Why Rivian Got Rid Of One Of Its Coolest Features

American EV startup Rivian has two of the coolest new EVs on the market — the R1T pickup truck, and the R1S SUV. Both vehicles push the design, engineering, and performance boundaries in the electric car era, while giving buyers more range per charge. In addition, Rivian EVs have innovative features like a large frunk, and a unique gear tunnel for storing longer items like skis or golf clubs. When Rivian teased the R1T in 2019, it also introduced the "Tank Turn" feature that made EV buyers scream in anticipation.

Rivian's "Tank Turn" is a forward-thinking feature like GM's "Crab Walk" function. However, in the Rivian, the EV could spin in place like a tank on the battlefield. The apparent benefits are easier maneuverability in the wilderness, and saying goodbye to pesky three-point turns. Using its quad electric motors (one for each wheel), the R1T spins the wheels on one side forward and backward on the other side to spin on its axis.

However, Rivian quietly got rid of the "Tank Turn" in the quad-motor RT1, and it won't return soon — despite being one of the most desirable and unique capabilities we've seen from a modern EV.

The "Tank Turn" feature of the Rivian R1T got caught up in delays, and was eventually scrapped for production. In an Instagram Q&A published on YouTube, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said they had to say goodbye to Tank Turn for the potential environmental damage it would cause over loose or grassy terrain. "This was something early on in the program we planned to do," said Scaringe. "But over the last year and a half, we arrived at the view that it's a feature that could tear up trails and do things in contrast to what we stand for as a company."

However, Rivian is moving on with "Tank Turn," and has filed a patent for a "Front Dig Mode," a new feature that delivers a tighter turning radius by applying forward torque to the front and outer back wheels. Its a milder and much less aggressive version of "Tank Turn," but Rivian has not officially confirmed if "Front Dig Mode" will make its way to production soon.

Sad news notwithstanding, the Rivian R1T dual-motor variant does do its part in getting excellent mileage out of each charge, yielding an EPA-approved 352 miles of driving range. That's more than what you get from extended-range models of other comparable EV pickups like the Ford F-150 Lightning and GMC Hummer EV.