Listen up: Rivian Automotive (RIVN) -) wants to put you behind the wheel of an electric pickup truck.
And just to show you that they're not kidding, the automaker, which is backed by Amazon (AMZN) -), started leasing select models of its all-electric R1T pickup truck on Nov. 27.
Related: Here's how much the Tesla Cybertruck could cost at launch
The company said the program is available to customers in 14 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington.
Leasing has arrived. 🛻🎉
— Rivian (@Rivian) November 27, 2023
That means you’ve got another way to get behind the wheel of an R1T. Browse the shop to find the one for you: https://t.co/f3l2h7BtQ1 pic.twitter.com/R7oWKTD5Rt
“Leasing has arrived,” the company said on X, formerly Twitter. “That means you’ve got another way to get behind the wheel of an R1T. Browse the shop to find the one for you.”
Leasing popularity a factor
A Rivian spokeswoman told CNBC that the automaker is working with its existing financial partner Chase for the leasing program, which she said will expand over time.
“We chose these launch states based on many factors including where our customers are located and where leasing is most popular,” the spokeswoman said.
The announcement comes just days before the launch of Tesla's (TSLA) -) Cybertruck.
The $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicle purchases under the Inflation Reduction Act also applies to customers who prefer to lease.
“Industry observers noted that under the IRA’s rules, there are fewer restrictions to qualify for the $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicles that are leased instead of purchased outright,” the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said in September.
For consumers interested in battery electric vehicles, the Chicago Fed noted, "leasing arrangements may be a particularly attractive option, given that these vehicles are currently, on average, priced higher than comparable ICE vehicles."
Consumers who lease a vehicle pay to drive it for a certain length of time. The average lease is 24 or 36 months, although there are longer leases.
Once the lease period ends, they have the option to return the vehicle to the dealer or purchase it at a predetermined amount, as defined in the lease contract.
There are numerous consumer-oriented websites that dive into the pros and cons of leasing a vehicle as opposed to buying one.
CEO: Entire auto industry going electric
Earlier this month, Rivian said it would boost 2023 production by 2,000 units, to 54,000 units, even as it trimmed capital spending plans following a solid third quarter earnings report that included overall revenues of $1.34 billion and a narrower-than-expected loss.
The company had previously said that had it delivered 15,564 units over the three months ending in September, a 23% increase from the prior period, and said it was on track to produce around 52,000 vehicles this year.
While there has been indications of a slowdown in the electric vehicle sector, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe was sounding mighty confident during a Nov. 7 conference call with analysts.
“There has been a lot of noise and a lot of dialogue recently around EV adoption, and I want to emphatically state just how deeply convicted we are that the entire automotive industry will be transitioning to electric over the next one to two decades,” he said.
Scaringe said in October that "buying a combustion powered vehicle, in light of the policy that's coming, is sort of like building a horse barn in 1910.”
And he didn't seem terribly concerned about competition from the Cybertruck, stating that "I think it’s great that a product like that exists in the world."
"In transportation, there needs to be many winners," he said. "There needs to be 20 to 25 successful auto manufacturers building electric-connected vehicles. Our success doesn't require someone else's failure and vice versa."
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