There’s nothing like lending a hand to your friend. It makes them appreciative and makes you feel great and needed as well. Although, if you’re a Rivian R1S and your helping friend is the new Tesla Cybertruck, the internet is bound to have a field day over it.
The Tesla Cybertruck has only been on the road for about a month now with the company having just had their launch event at the end of November, but the gigantic stainless steel triangle is already coming in handy. LinkedIn user Kitty Adams Hoksbergen took to the social networking platform to share an image of the Cybertruck charging a Rivian R1S.
It’s unclear exactly what happened, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the Rivian ran into one of the still way too many broken third-party chargers in its adventure and found itself in quite a pickle. Thankfully, it appears that a Cybertruck was close enough to lend the electric SUV a hand.
My neighbor shared this picture with me. He got an emergency charge on his Rivian #R1S by a Tesla #cybertruck on a road trip with his family. He is too pissed off at the moment to tell me the story, but I can bet he was stranded by an unreliable, third party #CCS.
Tesla just released the Cybertruck to the world at the end of last month at its delivery event — which included a lot of weird announcements. The Cybertruck itself, though, is quite a beast of a vehicle. A starting price of around $60,000 is impressive for a vehicle that can withstand a Tommy Gun (why you would need this, I do not know). It can go from 0-60 in under 3 seconds, reach 340 miles of range, and tow up to 11,000 pounds. It also has a ton of accessories like roof rails and a tent made for the bed, so it’s a pretty impressive camping vehicle.
Rivian is also planning its own launch in the near future. The company is currently in the process of building a new manufacturing facility in Georgia where it will make its upcoming R2 platform. That vehicle, which is set to be announced early next year and released in 2026, is expected to grab a starting price of around $40,000.
If the Rivian R2 comes in at $40,000 and is off-road capable, I’m sold. It doesn’t need to compete with a Jeep Wrangler or the Cybertruck, but if it’s enough to get me to my campsite, that’s all I need from it. That price would honestly be shocking, considering that a Subaru Outback Wilderness starts at around that price right now.
It’s not surprising to see something like this happen, and it’s certainly not the Rivian’s fault. Non-Tesla EVs have been running into reliability issues with CCS chargers for years now. It’s one of the reasons that tons of EV brands have already made the announcement that they’ll be switching their charging connectors from CCS to Tesla’s NACS (North American Charging Standard).
In the last few months, Mercedes, GM, Polestar, Volvo, Nissan, Fisker, and Jaguar all announced similar deals to adopt the connector. Even Rivian is planning to switch to NACS — a good move considering the image that now exists on the internet. All of those companies not only plan to support the NACS charger, but all will gain access to Tesla’s extensive Supercharger network as well.
