[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-r...KCN1Q12PV?il=0


GM and Amazon both interested in investing in electric truck manufacturer Rivian.

Imagine building a truck with the Rivian specs in a plant with GM manufacturing scale and processes. Winner.

[PoorMansCamaro]

Probably a price tag i'll never be able to afford.

[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by PoorMansCamaro

Probably a price tag i'll never be able to afford.

I drove a GMC Sierra Denali a couple weeks ago. Sticker price over $72K. Somebody’s already spending stupid $$$ on trucks. There’s a lot of room for pricing for a decent electric pickup. Ford is also planning an electric pickup. Expect GM to also have one, whether it is with Rivian or not.

I attended a Rivian presentation the day before NAIAS press days. Awesome concept and product. I can’t get past that goofy looking front end, though. But very functional and well thought out truck. My last boss’s boss at GM was also on the agenda to speak and was taking copious notes during the Rivian presentation.

[90503]

[JerTM]

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

I drove a GMC Sierra Denali a couple weeks ago. Sticker price over $72K. Somebody’s already spending stupid $$$ on trucks. There’s a lot of room for pricing for a decent electric pickup. Ford is also planning an electric pickup. Expect GM to also have one, whether it is with Rivian or not.

I attended a Rivian presentation the day before NAIAS press days. Awesome concept and product. I can’t get past that goofy looking front end, though. But very functional and well thought out truck. My last boss’s boss at GM was also on the agenda to speak and was taking copious notes during the Rivian presentation.

I find it dumbfounding the price of a full sized SUV now. Mortgage payment with heavy depreciation. They aren't even as useful as a truck for truck things aside from hauling passengers around at great expense.

[ilirg]

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

I drove a GMC Sierra Denali a couple weeks ago. Sticker price over $72K. Somebody’s already spending stupid $$$ on trucks. There’s a lot of room for pricing for a decent electric pickup. Ford is also planning an electric pickup. Expect GM to also have one, whether it is with Rivian or not.

I attended a Rivian presentation the day before NAIAS press days. Awesome concept and product. I can’t get past that goofy looking front end, though. But very functional and well thought out truck. My last boss’s boss at GM was also on the agenda to speak and was taking copious notes during the Rivian presentation.

Think it's cool, but how many charging stations are out there in the wilderness and trails

[KMPrenger]

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

Imagine building a truck with the Rivian specs in a plant with GM manufacturing scale and processes. Winner.

It would be great!

Originally Posted by PoorMansCamaro

Probably a price tag i'll never be able to afford.

This is true! Perhaps a partnership with GM and their manufacturing processes could bring the price down some, but Rivian is already talking 70K+ for this truck.

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

I drove a GMC Sierra Denali a couple weeks ago. Sticker price over $72K. Somebody’s already spending stupid $$$ on trucks. There’s a lot of room for pricing for a decent electric pickup. Ford is also planning an electric pickup. Expect GM to also have one, whether it is with Rivian or not.

I attended a Rivian presentation the day before NAIAS press days. Awesome concept and product. I can’t get past that goofy looking front end, though. But very functional and well thought out truck. My last boss’s boss at GM was also on the agenda to speak and was taking copious notes during the Rivian presentation.

Yes, trucks are expensive. The fact that the Rivian is a midsize and but would cost as much or more than a full size top trim truck would be a hard pill to swallow, but should cost less over time.

Your comments on the looks are spot on. Why...why did they feel like they just had to make this truck look like a concept vehicle on the road? They could have made it edgy/modern without going this far. Bring back the styling a bit, and I'd almost guarantee more interest in the truck.

[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by ilirg

Think it's cool, but how many charging stations are out there in the wilderness and trails

Don't necessarily need them. Just takes a little bit of planning. Plug in. Go to bed. Wake up with 400+ miles on the "tank". Drive to "wilderness". Hammer around a bit, scaring the deer and the bears and the like. Drive home. Plug in. Wake up the next morning with 400+ miles in the tank.

[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by KMPrenger

….Your comments on the looks are spot on. Why...why did they feel like they just had to make this truck look like a concept vehicle on the road? They could have made it edgy/modern without going this far. Bring back the styling a bit, and I'd almost guarantee more interest in the truck.

The light bar across the front is very functional. It provides visual information on the state of charge. But that could have been done equally well without the anime appearance.

[90503]

...400+ miles on the electric "tank"...hmmm....If they are going to sell these all electric vehicles, they need to be more specific and honest...Gas engines show highway mileage and city mileage...Electrics never disclose how many miles they will go continuously at highway speeds....The mileage drops like a rock....My guess, at continuous highway (60-80mph) speeds this Rivian won't go barely about 100 miles...


The advertised "range" of electrics is usually an unicorn-fantasy that can only be obtained by going 20-30 mph or something like that....and going 400 miles in one shot would take about two days....Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so...You never see an electric say how many miles it can go strictly at highway speeds...and that's because it is usually abysmal and is a deal killer once realized and the true cause of "range anxiety".

[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by 90503

...400+ miles on the electric "tank"...hmmm....If they are going to sell these all electric vehicles, they need to be more specific and honest...Gas engines show highway mileage and city mileage...Electrics never disclose how many miles they will go continuously at highway speeds....The mileage drops like a rock....My guess, at continuous highway (60-80mph) speeds this Rivian won't go barely about 100 miles...


The advertised "range" of electrics is usually an unicorn-fantasy that can only be obtained by going 20-30 mph or something like that....and going 400 miles in one shot would take about two days....Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so...You never see an electric say how many miles it can go strictly at highway speeds...and that's because it is usually abysmal and is a deal killer once realized and the true cause of "range anxiety".

Early EVs I'd say you're spot on. Newer ones are really not bad at all. Having driven numerous Teslas in mixed (some city, some highway, some "suburban thoroughfare") I can say from personal experience that most newer EVs do a better job of predicting range on the in-vehicle display than gas vehicles. If they say you have 54 miles left, you probably have 55. My wife has been driving Chevrolet Volts since mid-2011. The first one was rated 38 miles on a full charge. Depending on the temperature that day, when she got in the car it would read anywhere from mid-20s to mid-40s (lowest on really cold days). It was very accurate in that regard. Some variation due to driver behavior. Her current Volt (no pun intended) is rated at either 43 or 44 miles per full charge. On cold days it says 34 - 37. On warm days I've seen as high as 54. Whenever I drive her car I outperform the estimate. That's because I know how to use regen braking better than she does.

I had a Bolt EV for two weeks in November 2016. Not too cold, definitely not hot. Rated at 238 per full charge. Again, mixed driving like in the Teslas I've driven. I NEVER had the range estimate fall short of what it started at. The guess-o-meter was usually pretty much dead on or maybe a little conservative.

[90503]

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

Early EVs I'd say you're spot on. Newer ones are really not bad at all. Having driven numerous Teslas in mixed (some city, some highway, some "suburban thoroughfare") I can say from personal experience that most newer EVs do a better job of predicting range on the in-vehicle display than gas vehicles. If they say you have 54 miles left, you probably have 55. My wife has been driving Chevrolet Volts since mid-2011. The first one was rated 38 miles on a full charge. Depending on the temperature that day, when she got in the car it would read anywhere from mid-20s to mid-40s (lowest on really cold days). It was very accurate in that regard. Some variation due to driver behavior. Her current Volt (no pun intended) is rated at either 43 or 44 miles per full charge. On cold days it says 34 - 37. On warm days I've seen as high as 54. Whenever I drive her car I outperform the estimate. That's because I know how to use regen braking better than she does.

I had a Bolt EV for two weeks in November 2016. Not too cold, definitely not hot. Rated at 238 per full charge. Again, mixed driving like in the Teslas I've driven. I NEVER had the range estimate fall short of what it started at. The guess-o-meter was usually pretty much dead on or maybe a little conservative.

Yes...again that's the same clear as mud answer that is usually given..."Mixed use"....There is no mixed use on a long trip of several hundred miles where it's all highway (high speed) for one, two, three hundred miles at a time. Unless the customer, or maybe I'm the only one, knows how many miles can be traveled at hi-speeds/highway speeds "ONLY"....then they won't sell.

[GroundhogSS]

Originally Posted by Martinjlm

Early EVs I'd say you're spot on. Newer ones are really not bad at all. Having driven numerous Teslas in mixed (some city, some highway, some "suburban thoroughfare") I can say from personal experience that most newer EVs do a better job of predicting range on the in-vehicle display than gas vehicles. If they say you have 54 miles left, you probably have 55. My wife has been driving Chevrolet Volts since mid-2011. The first one was rated 38 miles on a full charge. Depending on the temperature that day, when she got in the car it would read anywhere from mid-20s to mid-40s (lowest on really cold days). It was very accurate in that regard. Some variation due to driver behavior. Her current Volt (no pun intended) is rated at either 43 or 44 miles per full charge. On cold days it says 34 - 37. On warm days I've seen as high as 54. Whenever I drive her car I outperform the estimate. That's because I know how to use regen braking better than she does.

I had a Bolt EV for two weeks in November 2016. Not too cold, definitely not hot. Rated at 238 per full charge. Again, mixed driving like in the Teslas I've driven. I NEVER had the range estimate fall short of what it started at. The guess-o-meter was usually pretty much dead on or maybe a little conservative.

The Volt seems like the best compromise for a hybrid vehicle. Not sure why GM didn't promote them more. Sorry to see them go away. They were on my radar.

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by 90503

Yes...again that's the same clear as mud answer that is usually given..."Mixed use"....There is no mixed use on a long trip of several hundred miles where it's all highway (high speed) for one, two, three hundred miles at a time. Unless the customer, or maybe I'm the only one, knows how many miles can be traveled at hi-speeds/highway speeds "ONLY"....then they won't sell.

And its a tiny fraction of people who spend the bulk of their time driving hundreds of miles on the highway in a single trip with their personal car. Nearly 0. Most people who take long road trips do it no more than a couple times a year. Anyone that does have range anxiety and wants to do road trips and also don't want to recharge as they stop and eat lunch or visit a tourist trap (which is getting easier and easier to do), they can still just rent a car and keep their EV at home.



You argument is akin to saying no truck will ever sell unless it has at least a 12,000 lb tow rating & a 1 ton payload capacity -because sometimes some people need that level of capability so everyone always needs to have it available to them.