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Aftermarket Rock Sliders options?

johstacy

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I'm in the market for Rock Sliders and I know I have seen a couple posts of people creating Rock sliders. Question I have is how many aftermarket Rock Sliders are there for the R1T? And are any of them ready to purchase. I will start a list below of what I know about and please let me know what I am missing and I will add it to the list. (no particular order)

  • Electruck4x4.com Sliders are pre-order @ $1,499
  • evsportline.com Running boards with Rock Slider armor are pre-order @ $1,199.95
  • weistec.com Sliders are in production? @ $2,450

I don't know if any of these are any good or how well they perform if you do please let me know. I thought I saw another post on them that where ready to ship but I could be wrong.
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COdogman

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Also the DCE Weistec sliders. They are a site sponsor as well. $2450 for theirs.
https://www.weistec.com/rivian.html

There were reports of Rivian testing their own sliders but there’s no more info than that. I wouldn’t hold my breath.
 
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johstacy

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Also the DCE Weistec sliders. They are a site sponsor as well. $2450 for theirs.
https://www.weistec.com/rivian.html

There were reports of Rivian testing their own sliders but there’s no more info than that. I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Nice yes these are the ones I had seen a post about and couldn't find again
 

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Yeah can you guys explain the difference between your Running boards and Running boards with rock Slider armor? Also not sure but I know I saw someone post a video of there rock sliders in action was that you guys and if not do you have a video of them in action?

Thank!
All the questions you have are addressed in the link that EV Sportline referenced. All of us that are interested in sliders/ running boards had to suffer through all 45 pages of it, so you should be cool like us :p

Electruck4x4 has a good read about it too, which is here: https://electruck4x4.com/blogs/the-...etween-a-rock-slider-and-a-running-board-step
 

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Does anyone make a rock slider for the Rivian R1 vehicles which is NOT a running board?

I understand that so many people have difficulty with access that running boards are high-demand and most people want the accessories they’ve paid for to be prominent for aesthetics. Given a choice, I’d prefer a rock slider with the minimum required protrusion for the stealthiest possible look. Something like this:
Rivian R1T R1S Aftermarket Rock Sliders options? 1673976350104
 

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Does anyone make a rock slider for the Rivian R1 vehicles which is NOT a running board?

I understand that so many people have difficulty with access that running boards are high-demand and most people want the accessories they’ve paid for to be prominent for aesthetics. Given a choice, I’d prefer a rock slider with the minimum required protrusion for the stealthiest possible look. Something like this:
1673976350104.png
I'm working with GOAT Fabrication on some. First design on the brackets wasn't going to work. Having functional sliders on the Rivian is complicated by the fact that the door sills wrap under, and there isn't a frame that sticks down below the sills. They will probably double as steps when the door is open but I'm hoping the design we settle on doesn't stick out farther than necessary. Will end up losing a small amount of ground clearance, but I think it won't be that big of a deal. You don't lose it the whole way across, just between the wheels.
 

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Having functional sliders on the Rivian is complicated by the fact that the door sills wrap under, and there isn't a frame that sticks down below the sills. They will probably double as steps when the door is open but I'm hoping the design we settle on doesn't stick out farther than necessary. Will end up losing a small amount of ground clearance, but I think it won't be that big of a deal.
I think the LR3/LR4 is the same in that the door skins cover the rockers so the dirt stays outside. This pic does a better job showing what I’m trying to describe where the lighter gray rocker cover plastic stays with the door, so it’s absent on the open front door and shown on the closed rear door:
Rivian R1T R1S Aftermarket Rock Sliders options? lr-slider01-555x370


It may be worth looking at how some of the LR3/LR4 rock sliders are fabricated to see if someone already has a solution for this.
 

Dark-Fx

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I think the LR3/LR4 is the same in that the door skins cover the rockers so the dirt stays outside. This pic does a better job showing what I’m trying to describe where the lighter gray rocker cover plastic stays with the door, so it’s absent on the open front door and shown on the closed rear door:
lr-slider01-555x370.jpg


It may be worth looking at how some of the LR3/LR4 rock sliders are fabricated to see if someone already has a solution for this.
Most likely they are going to end up with a design similar to the bronco ones here. Much heavier duty than any of the ones I've seen posted up so far for the Rivian. (more mounting points than the Bronco ones though)

https://goatfabrication.com/collections/4-door-bronco/products/goat-bronco-6-gen-4-door-rock-sliders

Still likely a few weeks out from having a working prototype, but I plan on just leaving them on my truck once we have them and actually try to get some use out of them as sliders.
 

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It may be worth noting that many consider a well designed slider should not only protect the rocker panels, but protect from body damage as well.

*If* body damage is a concern, make sure the sliders you purchase extend, at least ever so slightly, further than the door sheet metal.

And for those who may be in a more heavily forested environment consider a "kick-out" to the rear. Clearly NOT for everyone as from some angles they are mare than a little noticeable. The R1s are wider than many mid-size vehicles and really do add much needed protection. Some of they early off-road YouTube videos demonstrate the tree problem. You don't always have the options to take another line. Who know how many people will use expensive R1s this way? But it is a legitimate concern for people who off-road in the Ozarks, Appalachians, North East etc. where the undergrowth of trees is commonly much more dense than Oregon/Washington (for example).

Another consideration is the related issues of drainage, cleaning, and debris control from whatever "holes" there are. Sliders won't protect your rocker panels if a branch can be wedged from the ground into the rocker panel.

Filler panels can virtually prevent this. But they need holes of some kind big enough to allow easy drainage and cleaning. Think spaying away mud accumulation. And most importantly small enough that any aforementioned stick or branch with not cause damage.

These panels may look like steps to the uninitiated but even sliders with fill panels are seldom very useful as steps.

And since vendors are still designing, consider offering an option that angles the outside edge up 15-20 degrees. Further protection and not as visible from the top. But at an even more severe limit for use as steps.

Sliders are (another) one of those things that there is little need to re-invent the wheel. Review what has been done and most importantly, why.....
 

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Yeah can you guys explain the difference between your Running boards and Running boards with rock Slider armor? Also not sure but I know I saw someone post a video of there rock sliders in action was that you guys and if not do you have a video of them in action?

Thank!

Guys, pretty straight forward. The rocker sliders provide underside vehicle protection - you can 'slide' your truck over rocks or obstacles without damaging it. You can slide the truck up into an obstacle and not destroy the rocker panel...basically, if you're offroading, it's a good investment.

Running boards are just steps.

On the Rivian, we made two products:

Running boards - for those that just want steps for kids, mom, or whatever.

Running boards with integrated Rock Sliders - all the benefits of a step, PLUS a full hard-core rock slider. You can slide over rocks, jack up the truck, step into it, etc - all that.

Best regards
Brian

full run down of the two products and details are here: https://evsportline.com/collections...running-board-rock-sliders-for-rivian-r1t-r1s






Rivian R1T R1S Aftermarket Rock Sliders options? Screenshot 2023-01-17 at 3.40.50 PM
 

electruck4x4

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It may be worth noting that many consider a well designed slider should not only protect the rocker panels, but protect from body damage as well.

*If* body damage is a concern, make sure the sliders you purchase extend, at least ever so slightly, further than the door sheet metal.

And for those who may be in a more heavily forested environment consider a "kick-out" to the rear. Clearly NOT for everyone as from some angles they are mare than a little noticeable. The R1s are wider than many mid-size vehicles and really do add much needed protection. Some of they early off-road YouTube videos demonstrate the tree problem. You don't always have the options to take another line. Who know how many people will use expensive R1s this way? But it is a legitimate concern for people who off-road in the Ozarks, Appalachians, North East etc. where the undergrowth of trees is commonly much more dense than Oregon/Washington (for example).

Another consideration is the related issues of drainage, cleaning, and debris control from whatever "holes" there are. Sliders won't protect your rocker panels if a branch can be wedged from the ground into the rocker panel.

Filler panels can virtually prevent this. But they need holes of some kind big enough to allow easy drainage and cleaning. Think spaying away mud accumulation. And most importantly small enough that any aforementioned stick or branch with not cause damage.

These panels may look like steps to the uninitiated but even sliders with fill panels are seldom very useful as steps.

And since vendors are still designing, consider offering an option that angles the outside edge up 15-20 degrees. Further protection and not as visible from the top. But at an even more severe limit for use as steps.

Sliders are (another) one of those things that there is little need to re-invent the wheel. Review what has been done and most importantly, why.....
Good call-out on the body damage. Essentially, a rock rail has 2 components: A main rail and a rub rail.

1. The main rail is what supports the rocker panels and protects you as you go OVER something.
2. The rub rail is more for side protection. It reduces the potential for you to wrap your truck around something and acts to deflect obstacles that might otherwise slide ("rub") their way up your door.

Something worth noting regarding kick-outs: They do help with things like logs, trees, rocks, and normal stuff that might be alongside your truck. That said, they also act as a pivot point that can push the rear of the truck away from the obstacle, where it might otherwise track over or against it.

Below is a good, albeit terribly grainy, demonstration of that. Without a kick-out, the rear wheel would have tracked over the rock, which would have resulted in rear quarter panel and/or bumper damage.

 
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VenturaLuke

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Good call-out on the body damage. Essentially, a rock rail has 2 components: A main rail and a rub rail.

1. The main rail is what supports the rocker panels and protects you as you go OVER something.
2. The rub rail is more for side protection. It reduces the potential for you to wrap your truck around something and acts to deflect obstacles that might otherwise slide ("rub") their way up your door.

Something worth noting regarding kick-outs: They do help with things like logs, trees, rocks, and normal stuff that might be alongside your truck. That said, they also act as a pivot point that can push the rear of the truck away from the obstacle, where it might otherwise track over or against it.

Below is a good, albeit terribly grainy, demonstration of that. Without a kick-out, the rear wheel would have tracked over the rock, which would have resulted in rear quarter panel and/or bumper damage.

This. I would prefer a slider with a kick out as I am off-roading my truck some but so far I have not seen anyone design one. Holding out hope! Personally I also prefer the look of a slider and dont really like the design with a plate along the top. May have to settle for that though.
 

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This. I would prefer a slider with a kick out as I am off-roading my truck some but so far I have not seen anyone design one. Holding out hope! Personally I also prefer the look of a slider and dont really like the design with a plate along the top. May have to settle for that though.
You're in luck! I know a guy who has you covered :cool: .

Fabrication of the first final units will complete at the end of the month. They'll then go to powder coat and ship to customers.

FYI, you should pre-order asap if you are interested. We've had a stronger-than-anticipated response and will not be able to offer the current discount for as long as previously planned.
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