tesla.

Ford had a car catch on fire at the Chinese auto show. If Tesla did that, it would be a world-wide top story.

-Crissa

 

[Sirfun]

Tesla has to be listening & observing the others. I like all the little features etc., but the big features that Tesla should figure out (in order):

1. V2H Charging - Power my home during an outage for 3 to 4 days (Ford)
2. Tow Charging - If you run out of power, get a tow, which charges the battery. (Rivian)

It seems like these features are well within Tesla's knowhow. It would not require a lot of design changes.

Great video on Tow charging a Tesla:

 

[Ogre]

Tesla has to be listening & observing the others. I like all the little features etc., but the big features that Tesla should figure out (in order):

1. V2H Charging - Power my home during an outage for 3 to 4 days (Ford)
2. Tow Charging - If you run out of power, get a tow, which charges the battery. (Rivian)

It seems like these features are well within Tesla's knowhow. It would not require a lot of design changes.

#1 You can sort of do this with a Cybertruck, it just takes a manual switchover. It is neat, and I would like to see better 2 way power options from Tesla. We only get outages once a year or so, so not super worried about it.

#2 You can also do with a Tesla, there are videos. But there is no benefit to it because it’s tremendously inefficient. If they had a V2V charging setup it would be a lot more interesting. If there is a tow truck (likely ICE), just get a tow you to the Supercharger, you are going to need to go there regardless and you won’t destroy your car.

 

[John K]

Just push the car while regen is on. You get a charge, you get your workout done, easy.

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