Category: Reviews

Mitsubishi is developing a new Pajero Sport, the current generation of which is sold as the Montero Sport in some markets Sales of the midsize SUV are expected to start in 2026, though a U.S. launch is unlikely Mitsubishi may also be planning a new version of the larger Pajero/Montero, thanks to a new partnership with Honda and Nissan Mitsubishi…

A rare Mercedes-Benz owned by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum is headed for auction and expected to fetch more than $50 million The car is a W196 raced by Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss The auction will take place on Feb. 1 at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany A 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 raced by the legendary Juan Manuel…

Manthey-Racing has a new upgrade package for the 991-generation 911 GT2 RS The upgrades focus on the aerodynamics and chassis, rather than the powertrain Manthey has also launched a similar upgrade package for the 992-generation 911 GT3 RS The 991-generation Porsche 911 GT2 RS, offered from 2018-2020, is already among the fastest production cars…

• The Rivian R1T and the hybrid Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro are both seriously capable off-roaders.
• The R1T gets adaptive dampers, dual e-motors churning over 800 pound-feet of torque and a clever traction system.
• The hybrid Tacoma is raw and mechanical, with proven off-road chops to take on the toughest terrain.

An electric vehicle may not strike as an obvious choice for your off-road escapades, but automakers are advertising their EVs as off-road capable anyway. Rivian is doing that more than others, with its adventurous positioning as the key differentiator between itself and its rivals like Tesla and Lucid. Rivian says the R1T can crawl on rocks, drive over snow, keep moving through sand and get you to your destination. But when it’s up against a proven hybrid off-roader in the real world, how does it fare?

Edmunds correspondent Emme Hall, who’s also an InsideEVs contributor, recently put the second-generation R1T head-to-head against the hybrid Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro to find out which truck would go further in an adventure setting. Her team drove both trucks to Johnson Valley in Southern California to test them out.

The R1T was the dual-motor version with the 149 kilowatt-hour Max battery pack. While it seems capable on paper with 533 horsepower and over 800 pound-feet of torque, off-roading requires more than that. Crazy torque figures won’t cut it. Its off-road chops include adaptive air suspension, a trick hydraulic suspension, high approach and departure angles, off-road tires, brake torque vectoring and a bunch of drive modes that adjust traction and suspension settings.

The Tacoma, on the other hand, is more mechanical. Its 2.4-liter, four-cylinder, turbo-charged engine produces 326 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque. Unlike the unibody R1T, the Tacoma relies on a body-on-frame construction, which is generally better suited when the going gets rough, thanks to its inherent rigidity. The Tacoma also has a locking rear differential, solid rear axle, disconnecting sway bar at the front, 4×4 transfer case and off-road-tuned Fox shocks.

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In the hill climb test, the R1T struggled to get past the steepest section despite having so much oomph from the electric motors. Rivian offers brake torque vectoring to power the wheels that have the most traction—and brake the ones slipping—but that wasn’t enough to get past this section. Brake torque vectoring only stops the wheels spinning excessively. It does not redistribute that lost torque to wheels with traction.

The Tacoma, meanwhile, aced the hill climb thanks to its rear locker, which allowed both rear wheels to spin together and put down power more effectively. The Tacoma also nailed the rock climbing and articulation tests thanks to its disconnecting sway bar, which allowed the front axle to dance up and down and adapt to the pattern of the terrain.

The Rivian, however, seemed more at home on the sand. That’s where the excess power and torque really helped it shine without the traction control being too intrusive. The sand section also seemed bumpy, which a unibody construction typically handles better as it can absorb, distribute and dissipate those harsh impacts much better, especially while going fast.

That last bit also makes the R1T better on the road, at least in comfort and smoothness. That’s not to say that it’s not capable off-road, but the Tacoma’s mechanical set-up seems just better suited for the slow-speed hill climbs and rock crawls.

The upcoming Scout Terra would probably make for a more apple-to-apples comparison. Scout has said that its EVs will get a solid rear axle like the Tacoma plus locking front and rear diffs, which should help them stand out as true off-roaders, at least on paper.

The video above is worth watching because it will help you understand the current limitations of the dual-motor R1T and what Rivian can do to improve its future iterations.

Have a tip? Contact the author: suvrat.kothari@insideevs.com

Alpina has unveiled the B8 GT Hommage Burkard Bovensiepen The tuned BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe packs 625 hp and will hit 62 mph in only 3.3 seconds Alpina plans to build just 99 examples German performance marque Alpina agreed in 2022 to have its brand acquired by BMW in a deal that will see BMW take over production of Alpina vehicles at the end of…

Electric pickup trucks may not have the massive towing capacity of heavy duty diesel trucks, but for virtually every other purpose they are superior to gas- or diesel-powered trucks: they’re cleaner, quieter, quicker, more fun to drive, more tech-forward, and in many cases more capable. On the downside, they’re usually more expensive and towing…

Elaphe has a new in-wheel electric motor that can be used for hybrids or EVs Elaphe previewed the motor at 2025 CES in the Italdesign Quintessenza concept car The motor delivers a continuous 268 hp and peak 342 hp Legendary Italian design house Italdesign, now owned by the Volkswagen Group, showcased an updated version of its Quintessenza concept…

Acura’s second EV will be the RSX crossover It enters production in late 2025 at the Honda EV Hub plant in Ohio It will share a platform with Honda’s 0 Series EVs, which will also be built in Ohio Acura will revive its RSX nameplate later this year for an electric crossover, the automaker has confirmed. The original RSX, badged as a Honda Integra…

The Honda CR-V will be updated for the 2026 model year Among the updates will be a rugged CR-V TrailSport model The smaller Honda HR-V will also be updated for the 2026 model year An updated Honda CR-V debuts later this year as a 2026 model, and Honda has confirmed it will gain a rugged TrailSport model. Honda made the announcement on Jan. 15…

Rolls-Royce is celebrating the year of the dragon on the Chinese zodiac calendar The automaker has revealed special-edition Phantoms with dragon motifs throughout The cars are the first special editions in the Phantom nameplate’s centennial year This year is the Year of the Dragon on the Chinese zodiac calendar, and Rolls-Royce is celebrating with…