Rubicon Trail: 1, Rexbo R1T: 0

[Rexbo]

Thanks everyone for the kind words!

For those who are (rightly) horrified to see me thrash this beautiful truck for pretty much no good reason, if it's any consolation, I'm doing it to showcase just HOW good a vehicle it really is at doing truck things. There's a place for measuring panel gaps, NVH measurements in the cabin, and fit & finish, but that's not where my heart (and money) is at. Maybe this is my way of saying "I paid for it and dang it I'm gonna use ALL OF IT"

Who REALLY gets the respect is the Rivian team that dragged that poor R1S through the rocks. Anyway, I fully encourage someone else to do better than I did and post photos up!

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[Mellowyellow]

Dude, Korean BBQ makes everything better!!!!

Thanks everyone for the kind words!

For those who are (rightly) horrified to see me thrash this beautiful truck for pretty much no good reason, if it's any consolation, I'm doing it to showcase just HOW good a vehicle it really is at doing truck things. There's a place for measuring panel gaps, NVH measurements in the cabin, and fit & finish, but that's not where my heart (and money) is at. Maybe this is my way of saying "I paid for it and dang it I'm gonna use ALL OF IT"

Who REALLY gets the respect is the Rivian team that dragged that poor R1S through the rocks. Anyway, I fully encourage someone else to do better than I did and post photos up!

 

[Jonger1150]

Wow, I'm unsure whether to be impressed or horrified at how much of a thrashing you gave that Rivian. Someone has to push the limits, though, I suppose. It looks like a fun day, but I'd be pissed off if I got a door ding, let alone this.

If I win the lotto (which I don't play) -- I'll order (3) gen 2 Quad Motors with max sized off-road tires.

I'll have all 3 trailered to the trailhead of the Rubicon and get at least 1 down it.

 

[NY_Rob]

Maybe whatever this monstrosity is would make it through. Very valiant effort though, and look forward to seeing about future endeavors.

Well at least you wouldn't have to worry about damaging it on the trail.. it's already totaled by the look of it

 

[KBabione]

If I win the lotto (which I don't play)

If you ever want to start playing, I'll sell you some day-old lotto tickets for half price. You'll save a lot of $$$ and only have 1 in 1,000,000,000 less chance of winning.

 

[SDH]

That's a proper adventure. Well done Sir.

 

[sizotty]

Props man, big props.

Surprised about the wrinkles. There’s many of us here who have flexed these trucks out big time like you have. I’m curious to hear what Rivian says if you have it inspected.

 

[an-thu-knee]

how much was the repairs on the GX?

 

[Nine_One_Six_R1S]

Hey, @Rexbo you are a brave Rivian owner. Kudos for you for taking on the challenge and trying to find the limits of the R1T on your own. Check your DM.

 

[Rexbo]

how much was the repairs on the GX?

Rear diff pinion gear sheared a few teeth, but he wanted to re-gear anyway, so new pinion and 4.88 gears out back. You gotta do the front now too, so he's putting in a front locker and matching gearing.

All in all, it's gonna be like $2500 or so, but now he gets 3-way lockers!

 

[cardad]

Awesome share!!
Crazy how the truck can wrinkle like that.
Well now all that’s left is just to try it again. The worst is already done right? Haha
It’s also good that leaving was not your fault.

It wrinkles because it’s all one piece from the roof to the bed. That’s why our insurance is so insane. Probably a design choice they should have axed with gen 2.

 

[cardad]

We were under no impression that this was ever a good idea, and that success was measured by not getting hurt.

I'm so impressed with Rivian that I'm really trying to explore how far this truck overlaps with other more dedicated market segment vehicles, because so far it's pretty astonishing. The luxury and daily driver aspect as well as weekend adventure vehicle has been thoroughly reviewed. What I'm most impressed by is this trucks' performance in places where usually niche vehicles are (sports cars, muscle cars, rock crawlers, etc) with only minor modifications.

Rivian deliberately chose to cater more to the Range Rover crowd by not allowing easy mods like bumpers and suspension. The Cybertruck and Lightning have theoretically had those mods from day 1. Even the Lightning has had a custom Raptor suspension installed.

WIthout seeing a full skeletal breakdown of how the frame is connected, I cannot say for sure, but in theory I disagree with you.

The entire premise behind the Rivian is the skateboard platform.

Then the chassis is bolted on top of it.

There's no reason for anything beyond the functional components of the suspension to be flexing at all. Unless the skateboard platform itself is flexing. And if it is, that's a problem, given the fact that it's the battery pack and is responsible for not only the structural integrity of the vehicle, but also the ...you know... integrity of the batteries.

The dimples are a concern. Obviously something happened here, but I think the *what* is more of a mystery than 'chassis flex.' I could be wrong on this one. And as pointed out by others, between the sliders and the hitch mounts, there are added stress focal points to the frame that might have otherwise been intended flex points. But again, I'd have to see the vehicle's internal structural breakdown. I'd be very interested to hear what Rivian would have to say bout it.


All of that said, thanks for the post and writeup, OP. Looks like a hell of an adventure! Makes me want to get out on some trails...!

You’re overthinking this. Put some ratchet straps between your crossbar mounts and start flexing away. There’s very little structural integrity at that point where the bed reaches the cab. There’s literally nothing in between there. Perhaps a brace in the bed would have prevented that.

 

[R1Thor]

You’re overthinking this. Put some ratchet straps between your crossbar mounts and start flexing away. There’s very little structural integrity at that point where the bed reaches the cab. There’s literally nothing in between there. Perhaps a brace in the bed would have prevented that.

Can you show me on the free body diagram where the truck is meant to impart load laterally to the edges of the bed frame during off-roading adventures?

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Rivian deliberately chose to cater more to the Range Rover crowd by not allowing easy mods like bumpers and suspension. The Cybertruck and Lightning have theoretically had those mods from day 1. Even the Lightning has had a custom Raptor suspension installed.

You’re overthinking this. Put some ratchet straps between your crossbar mounts and start flexing away. There’s very little structural integrity at that point where the bed reaches the cab. There’s literally nothing in between there. Perhaps a brace in the bed would have prevented that.

Just because the bumper falls off on the CT doesn’t mean it’s supposed to have an aftermarket part. That’s you musketeers, even when parts fall off it’s by design. StiLl lOvE tha tRucK.

 

[cardad]

Just because the bumper falls off on the CT doesn’t mean it’s supposed to have an aftermarket part. That’s you musketeers, even when parts fall off it’s by design. StiLl lOvE tha tRucK.

I think you need therapy, but I’m going to entertain you since your ignorance speaks so loudly it’s possible nobody bothered to educate you. Bumper mods are common for off road rigs. It is an aberration for an off road brand like Rivian not to make it possible. This is why the new Scout made it a point in their reveal to say that bumper mods would be available from day 1.

So in your crazed state you may think you owned someone but it’s really just some kind of mental deficiency that you should seriously have checked out.

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