No Invitation Needed! Here's How To Access Rivian's Secret Shop

That was a perk given only to those with pre-orders or post-price-hike reservations. But now, everyone can access it. That suggests Rivian is keen on offloading units awaiting a buyer so that it can move forward with the cheaper-to-make dual-motor R1T and R1S EVs.

The main advantage of the Rivian vehicles with two motors is that they need fewer chips, and two partners supply them. The young Irvine-based brand learned from last year's mistakes. It won't go through a parts issue in this respect anytime soon.

The automaker first tested the so-called "Enduro" drive units with Amazon's all-electric vans known as EDVs. The feedback was great, and the math checked out, which prompted the brand to put them on the R1T and R1S as well.

That move also allowed Rivian to implement a sneaky strategy that increases profit margins. Customers who want to unlock the full output of the two motors must pay $5,000 extra. Doing so raises the horsepower figure from 533 to 665.

When writing, ordering a custom R1T translates into a waiting period of about four months to take delivery. That's not something you want to hear If you need wheels now.

When it comes to the R1S, things are a tad bit trickier. Rivian said it accelerated manufacturing its three-row SUV because more buyers have shown interest in the model. But things haven't improved too much. Currently, one tailored to your taste will arrive in your driveway in 2024 at the earliest.

But if you can "settle for" the very capable pickup truck, Rivian has opened its secret shop to everyone. Reserving an inventory R1T guarantees prospective buyers that they'll take delivery in as little as one week or a month tops. On top of that, it has never been easier to buy a Rivian directly from the company.

All interested parties have to do is head onto Rivian's dedicated webpage for inventory R1Ts, type in their ZIP code, and look around.

We checked the electric pickup truck's availability for people living in Santa Cruz, California, and found six:

• LA Silver R1Ts with prices ranging between $87,000 and $91,500;
• Glacier White R1Ts with prices ranging between $88,750 and $92,600;
• Red Canyon R1Ts with prices ranging between $89,500 and $95,000;
• Midnight R1Ts with prices ranging between $92,000 and $94,350;
• Rivian Blue R1Ts with prices ranging between $93,350 and $96,500;
• Limestone R1Ts with prices ranging between $91,250 and $95,250;
• Forest Green R1Ts with prices ranging between $90,750 and $95,600;
• El Cap Granite R1Ts with prices ranging between $89,500 and $94,350;
• Compass Yellow R1Ts with prices ranging between $89,500 and $95,000.

Compass Yellow was discontinued, so snatching a vehicle finished in this color could guarantee a better secondary market value in the long run.

All the above-mentioned models were quad-motor units paired with the large 135-kWh battery pack. Different wheel options, interior look, and specific add-ons set the price difference.

We also checked what's available for Americans living in Harris County, Texas, and the results were eerily similar. The no-secret-anymore shop displayed six options for each color, and all were quad-motor R1Ts with the large battery pack. It looks like Rivian is ready to move units around, depending on where the buyers live. It doesn't have certain sets of vehicles awaiting a customer at various service centers nationwide.

That is a bit weird because, on Wednesday, users with access to the secret shop discovered that the cheaper dual-motor-equipped EVs started being marked as available. Could it be that Rivian decided to offload its quad-motor plus large battery pack units first? We'll let you be the judge of that.

Keep in mind that none of these inventory units we told you about qualify for the EV tax credit. Rivian buyers who are eligible for the federal perk can take advantage of the $3,750 (half of the total) only when ordering a brand-new:

• Dual-motor R1T + the standard battery pack (not yet in production);
• Dual-motor R1T + the large battery pack;
• Dual-motor R1S + the standard battery pack (not yet in production).

Rivian doesn't allow prospective buyers to explore inventory R1S units when writing. The platform includes only R1Ts for now.