- The Rivian R1T has a full-width storage area between the bed and the passenger compartment.
- EV Sportline, an aftermarket accessories company, made a slide-out drawer system specifically for the so-called Gear Tunnel.
The Rivian R1T has a unique cargo space in the form of the so-called Gear Tunnel. Located between the bed and passenger compartment, it’s a lockable, full-width cargo area that can be accessed from both sides of the vehicle and from inside, so it has a lot of versatility.
It’s where the ill-fated first-generation Camp Kitchen should have been fitted if it wasn’t canceled, but it doesn’t mean the Gear Tunnel remains relegated to the plain old job of a reinterpreted trunk.
Because of its uniqueness, there are third-party outfitters out there that came up with clever solutions to take advantage of the R1T’s layout. One such company is EV Sportline, an Atlanta-based company that specializes in aftermarket accessories for electric cars. One of its many products is called the RMaxx Gear Tunnel Dual Slide Out Trolley Sled and Storage Chests (try saying that five times in a row).
Irony aside, it consists of a slider system that bolts onto the car’s bodywork inside the Gear Tunnel. On top of that, customers can choose from several different box options that come in pairs. On one side, you can have a plain old storage box and on the other side, you can have a triple-drawer toolbox. There’s also a smaller cubby between the two sections that can be accessed from inside the car.
Famous smartphone durability tester Zack Nelson, better known as JerryRigEverything, has a Rivian R1T and fitted just one half of EV Sportline’s drawer system in his truck, as you can see in the video embedded below. The problem is that the system is designed to be bolted on both sides of the Gear Tunnel so that the boxes don’t tip over when fully extended.
Fortunately, he has access to a laser-cutting machine, so he quickly put together an adapter that can keep half of the drawer system in place. Not everybody can do that, though, so if you’re like Nelson and want to keep half of the Gear Tunnel free for other stuff, you might be out of luck.
That said, the whole system is pretty cool. As for the price, I’ll let you be the judge. According to the company’s website, only the base sled will set you back $900. Add a single open-top box and you’re looking at $1,050. Want the full shebang with two triple-drawer boxes and the middle cubby? That will be $1,690.