? RJ's Letter -- Making it Right -- REVERSING THE PRICE CHANGE FOR PREORDER HOLDERS

[ohseedee]

While I think it's great they did the reverse, I'll admit I'm selfishly a little bummed that I'm going to remain in the back of the line with no hope of getting an R1T anytime soon (no cancelations and I did a pre order only a couples months ago). While the chances were low that I was going to buy the truck at the new price, the chances are lower I'll buy it at the old price if I cant get one within the next 18 months.

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[sevengroove]

Not really. The $1,000 is applied as a credit to the order when you finalize. So if Rivian doesn't ask you to repay the deposit, then expect not to see that credit when you finalize. You'll end up paying the same, overall.

They are not getting a discount of $1,000, that much is clear. What he said is that his pre-order is free, which is still true.

 

[kizamybute']

Re-instated via CS chat. Very easy. Said it will take up to a week, but configuration will be restored to my account page. AND, they said my deposit was already credited back to my card and I don't have to repay it. Just will pay the $1,000 at the time of purchase.

So glad everyone stepped up and made their voices heard. Much better than the Tesla community. All the Tesla fanboi's would have gladly bent over for Tesla and told everyone they were wrong to not go along with whatever they said. Much better community here!!

 

[Max]

Can I get bumped up on the priority list for *not* canceling my pre-order??

That only tells Rivian you are not price sensitive which makes you a bigger target for their "services".

 

[jasonmkd]

That only tells Rivian you are not price sensitive which makes you a bigger target for their "services".

Let's be real...we're ALLLLLLL big targets for their services now #cashgrab

 

[Tim-in-CA]

We now resume our regularly scheduled complaining about lack of CarPlay and Android Auto already in progress ..... ?

 

[sevengroove]

Can I get bumped up on the priority list for *not* canceling my pre-order??

Reminds me of that joke (can't remember who, Mitch Hedburg? Rickey Gervais?) which goes: we always celebrate when someone who was an addict is no longer one, but what about someone who didn't partake in the habit in the first place?

 

[FHM]

Hello Everyone, Earlier this week, we announced pricing increases that broke the trust we have worked to build with you. Since originally setting our pricing structure, and most especially in recent months, a lot has changed. The costs of the components and materials that go into building our vehicles have risen considerably. Everything from semiconductors to sheet metal to seats has become more expensive and with this we have seen average new vehicle pricing across the U.S. rise more than 30% since 2018. Given our build lead up times, we need to plan production costs not only for today, but also for the future. As we worked to update pricing to reflect these cost increases, we wrongly decided to make these changes apply to all future deliveries, including pre-existing configured preorders. We failed to appreciate how you viewed your configuration as price locked, and we wrongly assumed the announced Dual-Motor and Standard battery pack would provide configurations that would deliver price points similar to your original configuration. While this was the logic, it was wrong and we broke your trust in Rivian. We also didn’t manage communications well. We didn’t give you enough insight into what was driving these decisions. The most important aspect of what we are building is our relationship with all of you. As we demonstrated earlier this week, trust is hard to build and easy to break. In speaking with many of you over the last two days, I fully realize and acknowledge how upset many of you felt. I have made a lot of mistakes since starting Rivian more than 12 years ago, but this one has been the most painful. I am truly sorry and committed to rebuilding your trust. One of the things we talk about a lot internally is that we will make mistakes – it’s part of building something complex. The key is to learn from them and address them when they are made. It is how we grow. We made a mistake in how we approached our pricing changes, and what is important now is that we fix it. For anyone with a Rivian preorder as of the March 1 pricing announcement, your original configured price will be honored. If you canceled your preorder on or after March 1 and would like to reinstate it, we will restore your original configuration, pricing and delivery timing. Our team will be sending an email in the next few days with more details. Regarding our updated pricing for future preorders, the introduction of our Dual-Motor configuration and Standard battery pack has been designed to enable us to maintain lower starting prices while adjusting the pricing of the Quad-Motor and larger battery packs to reflect rising costs. Building a durable business is core to the continued impact we can deliver as a company. We are focused on building a brand and products that will continue to scale to different vehicle sizes, use cases, price points and markets – this growth will only be possible with your support and continued feedback. Thank you for the personal notes and discussions I had with so many of you. Your feedback makes us better. RJ​

Thank you RJ for reversing course on this. You have regained our trust. I have been a reservation holder since Feb 2019 and have been looking forward to getting my R1S asap. Glad you learned the importance of communication. This has been a long wait!

 

[kanundrum]

We now resume our regularly scheduled complaining about lack of CarPlay and Android Auto already in progress ..... ?

Apparently that is coming according to Jason Camisa

 

[Larry]

I had the same question. I really just wanted 5 seats, not 7. Hauling stuff is better than hauling people. Stuff doesn't tell me how to drive.

I also don’t want to pay for an extra row of seats I don’t want and probably won’t use.
I’m not going to slam the door on reinstating my preorder but chances are slim.

 

[freshpow]

I also don’t want to pay for an extra row of seats I don’t want and probably won’t use.
I’m not going to slam the door on reinstating my preorder but chances are slim.

A couple things. First off, you're not paying for the extra row of seats - the 5 seat and 7 seat configurations were always advertised at the same price, i.e. you weren't going to get a discount for going with the 5 seater. Second, you'd be silly not to go through with your preorder because you probably will be able to turn around and sell it for a hefty profit, assuming you don't want to keep it. Lastly, as others have noted they're not requiring you to redeposit the $1k to get your place in line back, so you quite literally have nothing to lose.

 

[KiloV]

We now resume our regularly scheduled complaining about lack of CarPlay and Android Auto already in progress ..... ?

Don't forget the dreaded cupholder debate.

 

[ex0de]

Re-instated via CS chat. Very easy. Said it will take up to a week, but configuration will be restored to my account page. AND, they said my deposit was already credited back to my card and I don't have to repay it. Just will pay the $1,000 at the time of purchase.

So glad everyone stepped up and made their voices heard. Much better than the Tesla community. All the Tesla fanboi's would have gladly bent over for Tesla and told everyone they were wrong to not go along with whatever they said. Much better community here!!

Thanks for the info! And yes my main reason for canceling was to stand up for the people, especially the ones who pre-ordered way before me, those with LE orders and were still getting screwed. My order was only last year and tbh I would of went with the increase if it was only applied to people like me.

 

[NooterIA]

Hidden between the lines in RJ’s email:
.........the monthly Membership charge (mandatory to drive your Rivian) will start at $500.

Anyone know what the required membership/subscription charge was a week ago? I don't recall ever seeing subscription options/pricing.

 

[Max]

Not sure what I’ll do. What happens to 5 seat R1S preorders? They’re only going to make the 7, right?

Yup. I had 5 seater too. I think we can figure out how to remove the last row seats and rig something up to make it look OK while using the additional space for storage but 5 seater had a few inches more width. The armrest on third row for the 7 seater is going to mess that up. Neither were wide enough at floor level for plywood. You have to get a pathfinder for that.

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