In a new video posted by electric vehicle start-up Rivian, we see an R1T prototype undergoing weather testing in extreme heat while towing a 30-foot trailer loaded to the its 11,000 lbs max towing capacity.
The testing took place in Bullhead City last month where temperatures reached upwards of 118º F during the test. Rivian’s goal was to check how well the battery management system would handle extremely hot temperatures. Test drivers took the R1T through three main challenges including Davis Dam, Mount Charleston, and Death Valley.
Rivian wrote about the test known as the Davis Dam Grade “Established by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) as the standard for determining a vehicle’s tow rating, the route begins at an elevation of 550 feet near the banks of the Colorado River in Bullhead City (about 90 miles south of Las Vegas and 70 miles downstream from the Hoover Dam), then climbs up through the Black Mountains to more than 3,500 feet in just 11.4 miles before gently tapering off near Golden Valley, Arizona.”
Lead validation engineer/thermal systems validation at Rivian, Sushant More, said “The R1T performed to the target, and beyond.” Senior development engineer, Abhijit Nikam added “The Davis Dam test requires us to hit set targets, such as holding a minimum speed of 40 mph, and we surpassed those targets easily.”