March 3, 2026, 5:48 p.m. ET
- Rivian is offering a $5,000 lease bonus on some new R1S and R1T electric vehicles.
- The offer comes as competitor Ford plans to shift its F-150 Lightning to a hybrid model.
- Rivian’s R1T sales declined in 2025, trailing competitors like the Ford F-150 Lightning and Tesla Cybertruck.
Buyers could save $5,000 on a lease of a new Rivian R1T electric pickup or R1S SUV as the Irving, Calif.-based plug-in car maker moves to take advantage of changes in the electric pickup market segment.
Rivian said in a post on its website that car buyers can get $5,000 applied toward the amount due at signing “on new 2026 R1S and R1T Dual vehicles with Large or Max battery and Performance Upgrade when you receive an approved lease offer by March 3 and take delivery by March 31.”
The deal comes as one of Rivian’s chief competitors in the electric pickup segment, Ford, has announced plans to transition its F-150 Lightning pickup from a fully electric car to a type of hybrid car known as an Extended Range Electric Vehicle (EREV).
It also comes as Rivian is trying to position itself to grow into a mainstream EV maker with the introduction of a new $45,000 plug-in SUV.
How many R1Ts does Rivian sell?
Rivian sold 7,416 R1T electric pickups in 2025, according to Cox Automotive. That number was down 33.1% from the 11,085 units of the vehicle Rivian sold in 2024. For comparison, Ford sold 27,307 of the F-150 Lightning electric pickups last year, and General Motors sold 11,275 of the Chevrolet Silverado.
Here’s how other popular models in the electric pickup segment sold last year:
- Tesla Cybertruck: 20,237
- GMC Hummer EV: 15,788
What is an EREV vehicle?
An EREV is a type of plug-in hybrid car that has a gasoline engine; these engines are used solely as a power source for a larger-than-normal battery that is intended to provide extended range. It is different than most hybrids where both the gasoline engine and battery are used to power the vehicle at various times during the car’s operation.
EREVs were developed to help address consumer concerns about the battery range of fully electric cars and the fact that most hybrid cars still use gasoline engines that cause air pollution. The concern about EV battery life has bubbled up so often that it has been dubbed “range anxiety.”
According to a poll released in January by EV-friendly advocacy group EVs for All America, 20% of 600 potential EV buyers in 2025 said their top concern about plug-in models is the unreliability of charger networks.
Why is Ford changing the F-150 Lightning from an EV to a hybrid?
Ford said in a December 2025 news release that it was shifting the F-150 Lighting from a fully electric power train to an EREV format because it would “offer the best of both worlds: the seamless, instant power of an electric powertrain and the freedom of a generator-backed estimated range of more than 700 miles.”
“Unlike a traditional hybrid, the F-150 Lightning EREV is propelled 100 percent by electric motors,” the Dearborn, Michigan-based company said. “This ensures owners get the pure EV driving experience they love — including rapid acceleration and quiet operation — while eliminating the need to stop and charge during long-distance towing.”
Rivian said in a 2024 news release announcing its second-generation R1 vehicles that the R1T would be offered in “Tri-Motor and Quad-Motor configurations.” The company said “the 1,025 horsepower Quad-Motor R1T delivers 0-60 mph in less than 2.5 seconds and a staggering 1,198lb ft of torque when using Launch Mode.”
Will Ford costumers consider Rivian’s electric pickup?
Stephanie Valdez Streaty, director of industry insights at Cox Automotive, said in a statement provided to USA TODAY that Ford’s move to make the F-150 Lightning an EREV likely won’t open the door for more electric pickup sales from Rivian.
“EV trucks represented just 6.8% of total EV sales in 2025 and the segment contracted 12.9% that same year,” she said. “This is a category struggling to scale. Ford’s decision reflects that reality.”Valdez Streaty added “the buyer overlap isn’t there either” between Rivian and Ford. “The Lightning sold in traditional truck states – Michigan, Texas, Florida,” she said. “The R1T sells in outdoor adventure and coastal markets – Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Hawaii. These are fundamentally different buyers with different motivations.”Valdez Streaty said “Ford going EREV is an acknowledgment that converting the traditional truck buyer to full BEV is a difficult task.” “Traditional truck buyers are not Rivian’s customer,” she said. “Rivian’s buyer was already committed to electric.”
