It’s only been a week since Rivian unveiled two new additions to its expanding lineup of EVs, but the Californian startup may have more surprises in store for its current range. Recently, it came to light that Rivian filed a trademark application for the name ‘R1X’ with the United States Patent and Trademark Office back in 2021. However, the application wasn’t published online until October 2023. This indicates that the brand might be developing a more rugged or higher-performance version of either the R1S SUV, the R1T pickup, or possibly both.
At the recent launch of the R2 and R3 in
California, Rivian unveiled a flagship variant of its planned all-electric
hatchback in the form of the R3X. It will be able to hit 96 km/h in
less than 3 seconds and if the company is indeed working on a similar X-badged
version of the R1T or R1S, then EV buyers could have another compelling and
blisteringly fast vehicle to choose from.
The trademark application, discovered by
Motorauthority, does not specify whether the X badge will be applied to the R1S
or R1T. If used for a flagship version of the R1S, it could compete against
vehicles like the GMC Hummer EV SUV, Tesla Model X Plaid, and a potential
Sapphire-badged version of the upcoming Lucid Gravity. On the other hand, an X
version of the R1T could be a fitting response to the Tesla Cybertruck’s
record-breaking ‘CyberBeast’ variant.
Rivian’s most powerful existing versions
of the R1S and R1T use a quad-motor system with 835 hp and 1,231 Nm of torque. With upgraded motors, those figures could exceed the magical figure
of 1,000 hp. Like most other performance EVs, however, the driving range of the
R1X would likely suffer compared to other versions.
Late last year, a report claimed that a
new flagship version of the R1T and R1S will arrive this year and include a new
‘Ascent’ trim with over 1,000 hp. It is possible that this model could be the
same as a future R1X.
