Why I’m leaving the Rivian Family After Owning / Leasing 3 R1Ts

[Morgan J]

I really wanted to love my Rivian. The design, the performance, the technology and the promise of an American electric adventure vehicle were all incredibly appealing.

But after multiple vehicles, repeated service issues, sensor and camera problems, warning lights, reliability concerns and experiences that have made my family uncomfortable and unsafe riding in it, I’ve reached the point where the ownership experience simply isn’t worth the stress. Bought it to drive on the beaches near me, but even with tires at 20psi, the truck is simply too heavy and sinks in even medium sand. Rescue tracks work, but not how I want to spend my time. I was told SOFT SAND mode is incredible. Well, all 2 trucks got stuck multiple times. My Tacoma NEVER got stuck. I wish I'd kept it, TBH.

Leaving Rivian isn’t about one minor defect or expecting perfection. It’s about having too many issues—some inconvenient, others involving safety—and never feeling completely confident that the vehicle will behave as it should. My family now refuses to drive in it, and that ultimately made the decision for me.

I’m going to break the lease and move into an EV BMW X5 for now. I want Apple CarPlay, dependable safety cameras, a great ride, a huge sunroof and a vehicle my family actually feels comfortable using.

Longer term, I’m very interested in the Scout from Volkswagen. It looks like it may deliver the rugged capability and electric experience I originally hoped Rivian would provide, so I’ll be watching closely. In meantime, I'm going to use BMW for Brooklyn / Long Island round trips, and get a used Tacoma just for beach driving. Can leave tires at 20psi.

I’m not rooting against Rivian. I genuinely hope the company succeeds (I invested in some stock) and improves its quality control, service and reliability.

I'll reconsider then.

But at this price point, ownership should feel exciting—not like a continuing source of anxiety and headaches.

For me, it’s simply time to move on.

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[Killer95Stang]

 

[Ralph]

Not sure what your problems with the cameras might have been, But unspecified dependability issues aside, It sounds like your biggest issue was not being able to drive on the beach as you expected.

On this particular point I would agree. Rivian oversold the R1 offroad ability. I too had a Tacoma. And it was a much more capable vehicle off the road - especially self-extraction from sand and traction control in general.

Toyota as a company was also much more vendor modification and user repair friendly.

But In my particular case, the Tacoma was no more dependable. In the first month I was left at the side of the road in the rain due to a faulty crankshaft position sensor (CPS). These things happen.

No single vehicle is going to meet everyone's needs. As good as it was in many ways, I can't see myself ever going back to a Tacoma from the R1T. For you, a used Tacoma for the beach seems like a great idea.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Hopefully your driving improves with the BMW, for your passenger's sakes.

 

[Outdoors]

@Morgan J Very good breakup letter. Bravo

This is adaptive, high-functioning behavior. The person demonstrates good reflective capacity, emotional regulation, and ability to prioritize relational (family) safety over sunk-cost fallacy or brand loyalty. There are no clear signs of personality pathology, paranoia, or externalizing blame exclusively onto the company. Instead, we see a psychologically healthy individual using narrative, community, and concrete action to metabolize disappointment, protect attachment bonds, and restore a coherent, agentic self-narrative.

In short: this is what it looks like when a competent adult who once idealized an object experiences repeated betrayal of that ideal, feels their family’s safety compromised, and chooses to grieve cleanly, set a boundary, and move forward—while still leaving the psychological door slightly ajar.

 

[WorldComposting]

I get leaving a vehicle when it feels unsafe. I'm the same way once I don't trust a vehicle to go on a trip over a couple hundred miles it gets traded! Safety is one of my key concerns as any object can get replaced but people cannot!

If you don't mind what issues did you have in particular? So far my vehicle has been pretty good but just like my other vehicles if there are known repeat issues that creep up it is a good idea to keep any eye out for them before they happen!

 

[TXSchnee]

The iX5 won’t be available for about 6 months, pre-orders aren’t even open right now.

 

[stormbreaker]

I feel your pain TBH. Somehow you said you've had multiple Rivian vehicles in your ownership trials.

My truck seems to be only struggling with the driver+ functionality. But at the same time, even Rivian admits this is a safety issue wherein all of the sensors are disabled as well as the cruise control capability.

My SC appt is the first week of Aug. This is either the 7th or 8th trip to get this fixed.

Hope you enjoy your BMW. Drive safe!

 

[Rivianero]

Makes valid sense, given your experiences.

I have had 2 R1Ts and never had issues on the beach (maybe 30 excursions). Have hauled several other ICE vehicles out. I'm not a serious off-roader and I imagine that not all sand is the same.

We have towed a few thousand miles with it and have no complaints other than I miss the max pack in our first R1T.

Warning: Bit of a rant follows. Hoping someone at Rivian might listen.

I'm also a stockholder and believe in the states vision of Rivian. Somewhat disappointed that they have come up short. Understanding that profitability = survival, I do still think they make short-sighted decisions that damage their long-term success, brand reputation, and customer loyalty. Examples include their failure to admit those fancy door handles are a mistake that are worse in every way to proven technology, obstinate refusal to support CarPlay/Android Auto (instead forcing their customers to use a faulty proprietary infotainment stack), 2 failed attempts at voice assistants, a focus on self-driving to the exclusion of basic software quality, and zero support for owner right to repair. Clearly, this is just the start of a long list.

Haven't had serious issues with either vehicle, but cannot say that the SV experience has been a joy lately. Again, bad short+sighted decision ultimately damaging the brand.

I'm not sure how many others experience that "will it decide not to run today" anxiety that causes.me.to keep a second vehicle around. They have not programmed the vehicles to fail gracefully. 12v low = shutdown. Any 1 sensor bad = complete refusal to operate. Any antenna module has a failure = you may not enter the truck by any means.

Having ranted, we still love the truck and hope to keep it forever. In spite of flaws in the product and company, it is still the best vehicle I have owned in 45 years of driving. It does just about everything I need and doesn't ruin our planet. Just kind of frustrating that somethings it does so much worse than vehicles 20 years older.

I entirely understand your perspective and respect your decision.

 

[DuoRivians]

I think heavy EVs and soft sand simply don’t go together, regardless of tires or tire pressure.

 

[Noplacelikeloam]

To be fair, so many manufacturers are like this. Ever owned a Lotus? Or a Lancia? An Alfa Romeo? Dont get me started on Ferrari. All iconic cars but good lord, they are hit and miss. But even with those issues, would I get another one, hell yeah!

 

[2kwik4u]

Same here. Actively looking for ways out.

Part of it is the poor quality of components and poor workmanship that put them together, part of it is a constant fight to "make it work" instead of it just "falling into step" with me. Ultimately I think more like a German engineer than I do a Silicon Valley Engineer, so the truck does a lot of crap I think is stupid, poorly planned, or just systemic failures. There's no amount of tech stack that can solve the problems I have with PaaK. There's no amount of software that will solve HVAC actuators with no feedback. I think the suspension could be fixed, but I'm honestly exhausted dealing with it, and have just given up. I'll miss the gear tunnel, the frunk, and the excellent driveline calibration; I won't miss the revolving door of service centers, the constant clunks/rattles, and the constant wondering on if my truck will let me inside/drive it today.

Also, it should be noted, that Rivian's direction appears to lean further into tech and not address any of these issues. They are quickly moving towards a tech company that also builds cars, instead of a car company with good tech. So, even though I want them to succeed, and think the product is quite compelling.......I'm going elsewhere.

 

[mkg3]

With all of its faults, our R1S is the best family hauler/road tripper vehicle we've owned (as I'd noted on another thread). I didn't realize that until the other thread caused me to list all the vehicles I've owned and compared them. Made me appreciate the vehicle.

That said, I probably would have already gotten rid of it, if weren't fro my wife loving the vehicle. Its her daily driver.

 

[Noplacelikeloam]

Same here. Actively looking for ways out.

Part of it is the poor quality of components and poor workmanship that put them together, part of it is a constant fight to "make it work" instead of it just "falling into step" with me. Ultimately I think more like a German engineer than I do a Silicon Valley Engineer, so the truck does a lot of crap I think is stupid, poorly planned, or just systemic failures. There's no amount of tech stack that can solve the problems I have with PaaK. There's no amount of software that will solve HVAC actuators with no feedback. I think the suspension could be fixed, but I'm honestly exhausted dealing with it, and have just given up. I'll miss the gear tunnel, the frunk, and the excellent driveline calibration; I won't miss the revolving door of service centers, the constant clunks/rattles, and the constant wondering on if my truck will let me inside/drive it today.

Also, it should be noted, that Rivian's direction appears to lean further into tech and not address any of these issues. They are quickly moving towards a tech company that also builds cars, instead of a car company with good tech. So, even though I want them to succeed, and think the product is quite compelling.......I'm going elsewhere.

That fair, I do worry that some day they will sell off the R1&2 lines and just focus on software. Its a much simpler business.

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