A recently granted Rivian patent focused on rear lighting has revealed a previously unseen feature of the upcoming R3: a tailgate that opens downward.
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted the patent to the EV maker on March 31, according to the official filing.
The patent, submitted in the final weeks of 2024, claims a rear lighting system designed to keep tail, brake, turn and fog lights road-legal when the lift gate is open.
The figures illustrated in the patent show different application methods, including a pick-up truck, two SUVs, and a hatchback.
The first two images show Rivian‘s R1T pick-up and R1S SUV, with the third one likely to be the R2 SUV — for which production is imminent.
While the claims focus on lighting, the patent‘s illustrations depict the R3 with a rear closure that lowers vertically rather than swinging up like a conventional liftgate or folding flat as on a pickup.
The lighting hardware described in the document is shown mounted along the upper edge of that lowering panel, allowing the lights to remain aimed rearward as the gate descends.
Rivian has not publicly shown the R3 with such a mechanism.
Since the model‘s reveal in March 2024, every official image and walkaround has depicted a conventional liftgate paired with what the company calls “flipper glass” — a separately opening rear window.
None of Rivian‘s current vehicles use a drop-down configuration either. The R1S features a split clamshell, while the R1T uses a conventional powered tailgate.
Lighting System
Rivian currently sells a $200 Auxiliary Brake Light accessory to keep R1T owners road-legal when hauling oversized loads with the tailgate down.
The patent describes a built-in alternative, with the lighting system addressing the known complaint among Rivian owners.
A secondary set of lights is built into the gate, paired with a sensor that detects its position.
When the gate is closed, the primary exterior lights operate normally; when it is open, those lights deactivate and the secondary set takes over, projecting parallel to the ground rather than skyward.
Tailgate Patents
The new filing is not the first time Rivian has patented an unconventional tailgate design.
In December 2021, the company published a patent for a “swing and drop tailgate” tied to the R1T.
That filing described a multi-hinge linkage, allowing the tailgate to operate along two trajectories — the traditional horizontal swing, or a vertical drop straight down behind the vehicle.
In the 2021 document, Rivian argued that conventional tailgates force users to reach across the full width of the panel, while side-hinged designs require excessive clearance.
A vertical drop, the company said, would let users stand directly against the vehicle without sacrificing horizontal loading space.
The mechanism was designed to operate either manually or under power. The swing-and-drop tailgate never reached production on the R1T, which launched in 2021 with a conventional powered unit.
The 2026 lighting patent suggests the underlying concept remains active inside Rivian‘s engineering pipeline and may have migrated to the R3.
R3 and R3X
The Rivian R3, alongside the performance-focused R3X, was unveiled in March 2024 as a surprise during the launch of the larger R2.
The EV maker has positioned it as its smallest and most affordable model, with rally-influenced styling inspired by 1980s Group B icons such as the Lancia Delta Integrale and the Audi Quattro.
Last November, Rivian‘s founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said that the pricing point on the upcoming mid-size crossover R3 will be “notably lower” than the R2 sport-utility vehicle.
“The R3 is more of a crossover, and we haven’t announced the pricing on it, but the pricing on R3 will be even lower than, quite a bit lower, I should say notably lower than R2,” Scaringe stated.
The R2 was launched last month with a starting price of $57,990 for a Dual-Motor, Performance variant.
The more affordable, entry-level $45,000 trim is expected to launch next year.
In mid-2024, the CEO revealed that the R3 would be priced at “mid to high $30,000s.”
“The largest addressable market that we see and we believe will continue is in the midsized SUV space, and that puts us price point-wise below $50,000, north of $40,000, so in the $40,000 to $50,000 range,” Scaringe said then.
“And then linked to that, at a platform level is introducing a crossover product that brings us into the price points to start with the $30,000, mid to high 30s,” he added.
By then, Rivian expected to launch the model in early 2026.
However, while production of the R2 is now set to begin at its main Normal plant, the R3 lineup isn’t expected to launch until 2027-2028.
Launch Timeline
The timeline will coincide with the first operations of Rivian‘s second plant in Georgia.
After several delays, the $5 billion plant has started construction.
It will support production of the R2 and the R3 models, and is expected to be fully operational by 2028.
Speaking with The Verge in 2024, Scaringe revealed that “the first R3 that we’re launching, it’s going to start with R3X” — which is referred to as a more “sporty” version of the vehicle.
Rivian has just launched the R2 SUV and has yet to debut the R3 models; however, it is already working on the R4 and R5 models.
Scaringe even admitted that “there may be like an R6,” but the four upcoming models were “as far out as out product plan goes today.”
Rivian has not yet revealed what type of vehicles the R4 or R5 will be.
Earlier on Thursday, Rivian was granted a patent for a fail-safe braking system that would allow an autonomous vehicle to bring itself to a controlled stop if the primary brakes fail.
It addresses one of the most fundamental safety requirements for operating a large-scale driverless fleet — which has become more relevant since the company announced a partnership with Uber late last month.
Under the deal, Uber will invest in Rivian’s autonomous driving software, and the two companies will launch a robotaxi service using R2 vehicles equipped with the technology.
