Our most recent review of the 2024 Rivian R1T resulted in a score of 8.6 out of 10 for that particular example.
Carsguide Contributing Journalist Stephen Ottley had this to say at the time: Having finally experienced the Rivian R1T from the driver's seat I think this is a ute that would have plenty of appeal in the Australian market. Not as a competitor to a Toyota HiLux Workmate or similar working-class ute, but as an alternative to the likes of the HiLux Rogue, Ford Ranger Raptor or even the new Ranger Platinum.
You can read the full review here.
This is what Stephen Ottley liked most about this particular version of the Rivian R1T: Unique and clever design, Immense performance, Luxury car feel to cabin
Rivian has produced a minimalist design for the R1T, with almost every function through the central multimedia touchscreen. The only physical controls in the entire cabin are a pair of dials/buttons on the steering wheel and a pair of stalks behind the wheel (left for the indicators and right for the gear selector).
The interior is finished in a combination of synthetic leather and dark ash wood as standard, with a variety of colour choices available as options in the US market.
The standard battery in the Rivian R1T provides 435km for the Dual-Motor AWD but the optional Large battery that extends to 560km while the Max battery extends range up to 640km.
The Performance Dual-Motor comes standard with the Large battery, so it has a range of 560km with the option of 640km with the Max battery.
The Quad-Motor comes equipped with the Large battery as standard and has a 530km range, but it isn’t available with the Max battery.
In the US, Rivian offers the R1T in nine colours - silver, white, red, black, blue, light grey, dark grey, green and yellow.
Being an American company Rivian plublishs 0-60mph (0-96km/h) times, but that should give you an idea what you can expect. The Dual-Motor AWD takes 4.5 seconds, the Performance Dual-Motor AWD just 3.5 seconds and the Quad-Motor AWD cuts it to just 3.0 seconds. Top speed is around 210km/h.
There are three main powertrain options for the R1T - Dual-Motor AWD, Performance Dual-Motor AWD and Quad-Motor AWD.
The Dual-Motor AWD makes 397kW/827Nm, the Performance Dual-Motor AWD produces 495kW/1123Nm and the Quad-Motor manages an impressive 622kW/1231Nm.
The Rivian R1T comes equipped with a 21-inch alloy wheel and ‘road’ tyre combination, a built-in air-compressor, ‘Gear Guard’ security cable, synthetic leather trim, dark ash wood inlays, heated and ventilated seats and a heated steering wheel. An ‘All-Terrain’ package, available as an option, brings 20-inch alloys with all-terrain tyres, underbody protection and a full-size spare.
Neither Apple CarPlay nor Android Auto are available, with Rivian preferring its own bespoke Google-powered media system.
The Rivian R1T offers two lockable storage areas, in addition to the tray. There's a 'frunk' under bonnet space measuring 314 litres. The other is the 'cargo tunnel' a 331-litre space that runs the width of the R1T between the cabin and the tray.
The tray itself measures 1374mm long and 1297mm wide, and Rivian has designed the tailgate to sit flush with the tray bed, so it can extend the usable length to 2131mm.
The Rivian R1T has seating for five in the cabin. The seats are trimmed in synthetic (vegan-friendly) leather as standard. The rear seats feature a pass through to access the gear tunnel that's between the cabin and tray.