• by Tanya Gazdik , Staff Writer, April 21, 2025

The company doesn't play it up as much as other automakers, but Rivian is one of the most pet-friendly vehicles around. 

I recently got the chance to spend a week test driving the Rivian R1S Tri Max, which offers astounding acceleration of 0 to 60 mph in only 2.9 seconds, better than the Hummer SUV 3X’s 3.4 seconds.

You’d expect a lot of bells and whistles from a car with an MSRP totaling $114,850,  and it does not disappoint. The version I drove offered enhanced highway assistance, which is hands-free driving. That’s an upgrade from the regular highway assistance that offers great lane keeping but still requires hands to rest lightly on the steering wheel. 

Unfortunately, the enhanced highway assistance was only sporadically available for only a few miles at a time. I expect this will improve as the system’s maps expand. 

The lane keeping is among the best I’ve experienced — it really feels centered and grounded and handles curves with ease. With regular highway assistance, you can go about 45 seconds before being prompted to touch the steering wheel. 

Other features I liked include the screen behind the steering wheel that features all the necessary driver information. It tracks the cars around you very well. The center screen is adequately large and also easy to navigate around.

The interior is beautiful, especially the plaid floor mats and the wood and metallic accents. It feels high-end and stylish. The exterior was a beautiful color -- Storm Blue -- that adds $3,000 to the price tag. 

The wireless charging works fine, and there’s plenty of room in the center console and underneath it.

The second row of seating offers a lot of room, the third row not so much. With the second and third row of seats folded down, there is an enormous amount of cargo room. I was able to use it to move a 72-inch dresser with ease. 

Pet comfort is a wonderful feature that every auto maker should have. Rivian recently celebrated National Pet Day by sending out an email featuring customer pets. 

"Whether it’s our software experiences like Pet Comfort, our pet-friendly events at Rivian spaces, or the colorful pet accessories offered in Gear Shop, every day with Rivian is a chance to appreciate our furriest of friends,” according to the email. 

The automaker recently updated its Pet Comfort software. As one of the most customer-requested features, its the latest example of how software updates can continually improve not just the R1 driving experience, but numerous safety and convenience features as well. With each software update, the automaker adds new capabilities, evolves the user experience and enhance existing features. 

To activate Pet Comfort, drivers press the paw icon in the upper right corner of the main climate control screen before leaving the vehicle. If the Rivian has more than 50 miles of range and is in park, drivers can set a temperature between 68 and 74 degrees Fahrenheit, which the vehicle will maintain while the driver is away. If no temperature is set, your R1T or R1S will automatically keep a cabin temperature of 72 degrees. 

In addition to deactivating the cabin movement sensor and temporarily blocking any over-the-air software updates, Pet Comfort uses the center display to let anyone passing by know the feature is active and the pet in the vehicle is safe and comfortable inside. 

Rivian’s online shop includes pet items you’d expect like leashes, harnesses and bowls, along with a clever “Pet Field Kit” that handily stows neatly in the cargo compartment on the passenger-side door. It includes pet-specific first aid and general supplies, a mini pouch for grab-and-go adventures and is inside of a durable, water resistant storage bag.

A few dings: Charging time is slow and is very expensive. I used a level 3 charger on several occasions and it took 45 minutes to go from 20% to 80% of charge, and cost upwards of $60 each time. 

Range drops much faster than the actual miles driven even in temperate weather, which makes it hard to plan. 

I’m not a fan of the native navigation system. I missed Waze and Apple CarPlay very much. Without that interface, getting and responding to text messages has to be done by Siri, which doesn’t work well. 

On a positive note, Rivian vehicles are currently built exclusively in the United States, primarily at their main manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois. They also have a second U.S. plant planned in Social Circle, Georgia. 

So the vehicle won’t be subject to tariffs, but it's likely some of its parts will be. Car and Driver reports that while Rivian assembles its vehicles in the U.S., the company does source some parts from Mexico, potentially leading to price increases due to tariffs on imported vehicle parts.