A new model of electric truck expected to be manufactured in Georgia could become a big hit, if a magazine review is any indication.
MotorTrend, an automotive publication aimed at consumers, raved about the Rivian R1T in its newest issue, naming the model its 2022 MotorTrend Truck of the Year.
Rivian and Gov. Brian Kemp are expected to announce Thursday that the California-based electric vehicle maker will build a plant east of Atlanta, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week.
The R1T “is the most remarkable truck MotorTrend has ever driven,” the magazine said. It described it as a truck that drives like a luxury car, in part because of Rivian’s new technology of providing individual motors for each wheel.
The Rivian R1T is the first mass-produced electric truck to be sold in the U.S., MotorTrend said. The price starts at $74,075.
Rivian has delivered only a few hundred trucks to customers so far, primarily to employees, according to trade publication InsideEVs. Consumer deliveries are expected to begin in March, according to CNET. The company’s only current plant is located in Illinois.
EVs remain a tiny part of the U.S. automotive market, representing about 1.5% of all vehicles nationwide, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. That’s partly due to consumer worries about the small number of public charging stations.
But stock market investors and industry analysts say the EV sector is primed for huge growth. Governments and corporations have set lofty goals to reduce greenhouse gases, in part by boosting EVs.
Cox Enterprises, owner of the AJC, owns a 4.7% stake in Rivian and supplies services to Rivian. Sandy Schwartz, a Cox executive who oversees the AJC, is on Rivian’s board of directors and holds stock personally. He does not take part in the AJC’s coverage of Rivian.
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