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Volkswagen and American electric carmaker Rivian’s joint venture is now official.
The German company has tipped in US$5.8b ($8.95b) into the fledgling US electric pick-up and SUV brand.
Volkswagen’s boss Oliver Blume said the new joint venture would initially focus on developing software but it may shift to developing EV hardware such as batteries in the future.
Blume said the company plans to use Rivian’s tech across a wide rang of price points, international markets and brands, according to CNBC.
This could be good news for Aussie buyers with an eye on Rivian’s impressive R1T electric ute, or even a future electric Amarok. It also stands to make VW's incoming crop of electric vehicles better.
Rivian has been struggling to beef up its production output and Volkswagen has been weighed down developing their own software and electric car hardware, so they can both help each other out.
VW’s EVs have not been considered the cream of the crop by international media and sales have failed to hit targets.
Rivians have been well received but they can’t build enough of them.
VW is the world's second largest carmaker after Toyota and brings with it almost a century of manufacturing excellence.
The company’s reach and market penetration could also be a good thing for Australians wanting a fit-for-purpose electric ute.
If the companies can leverage the might of VW’s manufacturing prowess we could see Rivians — or VW’s new Scout-branded electric workhorses and a mooted electric Amarok — Down Under.
Rivian has previously expressed interest in launching in Australia but its production levels are nowhere near big enough to think about expanding globally.
The R1T comes with an eye-popping line with the choice of two or four electric motors.
Entry-level Dual-Motor AWD versions makes 397kW/827Nm and can sprint from 0-60mph (96km/h) in just 4.5 seconds.
The Performance Dual-Motor AWD ups it to 495kW/1123Nm and a sprint time of 3.5 seconds, while the Quad-Motor makes a head-spinning 622kW/1231Nm and takes just 3.0 seconds to run 0-60mph.
Battery range goes from 435km to up to 640km depending on variant and specification.
It’s not just the R1T that could be a go for Australia.
Rivian has said it would sell its new R2 medium electric SUV in the UK, another right-hand-drive market.
The R2 was revealed earlier this year and is expected to be priced from US$45,000 (A$69,500).
It’ll have a driving range of more than 550km between charges and be able to sprint to 100km/h from a standstill in 3.2 seconds.
It isn’t expected to go on sale until 2027, but the influx of VW cash could bring plans forward and put future markets such as Australia on Rivian’s radar.
A timeline of the end of the decade could work out well for the electric ute as Australians have yet to warm to the idea of a full electric ute and the technology isn’t there yet to appease the wide range of activities the vehicles are asked to perform.
This will change as the Federal Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard kicks in next year with increasingly tough CO2 emissions targets to hit, which will mean carmakers will be forced to sell low-emitting vehicles or face stiff penalties.
