Okay, so Rivian is really getting into high-performance vehicles by creating a special in-house group called RAD (Rivian Creation Development).
These guys are all about pushing Rivian’s electric trucks and SUVs to their absolute limits.
RAD has been kicking around inside Rivian for a while as a secret project; now, it’s officially part of the company.
This is a big deal since Rivian is already known for building some seriously quick EVs. The first R1T and R1S with four motors cranked out 835hp and could go from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.3 seconds.
For 2026, they’ve tweaked those models to make a crazy 1,025hp, proving they want to play with the big boys in the performance EV game.
RAD isn’t just talk, either. A Rivian R1T actually won the 2023 Rebelle Rally, which was the first time an EV has ever won that off-road race for women.
Plus, Rivian set, and they broke, the record for electric trucks at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb two years in a row.
Rivian mentions that what they learn from these events goes straight into making better cars for the road.
RAD has already come out with the RAD Tuner for the Gen 2 2026 quad-motor models, which will allows owners to mess with the power, torque, stability control, and regenerative braking.
There are preset modes like Desert Rally and Hill Climb that are based on the work they did at Rebelle and Pikes Peak.
Rivian took the wraps off RAD at the 2026 FAT Ice Race in Big Sky, Montana, where a quad-motor R1S will be racing.
I am not so sure if we’ll see RAD-only models anytime soon, but one thing for sure is that Rivian wants people to know just how serious they are about making high-performance EVs.
