Protect Your Rivian Rear!! DIY rear bumper protector

[NY_Rob]

Thank you @FraserC for that detailed analysis!
You explained my reason for using the device.. stout enough to prevent sheet meta/plastic fascia damage for walking speed incidents and every day bumps. I also feel that this device would not in itself cause frame damage in a higher speed impact that wouldn't have happened without the device in place.

FWIW- an older lady recently crept up and pushed in to our Model 3 rear bumper at a stoplight. She was looking down texting (she admitted that) at the red light and didn't realize her car was slowly inching forward till she hit us. Her car put a small 3" long permanent indentation in the bumper skin and also made a small 1" long scratch in the red paint which now reveals the black plastic bumper skin underneath. We took it to a body shop for the repair estimate.. $900 for that tiny indentation and repaint. They told us the bumper skin has to be removed and reworked (filling in the indentation) then fully repainted, blending in that area would not be possible. That's what this device was intended for, casual everyday annoyance bumps that cost you because they are below your deductible.

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[AllInev]

Nah. We’ve had our modern EVs rear ended three times, annoyingly twice while we were at a red light. Repairs were $5k or less and the hits were decent. It’s just a matter of engineering.

I was hit at the back-left corner at low speed and the other guy’s insurance had to payout $16,000 for repairs ???

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

I was hit at the back-left corner at low speed and the other guy’s insurance had to payout $16,000 for repairs ???

Yeah Rivians are notorious for high repair expenses. Especially vulnerable because they use single panels that cross from back to front. So a hit in the wrong spot requires a lot of dismantling and reassembling.

 

[Rivianero]

Some humorous responses here.

All that aside, I was able to buy my R1T because the original owner backed it into a pair of 6" palm trees in a parking lot at maybe 15mph. This totalled the vehicle with a repair estimate of $52k. That ended up breathing the rear bumper, backup light, and denting the tailgate and the long side panels on both sides. The structure is designed to crumple, and even at low speeds, the high mass of R1 vehicles means that a lot of energy is involved. IMHO, this would have been a minor fender-bender for most other vehicles and probably wouldn't have damaged my other pickup at all.

Anyway, to avoid having to re- repair the back end in the event of my own stupidity or another light tap, I installed this hitch-mounted step/protector. It is constructed not so strongly such that I'm sure it would crumple before transferring any energy to the frame. (Also, from what I have seen, the hitch receiver would also distort before impacting the actual frame.) It has already kept me out of trouble once.

https://a.co/d/1GCStz0

 

[PhatDaddy]

As a few others here, I have the ‘Sparebumper’ - was the first accessory I bought for my R1T. Engineered for low speed impacts, and has a nice space inside for tools.

 

[DayTripping]

As a few others here, I have the ‘Sparebumper’ - was the first accessory I bought for my R1T. Engineered for low speed impacts, and has a nice space inside for tools.

I ordered one not long ago for mine. It looks like it might be a tight fit on my R1T with the bumper cover. Any issues with it clearing or did you have to trim some? Does it stick out enough in general? My first one went with my other truck. It saved me a ton of money on that one.

 

[PhatDaddy]

No clearance issues for my Gen 1 truck.
More details:
https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/for-people-who-dont-have-exposed-cargo-racks-where-do-you-store-jump-box

 

[Wispitgood]

I kludged together this rear end/bumper protector for my new ride.
The Pintle mount shank is 2" X 10" long solid steel and the plate is 3/8" thick solid steel. The piece weighs 16lbs by itself and is rated for 13,000LBS. The bumpers are solid rubber 2.25" thick and 7" long.

Luckily, the two holes in the bumpers lined up with two holes in the mounting plate, so no drilling or modifications to the bumpers or plate was needed. Holding the bumpers to the plate I used four brass machine screws 1/4"x2.5" long with SS fender washers on the bumper side and 5/16" + 1/4" washers stacked on the mount plate side with a lock nut setup to prevent them coming loose. The hardware I picked up at HD, cost about $10 total.

I needed the 10" long version of the Pintle mount because I wanted it to be at least flush with the spare tire on my Jeep, which by the photos you can see it is. Since Rivian doesn't have a rear mounted spare tire option, you could use the 9" version of the mount so it won't nail anyone's shins if they pass to close to your vehicle. FWIW- I went with the "Save With Used" version of the mount because it was $10 less then the new version, and it was still in new condition, just repackaged by Amazon due to weighing so much and busting up it's original shipping carton. I think the "Save With Used" 9" mount is only $27!

Of course in a very hard rear end hit, this might not do too much (and nothing will), but if some knucklehead creeps up/rolls in to it at a stop light or while backing up in a parking lot it might just save you from replacing your rear bumper & bumper cover which is $$$ to replace.

Love this, and the potential to customize.

 

[Wispitgood]

I kludged together this rear end/bumper protector for my new ride.
The Pintle mount shank is 2" X 10" long solid steel and the plate is 3/8" thick solid steel. The piece weighs 16lbs by itself and is rated for 13,000LBS. The bumpers are solid rubber 2.25" thick and 7" long.

Luckily, the two holes in the bumpers lined up with two holes in the mounting plate, so no drilling or modifications to the bumpers or plate was needed. Holding the bumpers to the plate I used four brass machine screws 1/4"x2.5" long with SS fender washers on the bumper side and 5/16" + 1/4" washers stacked on the mount plate side with a lock nut setup to prevent them coming loose. The hardware I picked up at HD, cost about $10 total.

I needed the 10" long version of the Pintle mount because I wanted it to be at least flush with the spare tire on my Jeep, which by the photos you can see it is. Since Rivian doesn't have a rear mounted spare tire option, you could use the 9" version of the mount so it won't nail anyone's shins if they pass to close to your vehicle. FWIW- I went with the "Save With Used" version of the mount because it was $10 less then the new version, and it was still in new condition, just repackaged by Amazon due to weighing so much and busting up it's original shipping carton. I think the "Save With Used" 9" mount is only $27!

Of course in a very hard rear end hit, this might not do too much (and nothing will), but if some knucklehead creeps up/rolls in to it at a stop light or while backing up in a parking lot it might just save you from replacing your rear bumper & bumper cover which is $$$ to replace.

Has anyone tried a hitch step for an R1T? Like this type which has fighting kit, no rattle.

 

[Wispitgood]

I have this on my R1T and feel good about it for low-speed incidents.

Does it have a tensioner so there is no rattle?

 

[cdubsR1T]

Does it have a tensioner so there is no rattle?

There’s no rattle at all. Tension is provided by compression of the rubber rings during installation of the Sparebumper. Installation instructions

It saved my rear end last week when a sedan rear ended me at 10-15 mph while I was stopped in traffic. The impact was enough to bend and deform the 1/8” thick tubing of the bumper bar, but the R1T was unscathed. Pretty sure it would’ve been a costly repair if it weren’t for the Sparebumper.

The icing on the cake is that they honored their lifetime crash warranty. The accident happened on Wednesday. I received a replacement Sparebumper on Sunday.

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