Optima and Weistec built ultimate overlanding Rivian R1T and R1S

29 October 2022

It’s this time of the year again - SEMA starts this coming Tuesday and we are going to be treated to some of the wildest creations the automotive world has seen so far. Electric cars are not shying away from the limelight - quite the opposite, they are taking the center stage.

Optima Batteries enlisted help of Weistec Engineering and its EV focused subsidiary, the Direct Current Engineering (DCE) and together they came up with a pair of arguably the best overlanding electric vehicles - at least for now. They have chosen Rivian R1T and Rivian R1S and went to town with both of them.

There are very little technical details about the cars but the teaser images are enough to realize these aren’t show ponies - these are serious offroading tools capable of crossing deserts without an issue. What about range? Well, Optima, being a battery company and all, thought about that one as well.

Let’s start with the smallest member of the team but the most important one - Optima Power Station. Yes, Optima thought about electric car range, especially an electric car loaded up with a lot of equipment and driving in harsh environments - there is no chance of getting anywhere near the EPA range and there are no DC charging stations in the Sahara.

Hence Otima came up with its own Power Station - a Level 2 charger on wheels. According to the company, it gives the electric overlanders “unprecedented range capabilities”, it has 12V, 110V and 220V outlets to power pretty much anything an adventurer could think of. The Power Station has an air compressor, electric cooker, a stereo and camping lights. The most important though are the unfolding solar panels that recharge the trailer’s batteries during the day.

With enough range to cross continents, thanks to its own Power Station, Rivian R1T can now get on with the business of dealing with pretty much any obstacle. Sitting clearly at least 10 inches higher than the standard vehicle, R1T rides on off-road wheels and BFGoodrich tires. The front and rear bumpers are heavy duty items, the rear one holds the spare wheel on a swing arm and there’s room for spare water.

The side protections are most likely carried to the underbody of the car and feature flood-lights, we can just see a glimpse of a big winch up the front. The roof rack carries a folding tent from ROAM Adventure. Traction boards are strapped to the sides and the look is completed by a front LED light bar and hood mounted search light.

The Rivian R1S has the same equipment - the heavy duty bumpers and side protection, the wheel and tire combo, the winch and the lights. Thanks to its much larger roof rack it gets a much bigger tent from Australian outback specialists - Camp King Industries.

What a combo - probably the best electric off-road vehicles, professionally converted to overland machines and coupled with their own power supply. In this mad world where people snap up $100,000+ electric trucks in a matter of hours without even seeing them, Optima and DCE stumbled across a gold mine. Although those two Rivians are only intended for SEMA as show cars, rest assured those parts will be available to the public soon.

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