While we’re all familiar with Jeep Safari tours, the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust out of East Africa is harnessing the power of the Rivian R1T electric truck to offer something similar. Only this Rivian Safari vehicle is a silent ride with zero emissions.
The Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust (MWCT) announced a pilot program with Rivian in October of last year to use its electric sport utility vehicles to help protect our planet and the cultures that inhabit it.
Now, we’re seeing one of the Trust’s Rivian R1T electric trucks transform into an open-air convertible Safari vehicle with eight seats. Plus, this is the first right-hand drive Rivian in the world.
The images first emerged on the official Rivian Forums but have since been shared by the Maasi Wilderness Conservation Trust. As you can see from the photos, this isn’t your average Safari vehicle or your average Rivian R1T.
Instead, the vehicle is a right-hand driver with no windshield, a rollbar cage, and a custom interior that’ll seat eight passengers for tours and other means of transportation. You’ll also notice side curtains that can lower during rain or dust storms and a dual spare tire carrier on the rear. It’s a wild-looking vehicle, that’s for sure.
Rivian vehicles are also used in Kenya for “quiet anti-poaching patrols, zero tailpipe-emissions transport for Maasai firefighters, and critical on-and off-road rangers’ operations, to health and education programs.”
Interestingly, the R1T still has functional rear doors, but we doubt the Gear Tunnel works with the additional seating that took over the truck’s bed. In the end, it makes for the perfect emissions-free safari wagon. More importantly, it sounds like the Trust uses solar power for charging, making it an even cleaner vehicle for the region.
via CarScoops
