Neither the Rivian R1T pickup or R1S SUV have hit the production line yet, but the start-up has already confirmed that it’s working on a third model with a greater focus on off-roading. A pair of images in the gallery below may provide us with our first glimpse of what this might look like.
While recently scoping out Rivian’s Michigan headquarters, our spy photographers were able to snap some images of a Rivian R1T pre-production model being driven around. Of more interest, however, is the body of a mysterious model that can be seen in the background.
The blue vehicle appears to be a seating buck of an all-new Rivian model. Likely made from plywood and painted foam, or maybe clay, it appears to show the bodywork design. It might be just a prototype and not the finished item, but its styling is much different to the R1T and R1S. For example, it clearly features four doors and has a more curvaceous roof design than both the R1T and R1S. In addition, a protruding front wheel arch is visible.
Rivian itself hasn’t gone into details about its third model other than confirming that it will have a shorter wheelbase than the R1S and offer an increased ground clearance. Company founder and chief executive RJ Scarnige also claims that the vehicle will offer “bananas” off-road performance.
Of course, we’ll have to wait until the R1T and R1S hit the market before we see the, as yet unnamed, off-roader. The good news is that Rivian has secured a healthy cash injection thanks to Amazon, so it should avoid the pitfalls other electric startups have encountered and which has led to many of them closing shop.
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