Manage to get your Rivian stranded or have someone going off-roading with you get stranded? A winch would definitely be useful, and Rivian is aware of that.
During a personal interview in Park City, Utah drivecast Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe explains, with the R2 launch as a backdrop drive“The winch is something we’ve wanted to put on the R1 for a long time.”
Listen to the entire conversation, starting when Scaringe addresses a winch on R1, below.
We noticed that Rivian has filed a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark (USPTO) Office for a pulley on the front of the R1, but to date, nothing has come to fruition.
Scaringe explained, “You know, the winch is something we’ve wanted to put on the R1 for a long time. However, it’s a little challenging, because it really impacts from a regulatory standpoint, you know, putting a big piece of uncompressed metal on the front of the car is a challenge. So it impacts crash and pedestrian safety.”
Rivian is not like Ford in that it sells its vehicles directly to the consumer, with no dealership middlemen and very few third-part accessories offered. This makes things a little more complicated. “What historically happens is that third parties do that work. And so the aftermarket can do that work. Because we make our own stuff and we’re OEM, it’s a little more challenging. But we’ve thought about it a lot,” Scaring said.
In February, Rivian introduced RAD, short for Rivian Adventure Department. It is the automaker’s new in-house performance division. While Scaringe said RAD vehicles will be fundamentally different, the department will not be limited to just vehicles.
“Coming back to RAD, I think back there, remembering that discussion. I think a lot of good things can come when we talk about RAD. We’re the second word adventure, we deliberately use the term adventure department as opposed to the equivalent performance. Performance is an element of adventure, but adventure is a broader category, so it means it can enable a lot of things. Things like winches,” Scaring said.
When asked for clarity whether RAD will be about more than just vehicles, Scaringe said, “There are things that go along with the vehicles that make the vehicles more exciting.”
For current and future owners of Rivian, in the words of Lloyd Christmas, “So you’re saying there’s a chance.”
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