How Rivian Got RAD

Rivian just green lit its own internal performance division, dubbed the Rivian Adventure Department or RAD for short, to move from skunkworks to something larger than one-off passion projects and software development. The usage of the word "yes" landed Rivian here, but now that we have RAD there's a laundry list of questions. This week, Kyle and Joel break down the history of events that formed RAD as a skunkworks operation to where we are today, what it means, what's to come, and what's realistic. The startup automaker is burning through cash as it inches towards launching the smaller, less expensive, more mainstream R2 electric SUV in the coming months. Will it arrive on time and as promised? And what's Rivian doing to tackle its low its reliability score from Consumer Reports and long service wait times? Joel spent time with various executives ranging from founder and CEO RJ Scaringe to VP of Engineering and Quality, Brian Gase, along with R1 Chief Engineer Luke Lynch to get answers to burning questions and decipher the past, present, and future. Stories mentioned in today's episode: BMW Has M, Mercedes Has AMG, and Now Rivian Has RAD Rivian’s RAD Tuner Is Like An Equalizer For Your EV’s Powertrain 2026 Rivian R2 Arrives With 300-Plus Mile Range, Eyes-Off Driving, 0-60 Under 3 Seconds 2026 Rivian R1T Quad First Drive Review: When Too Much Is Just Enough Rivian’s Slick RAD Tuner Could Come To Other Performance Models We’re at Pikes Peak Following the First-Ever Rivian R1T Race Attempt Rivian Adds Soft Sand Mode with Low Regen and High Power Settings Rivian’s Kick Turn Takes the 360-Degree Tank Turn to a Whole New Level: Actually Useful 2025 Rivian R1S First Drive Review: Cutting-Edge Again 00:00 Intro 7:10 How RAD went from skunkworks to official division 11:13 RAD Tuner 25:43 Liveries, paint colors, and limited edition drops 30:11 The R2 36:56 Will Rivian give us buttons and knobs? 41:05 Rivian's service times, quality, and customer satisfaction 50:10 One more thing! 51:22 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices