Rivian R1S and R1T EV pricing announced

American EV start-up Rivian has announced pricing and specs for its all-electric R1S seven-seat SUV and R1T pick-up, which should eventually be available in Australia but won’t be cheap.

The headline number is a $US67,500 ($A92,590) starting price for the Rivian R1T Explore ute, first US deliveries of which are slated for January 2022. Both EVs will be built in right-hand drive but it’s not yet clear when either vehicle will arrive Down Under.

Before then, in June 2021, Rivian says it will deliver the R1T Launch Edition, priced from $US75,000 ($A102,875) and available with a special Launch Green paint colour option, Launch Edition badging and 20-inch All-Terrain or 22-inch Sport wheel upgrade.

As with the Adventure variant due in January 2022 and also priced at $US75K, standard Launch Edition features will include an Off-Road Upgrade with reinforced underbody shield, dual front bumper tow hooks and air compressor, plus a powered tonneau cover, Gear Guard, Rivian Elevation 360° audio, perforated vegan leather seat trim, heated and ventilated seats, natural-grained ash wood interior finishes, Compass Yellow interior accents, 100% recycled microfibre headliner and Chilewich floor mats.

The entry-level Rivian R1T Explore will make do with a manual tonneau cover, standard surround sound system, matte-black interior finishes, vegan leather seat trim with different stitching, heated seats, a textile headliner and 100% recycled textile floor mats.

From launch, all Rivian R1T utes will be powered by four 147kW electric motors outputting a staggering 14,000Nm of torque – enough to propel the 2.6-tonne, 5.5-metre-long pick-up to 60mpg (97km/h) in just three seconds (claimed).

Other notable figures include a towing capacity of up to 5000kg and air suspension that can increase ground clearance to 360mm and deliver a one-metre wading depth, however, payload will be limited to 800kg.

From launch, all models will be fitted with a ‘Large’ 135kWh battery pack good for a claimed driving range of at least 300 miles (483km).

However, Rivian says a bigger, more expensive and longer-range battery (180kWh/650km) will be available from January 2022, and that it will also eventually offer a smaller 105kWh/400km battery that could lower the price to close to $US50K.

Available with either five or seven seats, the Rivian R1S wagon will be launched with the same specifications as the R1T pick-up (barring its ute-specific features) and priced a few thousand dollars higher.

Priced from $US77,500, the Rivian R1S Launch Edition will be delivered to US customers from August 2021, followed in January 2022 by the identically-priced Adventure grade and the cheaper Explore variant priced from $US70,000 – less than the Audi e-tron.

All SUVs and trucks from Rivian, which is backed by Ford to the tune of $700 million and will deliver 100,000 electric vans to Amazon by 2023, will come with a modest 11kW on-board charger, but Rivian says it is working on a new 160kW fast-charging station.

What’s more, a US patent filing uncovered this week by the Rivian Owners Forum shows the US EV-maker is planning to offer the option of a removeable auxiliary battery for the R1T ute.

Cooled, connected and mounted at the front of the cargo bed, the modular back-up battery pack can be removed and charged separately from the ute’s in-built battery pack.