When Rivian launched the R1T, it shipped with cameras described as capable of supporting significant driver assistance improvements over time. Those improvements never came. Rivian moved on to Gen 2 hardware, and Gen 1 owners were left with a lane-centering system that only activates on pre-mapped roads and remains unavailable across most everyday routes. Into that gap, a community of developers has built Adventure Pilot, a branch of the open-source Comma AI framework specifically tuned for Rivian. Out of Spec Reviews brings two Gen 1 R1Ts to a private track to show what Adventure Pilot can do now, and the results are striking enough to raise a genuine question about what automakers actually owe the people who bought early.
Comma AI is an aftermarket driver assistance platform built around a small device that mounts to the windshield and connects to the vehicle's existing systems. The hardware costs a few hundred dollars. The software is open source, meaning third-party developers can create their own driving models and share them freely. Adventure Pilot sits on top of the Sunny Pilot software fork, which itself sits on top of Comma's base system. What makes Adventure Pilot specific to Rivian is that its developers have spent months mapping the truck's CAN bus signals, the internal electronic language the vehicle uses, to understand exactly how to apply steering torque without triggering fault codes. The default Comma setup for Rivian was limited to 90 degrees of steering lock, which ruled out most city turns. Adventure Pilot removes that ceiling, allowing the system to apply substantially more angle and torque before the truck objects. This also enables MADS mode, where the driver controls the throttle manually while the system handles all steering, a useful configuration for low-speed technical situations.
The track demonstration covers the full range of what Adventure Pilot can currently do. On the highway, behavior is largely identical to a polished commercial system: smooth lane centering, confident handling of gentle curves, and the ability to execute lane changes when the turn signal is activated. On winding back roads, the increased steering authority translates to less driver correction on sharper bends, which is exactly what motivated the development in the first place. The low-speed performance is where things get experimental. The system can negotiate 90-degree turns at intersections with varying success depending on which AI driving model is loaded. The developers offer multiple models, each trained differently, with names like Dark Souls to signal a firm, assertive steering style. Switching models takes seconds through a companion app called Sunny Link. The track lap sequence in the video shows the system holding its own at speeds that would have been impossible under the default Comma setup, though it still needs driver input at the sharpest corners. The whole thing installs in minutes via a URL entered directly into the Comma device.
Bottom line: This is a genuinely impressive piece of community engineering, and it puts Rivian in an uncomfortable position. A small volunteer team has delivered more meaningful driver assistance capability to Gen 1 R1T owners in roughly 60 days than Rivian has in years of owning the platform. If you own a Gen 1 Rivian, are comfortable with aftermarket electronics, and primarily drive on unmapped roads where the stock system is useless, Adventure Pilot is worth serious attention. If you're buying a Rivian now, the Gen 2 hardware is meaningfully better and the trajectory is more promising. Either way, the gap that made this project necessary should not have existed in the first place.