Rivian Towing Experience: R1T Handled It Like a Champ

Rivian Mom · 2025-04-07T17:14:29+00:00

Hey guys, I'm sure everyone has been loving the auto front camera on R1 vehicles given it's perfect for squeezing into those preschool pickup lines or just enjoying a good drive. But here’s a slight feature I haven’t been too cool with for a while. When pulling into the car wash, I'd need to shift to neutral, and that camera’s still front and center, making me navigate menus to hit car wash mode. Not a crisis (I’ve handled worse with a toddler meltdown), but it’d be nice if it flowed a bit easier. Sure, the stalk’s there—reliable, like my old minivan—but that car wash button feels like it was made for busy moms like me. How great would it be if the camera just paused when car wash mode kicks in? Straight to neutral, no extra steps—like the car’s saying, “Relax, I’ve got this.” Would be a total win. Anyone else juggling this? Maybe Rivian could tweak it for us multitaskers.

Vincent

Active Wheeler

Feb 14, 2025

I helped a friend the other day to tow a short vehicle with his R1T while he was out of town and thought I should share the experience.

Vehicle is a 2024 R1T dual motor large pack. Weather was surprisingly nice, a pleasant 38 degrees almost the whole time. I picked up a u-haul vehicle trailer, took the highway and averaged about 1.5 miles per kw. The Rivian estimated the weight at 1500-2000 lbs, and I was averaging between 65 and 70mph.

Along the road, I picked up a 2004 Buick LeSabre and towed it about 70 miles back. Estimated weight was 4500 lbs according to the Rivian. I decided to stay off the highway this time and I took side roads (45-55 mph average). It was about 30 mins of a longer route, but I averaged about 1.8 mi/kw on the way back. I had way more battery left when I got back and I was a little surprised.

In total I did a total of 150 miles of towing, and used about 65% of battery in total. Not nearly as bad as I thought I was going to use. Just in case you ask, I couldn't even tell I was towing anything. This truck handled the weight like a champ.