All-electric Rivian R1T demonstrates “tank turn” feature

MANILA: With the holiday season currently on, the American automotive company has released a light mood video that shows its all-electric R1T truck doing a “tank turn”, quite unusual for a pickup truck but that exactly the thing to show off, isn’t it?

The tank turn feature will be a part of the R1T quad-motor variant where each wheel gets a separate electric motor. A feature like this can be helpful for the truck to easily work in tight spaces without making a multi-point turn. However, the company has said that the tank turn on a dry pavement could damage the powertrain and hence it is advised to not perform donuts on such a surface.

So, if you are wondering how does the tank turn feature works? Don’t fret. It is done with the help of the powertrain management system that spins the left and right wheels simultaneously in the opposite directions, similar to what we see on a tank with its tracks to change direction.

While the R1T truck is set to enter production in late 2020, there is another model called the R1S, which is an SUV that shares the electric chassis with the R1T, that’s slated to be produced in the coming year.

The quad-motor electric setup on both models is capable of producing a max power of 407 PS and a peak torque of 560 Nm, with electric motors powered by a 105 kWh battery pack. While the travel range for R1T is 370 km, it is 390 km for the R1S. Both models are good to hit a top speed of 201 kmph and sprint from 0 to 96 kmph in just 4.9 seconds.

Aside from this, there are two higher options available, one is the 135 kWh option while another is a 180 kWh battery option. The former can extend the travel range by an additional 110 km for both models, whereas the latter bigger battery option extends the range for R1T to 640 km and 660 km for the R1S.

 

The power and torque of higher-grade options are rated at 764 PS and 1,120 Nm for the 135 kWh option and 710 PS/1,120 Nm for 180 kWh option respectively. While the top speed on both higher variants remain the same, the 0-96 kmph sprint time on the 135 kWh option drops to 3 seconds and on the 180 kWh option, it is 3.2 seconds.

Talking about the measurements, the R1T is larger than the R1S with a wheelbase of 3,449 mm. The R1S, on the other hand, sports a wheelbase of 3,076 mm.

Model	Dimensions (LxWxH) in mm
R1T	5,514 x 2,014 x 1,816
R1S	5,098 x 2,014 x 1,821

 

The company has already started to take orders for both vehicles in the US, you need to pay a booking fee of US$ 1,000. The base R1T model priced at US$ 69,000 and the base R1S at US$ 72,500.

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