Rivian has gone to great lengths to improve its flagship R1S SUV and R1T pickup. There are so many changes that the California-based EV maker is referring to the 2025 models as the second generation, even though you’d be hard-pressed to notice the differences between the old and the new cars, at least at first glance.
One of the biggest novelties with the 2025 R1T and R1S is the exclusive use of Rivian’s own electric motor throughout the drivetrain options, including the quad-motor setup that previously used Bosch-supplied drive units. That change increased the maximum power output by about 200 horsepower in the case of the quad-motor EVs, for a total of 1,025 hp. This leads to a claimed 0-60 miles per hour time of under 2.5 seconds, which is mind-boggling for a big, heavy truck.
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Big speed
The latest crop of all-electric pickups is wicked fast, and the 2025 Rivian R1T is the fastest of them all. Thanks to a proprietary quad-motor powertrain making a whopping 1,025 horsepower, the revamped EV can go from zero to 60 miles per hour in under 2.5 seconds, according to the manufacturer.
But laying down some numbers on a piece of paper is one thing, and proving the capabilities in the real world is another. On paper, the new Rivian R1T quad-motor is at least a tenth of a second faster to 60 than the tri-motor Tesla Cybertruck Cyberbeast, which has an official time of 2.6 seconds.
As Youtuber JerryRigEverything found out during the launch event of the new Rivian R1 EVs–which we also attended–the updated top-spec R1T can, in fact, beat Tesla’s range-topping Cybertruck, albeit by just a split second.
In fairness, Zack Nelson, who runs the YouTube channel, isn’t exactly a trained racing driver. He only had a go on the drag strip, recording a time of 2.59 seconds, as you can see in the video embedded at the top of this page.
Gallery: 2025 Rivian R1T and R1S
To put things into perspective, that’s faster than the 2024 McLaren 750S Spider, 2016 Koenigsegg Regera and 2022 Lamborghini Huracán STO. And in case you forgot, we’re talking about a pickup that weighs about 7,200 pounds and can tow up to 11,000 pounds.
Pricing for the quad-motor Rivian R1T with the new guts hasn’t been announced yet, but a new tri-motor version starts at $99,900 and offers 850 hp and a 0-60 mph time of 2.9 seconds.
