The Rivian R1S SUV has conquered the difficult Rubicon Trail. This means its the first production EV to complete that task. Also notable: The R1S completed the three-day trip on a single charge, and it had enough juice at the end of the trail to get to a local level 2 charge station.

What is the Rubicon Trail?

Before we get into the nitty gritty of the R1S’s Rubicon Trail run, we need to set the stage. The Rubicon Trail is a world renowned four-wheel-drive trail in the California High Sierra approximately 80 miles east of Sacramento. In the off-road world “The Rubicon” is one of the most well-known trails in the world. For many off-road fans it’s a bucket list item. Most Rubicon-goers drive the trail in 4WD vehicles sporting driveline modifications, larger tires with aggressive tread, and suspension lifts. One of the most popular start points is Loon Lake, which results in about 12 miles of overall trail distance. For most, it takes almost three full days to complete. The reward is two nights of incredible off-grid camping, spectacular scenery, a fun challenge, and bragging rights.

The Rubicon Trail Can Break Vehicles

Why does it take three days to run the Rubicon? Answer: rocks and boulders. And lots of them. Driving the Rubicon requires non-stop driver attention to choose a line over or between obstacles. Getting stuck on the Rubicon is common and so is vehicle breakage. Thus, one must bring items to get un-stuck and a variety of replacement parts is mandatory. With that said, mechanical repair experience is important because due to the remoteness of the Rubicon you can’t just call AAA for a tow. Finally, vehicle body damage is likely. We’ve seen a variety of damage, from bent sheetmetal to crushed rocker panels.

The Rivian R1S SUV Has Conquered the Difficult Rubicon Trail

Rivian’s foray into the challenging Rubicon with its R1S included members of the company’s test and development team. This team is trained and experienced in off-road driving as well as fire safety and Tread Lightly! principles. The crew left Loon Lake at 9:45 a.m. on a Monday and completed the trail about 3:30 p.m. the following Wednesday. The R1S was equipped with the Quad-Motor drive system that has an independent motor on each wheel. Rivian says this vehicle has 835 hp and 908 lb-ft of torque and can climb a 100 percent grade. The SUV was “entirely stock” except for steel rock sliders to protect the rocker panels, a front tow hitch receiver (likely to serve as a front recovery point), and a roof rack for stuff like recovery tools, a spare tire, and camping gear. Interestingly, Rivian didn’t swap out the Pirelli all-terrain tires for more aggressive mud-terrain tires.

Rivian On the Rubicon: How It Went

Rivian says that the Quad-Motor R1S suffered no mechanical failures during its expedition over the Rubicon. The company also reports that the Pirelli tires under the SUV at the beginning of the trail were the same ones under the vehicle at the end. No tire failures. It’s no surprise that the R1S did suffer some “cosmetic bumps and scrapes.” As noted previously, this is to be expected on the Rubicon. But what about range? The trail is only a dozen miles or so, but progress on the boulders is very slow and often measured in feet. Well, the R1S entered the Rubicon with an 80 percent state of charge. It exited the trail days later with under 10 percent of charge. Rivian reports the R1S had enough charge remaining to travel to a nearby level 2 charger.

The Bottom Line

In the end, Rivian scored bragging rights as the first production EV to traverse the Rubicon. And it appears to have done it with style. Chris, Director of the Rubicon Trail Foundation says, “I’m hugely impressed by the R1S’s clean run. Aside from some homebuilt EV crawlers, this is the first fully-EV vehicle through the trail, and definitely the first production EV. Very impressive on stock tires, too.”