R.J. Scaringe, Rivian’s founder, and CEO, during a talk at this week’s “Disrupters Event” said that the auto industry is on the verge of sweeping change. “Think about the tech industry in 1991,” he said.
Recently, the company acquired a plant from Mitsubishi in Normal, IL and confirmed raising $500 million in venture capital. This is believed to allow the carmaker to build 50,000 vehicles annually when it launches in 2020.
The cars are expected to be pretty luxurious and cost between $50,000 and $100,000. Both vehicles will have the same platform, consisting of a large battery pack. Therefore, the range will be of 450 miles (724 km). Currently, car manufacturers are pushing themselves to pass the 300 miles milestone, so we will see if the new company will succeed to achieve its goal in two years.
Rivian also states that its electric pickup truck and SUV will be able to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (93 km/h) in about 3 seconds. However, we are talking about primarily off-road vehicles, so off-road performance is very important. The carmaker believes that it will be better than a Jeep or a Land Rover.
Rivian is developing four other vehicles on the same platform, which is further planned to be shared with other vehicle builders. Additionally, it could underpin a self-driving, autonomous vehicle.
Originally, the company, back in 2009 when it opened, wanted to create a 4 passenger coupe, but the project was shelved in favor of broader, more flexible vehicles. It believes that electric pickup trucks are the most premium vehicles today. Their price has increased steadily over the past 2 decades, indicating they were an ideal platform for new technology.
The company has 450 employees based in California and Michigan and wants to make sure that the vehicles are well-built and well-equipped.
[Via Wardsauto]
*for them = for Rivian
Pick-ups are a leading segment, but not sure pick-up drivers are really into EVs. Hopefully (for them), this situation will have changed a bit by then.
It looks like in addition to Rivian, there will be at least 2 more electric pick-up trucks from Tesla, South Korean SsangYong and Ohio-based Workhorse in or around 2020, but only Tesla’s look like competition.
The Tesla pick-up truck seems more interesting, Elon Musk is engaging the potential customers, asking for their wish list. It will also feature 230V AC outlets to run electric appliances and tools like a lawnmower, a drill, a chain saw, a Kärcher steam cleaner, a laptop, straight from the truck, which I find awesome. I doubt it will be available in 2020 though, that’s when they start selling the Model Y.
Even a partial switch of these heavy duty vehicles to electrics would have a big impact on the environment, given how popular these trucks are (900,000 Ford F150s sold last year!)