Optima Overlanding Rivian R1T build teased for SEMA

[MoreTrout]

I have 20 400W Hanwa Q-cells on my garage roof. Their dimensions are 68.5 x 40.6 x 1.26 inches and they weigh 44 lbs each. Last I checked, that's longer than the bed of the truck with the tailgate up. On my best sunny day this summer on a garage roof facing directly south mounted at the optimal angle, the best panel produced 2.73 kWh over the entire day. You can add up how many miles that gets you based on your own efficiency of your R1T/S, but at around 2 mi/kWh it's pretty minimal. And that assumes you can sit stationary for 12 hours with the panel perfectly oriented and unobstructed. Add a little more for being in a part of the country with higher solar radiation. Bottom line, it would take a pretty full trailer of deployable panels to produce even a marginal amount of range. Don't want to even stab at the cost, but should be north of 5 digits quickly. I guess for someone already pouring 10s of thousands on top of the cost of the truck for cool rigs like this, money isn't really an object or the issue though.

Sponsored

 

[zipzag]

BTW, just so you're aware-- there is no external 12v plug on the R1T-- the bed plugs are 120 only (which is frustrating)... They've also removed the frunk 12v plug on newer trucks, and it's unclear if the wiring is still behind there (mine has the frunk plug)

It's very strange the extent to which Rivian neglected the electrical needs of overlanders. One explanation maybe that heavy 12V use is not well suited to their small 12v batteries and the need to frequently engage the main battery to maintain 12v voltage. The bizarre solution may be to install a house battery as commonly done in ICE camping vehicles.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

A less than ideal solution to power needs etc, while also having a "dedicated" toggle on the main display for off road lights and potentially other accessories, could be as simple as a cord either routed into the gear tunnel, or bed outlet(s). To power them up, or down, one would just enable/disable the plugs from the display.

The plus to this approach, is it would facilitate easy decoupling of the roof rack for instance, with lights attached, and just unplug the whole setup. Store when not needed.

 

[COdogman]

I have 20 400W Hanwa Q-cells on my garage roof. Their dimensions are 68.5 x 40.6 x 1.26 inches and they weigh 44 lbs each. Last I checked, that's longer than the bed of the truck with the tailgate up. On my best sunny day this summer on a garage roof facing directly south mounted at the optimal angle, the best panel produced 2.73 kWh over the entire day. You can add up how many miles that gets you based on your own efficiency of your R1T/S, but at around 2 mi/kWh it's pretty minimal. And that assumes you can sit stationary for 12 hours with the panel perfectly oriented and unobstructed. Add a little more for being in a part of the country with higher solar radiation. Bottom line, it would take a pretty full trailer of deployable panels to produce even a marginal amount of range. Don't want to even stab at the cost, but should be north of 5 digits quickly. I guess for someone already pouring 10s of thousands on top of the cost of the truck for cool rigs like this, money isn't really an object or the issue though.

I thought this would be impossible too, but if Jeep can install small(ish) footprint solar powered L2 chargers along trails that can fully charge the Wrangler’s 17kWh battery in 2 hours (approx 21 miles range) , it would be conceivable a trailer could do something similar with deployable panels. I will believe it when I see it I guess…

 

[jclicky]

I thought this would be impossible too, but if Jeep can install small(ish) footprint solar powered L2 chargers along trails that can fully charge the Wrangler’s 17kWh battery in 2 hours (approx 21 miles range) , it would be conceivable a trailer could do something similar with deployable panels. I will believe it when I see it I guess…

This.

Also, we shouldn’t forget that there IS a use case (especially for trucks) for a slow drip-charge. If you’re camping or Overlanding for days at a time, you don’t need a huge draw to add a great deal of functionality and/or simply minimize the impact of your own draw on the 110v outlets, or the lower efficiency of off-reading.

I’ll often tent camp for days on end with the vehicle in the same spot. A relatively small solar panel can soak up significant rays if you’ve got stable sun (but more oft. in sunny western states vs. more cloudy east of the great divide, fwiw).

It’s also why Rivian should seriously consider trying to create a solar tonneau if they redesign the tonneau cover, just don’t know that they have the bandwidth internally to engineer a solution to receive that drip-charge into the pack or even the 12v batteries, but it would be super useful over long periods of time. Think of being stranded off-grid with low battery but plenty of sun, time would be on your side there.

 

[thrill]

...A relatively small solar panel can soak up significant rays if you’ve got stable sun ...

No, it can't. The sun gives at best 1KW per square meter in the middle of the desert at the equator. The most efficient solar power today gives you less than 25%. That means for each square meter of solar panel you'd get over 8 hours at best 2 kw in a day. That's enough to give you 4 miles. If that range is critical to you getting out of the boondocks then you have cut it way too close.

 

[jclicky]

No, it can't. The sun gives at best 1KW per square meter in the middle of the desert at the equator. The most efficient solar power today gives you less than 25%. That means for each square meter of solar panel you'd get over 8 hours at best 2 kw in a day. That's enough to give you 4 miles. If that range is critical to you getting out of the boondocks then you have cut it way too close.

Right, but I'm talking about, like, let's say net 10mi. over a week; keep in mind one situation I'm thinking of would involve the Rivian parked at a wilderness trailhead, say, while you're backpacking for a week or two, all while sitting in full sun. A solar panel addition in a situation like that is a great way to fight off the vampire parking drain (even when in storage mode).

I mean, I'm not looking to charge a whole trip's worth of miles here, or dozens of miles, just fight against drain if parked out in the sun for a period, and to help soak up a few miles here & there. Not a dealbraker, but it helps. I dunno, I guess I don't understand why everyone thinks I'm talking about putting a tesla supercharger solar panel on my truck; I'm realistic about the small amount of charge, but it certainly wouldn't hurt...

 

[JeremyP]

I've been brainstorming about covering my travel trailer roof with solar panels (nearly 3kw possible) after removing everything else up there and having 2-3 server rack batteries inside (10-15 kwh), as well as an inverter that can output 240 volts. I could use it daily for charging at home (that's almost a full charge on our old i3!) and it would allow adding some range to our future R1S at camp. It would also give a bit of comfort if the distance between chargers is cutting it close. I believe the equipment would also be eligible for the 30% tax credit.

 

[DJG]

Solar panels are still useful for powering other devices, because counterintuitively it's still better to use an external battery power source to power them than use the Rivian, particularly for 12v devices. It's more efficient to power those from a battery/power station/solar generator than use the truck.

That's what I will do with the fridge, similar to what people in ICE vehicles do. I'll plug it into the truck while driving, then at camp switch to the Jackery. That way I can fully shut down the truck and not incur excessive drain by keeping systems on, in addition to the conversion losses running from the HV battery, through the invertor. My 240wh Jackery can run it for about 24 hours, so plenty even adding other things like phone, etc. I can recharge the battery through the truck while driving, or buy solar panels if I wanted.

 

[Leonbmx]

I believe the equipment would also be eligible for the 30% tax credit.

It is my understanding that you are sadly only eligible to get a tax credit if your system feeds back into the grid, not if you are "off the grid".

 

[JeremyP]

That's what I get for reading random blogs about the tax credit

This is my basic portable power center for now. Ran my 50 quart fridge for 3 days with highs of around 95.

 

[RWerksman]

That's what I get for reading random blogs about the tax credit

This is my basic portable power center for now. Ran my 50 quart fridge for 3 days with highs of around 95.

After some (admittedly sloppy) Googling, it looks like that battery is around $850. I'd happily be wrong about that.

 

[jjswan33]

After some (admittedly sloppy) Googling, it looks like that battery is around $850. I'd happily be wrong about that.

Weize 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 Lithium Battery, Up to 8000 Cycles, Built-in Smart BMS, Perfect for RV, Solar, Marine, Overland/Van, and Off Grid Applications https://a.co/d/geRiJDW

 

[RWerksman]

Weize 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 Lithium Battery, Up to 8000 Cycles, Built-in Smart BMS, Perfect for RV, Solar, Marine, Overland/Van, and Off Grid Applications https://a.co/d/geRiJDW

Weize 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 Lithium Battery, Up to 8000 Cycles, Built-in Smart BMS, Perfect for RV, Solar, Marine, Overland/Van, and Off Grid Applications https://a.co/d/geRiJDW

Well, that's quite reasonable in comparison. ?

 

[JeremyP]

$330 now on Amazon, a bit cheaper than when I got it a few months ago. Will Prowse on YouTube does teardowns on a bunch of different batteries.

Sponsored