Rivian Tells Us More About R1T Size & Storage

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We got an email today with exciting news from Rivian. Not only are we on the list to get some in-person time with the R1T electric pickup truck this summer, but the company also just gave the public a much better virtual look at it. Sure, we’ve seen plenty of pictures of the truck floating around, but we didn’t really know how big the truck itself is or what kind of storage it has. Now, we know.

Overall Size

The biggest question Rivian says it’s been getting is what people should expect when it comes to the overall size of the truck. In short, Rivian says that it’s midway between today’s midsize trucks (like the Ford Ranger or Chevy Colorado) and full-sized trucks (like the Ford F-150 or Chevy Silverado). When we consider that both the smaller trucks and the half-ton trucks have grown a lot in the last couple of decades, this puts the Rivian pretty close to what half-ton trucks used to be in the ’90s and early 2000s.

Rivian says it had the challenge of giving buyers enough room to comfortably seat five people and have room for their cargo/luggage but also have a truck that fits well in the garage if need be. Landing a little smaller than the F-150/Silverado, combined with better packaging because it’s an EV, gives us that.

Rivian also provided us with measurements:

Front Trunk and Gear Tunnel

Tesla fans are obviously going to wonder what kind of a frunk it has. A number of other EVs have had no frunk at all or have had a very small one, so that’s a common point people use against them. Rivian looks to be supplying plenty of space up there.

The company says it fits “a half-dozen full grocery bags or two full-sized coolers.” In the picture, they show it holding a duffel bag, shoes, and other odds and ends. It’s not a tiny storage space at all. It’s also got LED lighting, a 12 volt outlet, and a cargo net. Nice.

Here’s Rivian’s image and dimensions:

The Gear Tunnel

Behind the cab and below the bed, Rivian has put in another spot for gear. It opens up on both ends, and has room for the long things you’d take outdoors. From end to end, it’s 65 inches long, or about 5.5 feet (about 1.6 meters). Everyone does different things outdoors, but that’s enough space for quite a few things:

In the space Rivian says is there, I could fit a small fishing pole, a floorjack, a tripod, a rifle, an e-bike battery, a small camera drone, and a camera. Given that it’s a locked compartment, but also quickly accessible, that’s rather handy for nearly anybody’s outdoor adventures.

Here is a picture and the measurements:

The Bed and Under-Bed Storage

From the pictures we’ve seen, it’s obviously not going to come up with a full eight-foot truck bed. It’s not that kind of truck. That said, it’s not as small as I thought, either.

It’s designed to give a smooth and continuous surface even with the tailgate down, so you can get away with hauling 4×8 sheets of plywood if you do something to tie them down in the back. Measurements from the cab to the back of the down tailgate are just shy of 7 feet, while the width between wheel wells is 50 inches. Not a problem at all.

With the tailgate closed, you get that same width, but only 54″ of length. That’s still almost 5 feet, so you can still haul bikes and plenty of other things you’d take outdoors without issue. There are also four tie-downs that double as mounting points for cross-bars upon which you can put more cargo above the bed. That looks like a good place to mount a rooftop tent, if that’s your camping style.

Inside the bed, there are some neat things. There are two 15-amp 120-volt outlets, so you can use the truck’s battery for things other than travel. Those plugs are great for camping, but be careful to not run yourself out of range in the middle of nowhere! There’s also an onboard air compressor and storage space for an air hose to add air to the truck’s tires, or inflate just about anything else. Max pressure is 150 psi.

There’s also a storage space below the bed where you can put a full-size spare, ice for a tailgate party, or many other things.

“That’s Not Enough Space! Moar! Moar!”

If that’s just not enough space, Rivian has you at least partially covered, but you’re going to need to buy a trailer. Fortunately, the hitch comes built-in, but it’s hidden away behind a small removable panel for better looks and aerodynamic efficiency.

It’s no wimpy hitch, either. It can hold up to 1155 pounds of tongue weight, and you can use it to pull a trailer of up to 11,000 pounds. You also don’t have to worry about the truck squatting under the load, as the adaptive air suspension will level the truck out, even with the maximum load it’s rated for.

Of course, expect the range to really suffer if you haul the max load, but for short trips, it can do it. If you’re counting on getting to the next charging station along the highway, you’ll probably want to keep the loads a lot smaller until there are more charging stations.

If that’s not enough space for you, I’m not sure what to say. Between the frunk, the two storage compartments, the bed, and the crossbars, that’s a lot of space to put stuff in. You can also put a lot of things in a fairly big trailer before you’d exceed 11,000 pounds and overload this truck. Of course, that’s not going to be enough for some commercial users, but most adventurers would be more than covered here.

However, if you need more seats like I do, consider Rivian’s R1S, the SUV variant of the vehicle. It’s similarly capable, but you’re trading the bed for two more seats. Between me, the wife, the kids, and their dog, we’d fill that one up!

Featured image by Rivian, cargo ideas by Jennifer Sensiba, and other images provided by Rivian.