Despite being exclusively available in North America, the Rivian R1T electric pickup truck has surprisingly made several appearances in Europe in recent months. This has naturally sparked speculation about the US EV startup’s intentions to expand to the European market. However, Rivian has not yet made any official announcements regarding its plans in this direction. Interestingly, the number of R1T sightings in Europe has been on the rise, adding fuel to the rumors.
Over a year ago, the Rivian R1T was spotted at an airport in Belgium, followed by a sighting in Spain in November 2022, and most recently at Mercedes-AMG’s headquarters in Affalterbach, Germany. Now, the vehicle has surfaced again, this time in Stuttgart, Germany, as shared by a user on the r/Rivian subreddit.
The R1T that was spotted in Stuttgart featured Austrian license plates from the city of Graz. Additionally, it had stickers on the tailgate indicating that it was a US test vehicle, complete with red indicator lights. It is worth noting that cars registered in Europe are required to have amber turn lights, which suggests that this R1T is not yet compliant with European regulations.
The uploader of the sighting, Reddit user u/Max3000Max, did not have specific details about this particular Rivian R1T prototype vehicle but did provide some insightful background information. According to the user, the Stuttgart area is known for housing numerous car manufacturers, automotive suppliers, and engineering companies. Therefore, it is not uncommon to spot car mules and prototypes in the region that are not intended for sale in Germany or the European Union.
[deleted by user]
by inRivian
Moreover, the Graz license plate strongly implies a connection to Magna Steyr, a company that offers automotive engineering services and manufactures vehicles for third parties, including the likes of Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, and Fisker. This suggests that Rivian may be seeking assistance from Magna Steyr for the R1T. The nature of this collaboration remains uncertain. Possibilities include engineering support to adapt the model to meet European market requirements or other forms of engineering and production input.
One conceivable scenario is that Rivian is exploring ways to reduce production costs, and Magna Steyr’s expertise could be instrumental in achieving this goal. Alternatively, Rivian may be contemplating the production of the R1T at Magna Steyr’s factory for eventual sale in Europe.
