R2 Launch Watch

[J Alynn]

Here are two close ups that in theory one can argue they are all the same? So again-if both those show matching then in theory the area in question also matches and light/shadow are skewing. It’s a great photo for debating. Very odd

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I can’t tell the difference between the greys except when they’re on top of each other like that. To me that means Rivian really wasted a ton of money on creating two minimally different—basically identical—colors. If only they had spent that money on another color.

 

[J Alynn]

I can’t tell the difference between the greys except when they’re on top of each other like that. To me that means Rivian really wasted a ton of money on creating two minimally different—basically identical—colors. If only they had spent that money on another color.

Which reinforces what we’ve all been saying here so hope Scout is listening. I know you want desert -doesn’t show dust-tan and that is cool but agree nobody needs two shades of gray to choose from

 

[R1TVT]

Here are two close ups that in theory one can argue they are all the same? So again-if both those show matching then in theory the area in question also matches and light/shadow are skewing. It’s a great photo for debating. Very odd

Honestly - you can't tell anything from pics online with shadows and other lighting issues.

 

[maynard]

I can’t tell the difference between the greys except when they’re on top of each other like that. To me that means Rivian really wasted a ton of money on creating two minimally different—basically identical—colors. If only they had spent that money on another color.

I think I know what color you are writing about…

Is it pale?

Does it look similar to a dairy product?

Hmmm…

 

[RodorW]

Pretty sure I saw an R2 the other day, it was following and R1S but a car had gotten between them, so I didn’t even realize until after it passed and I was left befuddled for a minute because of how small it was compared against my car and the other Rivian I had just passed

 

[speedrye]

I'd love to know more about why painted plastic bumpers look so different than their painted metal counterparts. You see it on new cars all the time. Is it just related to the more flexible additives needed for the plastic bumpers? I think bumpers are sprayed at a different time than the body, so is it just the different paint lots?

 

[cyure]

I'd love to know more about why painted plastic bumpers look so different than their painted metal counterparts. You see it on new cars all the time. Is it just related to the more flexible additives needed for the plastic bumpers? I think bumpers are sprayed at a different time than the body, so is it just the different paint lots?

Whatever it is I don’t like it one bit.

 

[Scout_Lookout]

I'd love to know more about why painted plastic bumpers look so different than their painted metal counterparts. You see it on new cars all the time. Is it just related to the more flexible additives needed for the plastic bumpers? I think bumpers are sprayed at a different time than the body, so is it just the different paint lots?

Plastic has more "flex" to it and because of this it will bend light much easier whereas a metal surface is rigid and bends light much less comparatively.

 

[R1TVT]

While on the topic of bumpers, I really hope Scout can provide an adequate (yet still efficient) front and rear bumper.

There is the physical and tactical part - which is important to provide good access the truck bed for example (think flat area to stand on or step), there is the protection component (reducing damage from bumps or in minor accidents,) There is also the integration part - how the hitch ties into bumper + wiring/connector port, or how a winch might integrate, or how a bull bar or light bar might be added as a module. Lastly there is the aerodynamics piece of the equation.

The R1T bumper is terrible & not modular. It does not extend far enough from the tailgate. You can't stand on it, etc.

 

[cyure]

Plastic has more "flex" to it and because of this it will bend light much easier whereas a metal surface is rigid and bends light much less comparatively.

I’m really hoping we can get steel bumpers without having to buy some giant offroad package and a winch. I have steel bumpers on the Wrangler and I love them. You can stand on them, if a shopping cart hits them it’s no big deal. Loading things in and out you can safely rest them on the bumper no problem. I for sure want steel bumpers.

My rear bumper had what I call a sandpaper sticker in the middle so you could stand on it and didn’t slip. It was a dumb idea. It kept peeling off. I asked every mechanic and detailer if they had an idea to replace that dumb thing. Finally a detail shop that also did Rhino Liner said just coat it with Rhino Liner. That was a great idea. It looks great, you don’t slip and it matches the texture of my rock sliders.

 

[Scout_Lookout]

I’m really hoping we can get steel bumpers without having to buy some giant offroad package and a winch. I have steel bumpers on the Wrangler and I love them. You can stand on them, if a shopping cart hits them it’s no big deal. Loading things in and out you can safely rest them on the bumper no problem. I for sure want steel bumpers.

My rear bumper had what I call a sandpaper sticker in the middle so you could stand on it and didn’t slip. It was a dumb idea. It kept peeling off. I asked every mechanic and detailer if they had an idea to replace that dumb thing. Finally a detail shop that also did Rhino Liner said just coat it with Rhino Liner. That was a great idea. It looks great, you don’t slip and it matches the texture of my rock sliders.

I think what SM has shown on the Traveler with the "off road" bumpers with removal ends and the front bumper winch integration looks fantastic, and should be just as useful for both the trails, and against shopping carts.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I'd love to know more about why painted plastic bumpers look so different than their painted metal counterparts. You see it on new cars all the time. Is it just related to the more flexible additives needed for the plastic bumpers? I think bumpers are sprayed at a different time than the body, so is it just the different paint lots?

Some of the things that have made plastics so useful are also what makes it very difficult to paint them: they are basically chemically inert, nonporous, have low surface energies, are hydrophobic, and are not generally wettable. These are all great properties for containers (for example). But those same properties lead to poor adherence properties—things don’t like to stick to them.

The paints that were formulated for metals were designed specifically with adherence properties of metal in mind—metal paints have almost exactly the opposite kind of material property required to properly paint plastics.

So the vehicle manufacturers have to formulate different paints to paint the metal vs plastic. That almost guarantees a difference in appearance.

And surface preparation is essential as well—this needs to be done in concert with the formulation of the paint. It’s also a new science for plastics.

The science is catching up, but it’s still a relatively new area study (only seriously about 30 years old).

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

While on the topic of bumpers, I really hope Scout can provide an adequate (yet still efficient) front and rear bumper.

There is the physical and tactical part - which is important to provide good access the truck bed for example (think flat area to stand on or step), there is the protection component (reducing damage from bumps or in minor accidents,) There is also the integration part - how the hitch ties into bumper + wiring/connector port, or how a winch might integrate, or how a bull bar or light bar might be added as a module. Lastly there is the aerodynamics piece of the equation.

The R1T bumper is terrible & not modular. It does not extend far enough from the tailgate. You can't stand on it, etc.

The rear bumper on the concept models is too skinny and has a sloped surface; it cannot be stood on, especially with wet, muddy boots…I really hope they design something better. If they use what’s 3D printed/injection molded for the concepts, it’ll be something we remove and replace with something else. I’d rather weld up my own ugly-AF bumper than use the one on the concepts—I just know I’ll forget and try to step on it with a load on my shoulder and slip, skin my shins, drop my load, and damage the truck.

 

[speedrye]

The rear bumper on the concept models is too skinny and has a sloped surface; it cannot be stood on, especially with wet, muddy boots…I really hope they design something better. If they use what’s 3D printed/injection molded for the concepts, it’ll be something we remove and replace with something else. I’d rather weld up my own ugly-AF bumper than use the one on the concepts—I just know I’ll forget and try to step on it with a load on my shoulder and slip, skin my shins, drop my load, and damage the truck.

Oh wow, being a Traveler reservation, I'd never paid attention to the Terra rear bumper. It's like the designer has never used a truck before for trucky things. Meanwhile, the Traveler is shown with a nice horizontal ledge. Still in need of some anti-slip, but functional otherwise.

 

[cyure]

Oh wow, being a Traveler reservation, I'd never paid attention to the Terra rear bumper. It's like the designer has never used a truck before for trucky things. Meanwhile, the Traveler is shown with a nice horizontal ledge. Still in need of some anti-slip, but functional otherwise.

As long as it’s not a stupid sand paper sticker like my Wrangler bumper had. That was a terrible design.

 

[Gottesacker]

The rear bumper on the concept models is too skinny and has a sloped surface; it cannot be stood on, especially with wet, muddy boots…I really hope they design something better. If they use what’s 3D printed/injection molded for the concepts, it’ll be something we remove and replace with something else. I’d rather weld up my own ugly-AF bumper than use the one on the concepts—I just know I’ll forget and try to step on it with a load on my shoulder and slip, skin my shins, drop my load, and damage the truck.

Like speedrye, I feel kind of silly that I'd never noticed that before! All the useful things I noticed that I liked about using the truck as an actual truck and completely missed that detail.

 

[speedrye]

As long as it’s not a stupid sand paper sticker like my Wrangler bumper had. That was a terrible design.

I don't know that I've seen many elegant solutions. Glued on rubber pads, grippy stickers, bedliner spray, etc. An actual steel bumper with raised, integral slats/ribs/nubs whatever for traction would be my preference.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

Like speedrye, I feel kind of silly that I'd never noticed that before! All the useful things I noticed that I liked about using the truck as an actual truck and completely missed that detail.

Oh wow, being a Traveler reservation, I'd never paid attention to the Terra rear bumper. It's like the designer has never used a truck before for trucky things. Meanwhile, the Traveler is shown with a nice horizontal ledge. Still in need of some anti-slip, but functional otherwise.

It’s not easy to see, but I was looking for details about the bumper specifically.

The Traveler had its tailgate open, but I could see that I wouldn’t be happy with its bumper either.

 

[Scout_Lookout]

Some of the things that have made plastics so useful are also what makes it very difficult to paint them: they are basically chemically inert, nonporous, have low surface energies, are hydrophobic, and are not generally wettable. These are all great properties for containers (for example). But those same properties lead to poor adherence properties—things don’t like to stick to them.

The paints that were formulated for metals were designed specifically with adherence properties of metal in mind—metal paints have almost exactly the opposite kind of material property required to properly paint plastics.

So the vehicle manufacturers have to formulate different paints to paint the metal vs plastic. That almost guarantees a difference in appearance.

And surface preparation is essential as well—this needs to be done in concert with the formulation of the paint. It’s also a new science for plastics.

The science is catching up, but it’s still a relatively new area study (only seriously about 30 years old).

You are correct about the preparation being essential. In fact, when I was being taught the painter use to always tell me that spraying is the "easy part" and that the preparation is 95% of the job.

However, the paint is the same for both metals and plastics. To make the paint work on plastics you have to add a flex additive to the mixture and this will allow the paint to be much less brittle to accommodate the flexing that comes with heating and cooling of the plastic areas.

The rear bumper on the concept models is too skinny and has a sloped surface; it cannot be stood on, especially with wet, muddy boots…I really hope they design something better. If they use what’s 3D printed/injection molded for the concepts, it’ll be something we remove and replace with something else. I’d rather weld up my own ugly-AF bumper than use the one on the concepts—I just know I’ll forget and try to step on it with a load on my shoulder and slip, skin my shins, drop my load, and damage the truck.

While on the topic of bumpers, I really hope Scout can provide an adequate (yet still efficient) front and rear bumper.

There is the physical and tactical part - which is important to provide good access the truck bed for example (think flat area to stand on or step), there is the protection component (reducing damage from bumps or in minor accidents,) There is also the integration part - how the hitch ties into bumper + wiring/connector port, or how a winch might integrate, or how a bull bar or light bar might be added as a module. Lastly there is the aerodynamics piece of the equation.

The R1T bumper is terrible & not modular. It does not extend far enough from the tailgate. You can't stand on it, etc.

Didn't Scout already address the bed access concern with the massive side step at the front of the bed? Also most of the time if I'm climbing up into the bed of my truck I drop the tailgate first. If not stand on the tire, but with R1T owners (via the gear tunnel door) and with the Scout concept design there seems to be a perfectly useful solution to bed access.