DRIVE
RIVIAN REVOLUTION
ALL-ELECTRIC GOES ECLECTIC WITH THE R1T PICKUP TRUCK .
BY JOE YOGERST | PHOTOS COURTESY OF RIVIAN
Few people in the general public had even heard of Rivian until 2020 , when two of its all-electric R1T pickup trucks served as support vehicles for Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman in the documentary series “ Long Way Up ”: Rather than the all-electric Harley-Davidson motorcycles ridden by the two actors-turned-travelers , the real stars of the ride from South America to Los Angeles were the Rivian pickups .
While the bikes struggled in more remote areas , the all-wheel-drive Rivians sailed through the wilds of Patagonia , the Andes and the Atacama Desert . There is also their striking appearance — a streamlined design and those eye-catching “ stadium ” headlights . Not only did the pickups perform well , but they looked good doing it .
The following year , R1Ts started to roll off the Rivian assembly line in Normal , Illinois . And it wasn ’ t surprising that the company created three of its Rivian Spaces — where would-be drivers could scrutinize and test drive its vehicles — in Southern California , including one inside the historic South Coast Theater in Laguna Beach .
A nearly hourlong test drive starts with a
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