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

[Gsxr150]

Regarding the price increase, I don't see the "corrected" pre-order price when I log into my account... it now says my estimated price for the R1S is over $100,000!! Do others have the original pre-order price listed in their accounts, or do they have the new (outrageous) price listed?

Remember, this outrageous price is what new, prospective customers will pay now (or not). The "or not" is what I find concerning. Everyone thinks we're getting a deal now, but if there are very few customers in line (wanting) a 90K+ plus truck, we'll be stuck with a massively depreciating, possibly unsellable vehicle.

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[E.S.]

This is great news, RJ - thank you for rethinking this. Now please rethink the requirement for 3rd row seating in the R1S. I do not need it, and I am sure many others feel the same way. Save
Rivian a few more bucks by not having to buy unused seats.

ceetiger

Great message, now had you only sent it to RJ instead of the unofficial forums people think he visits.

 

[Gavinmcc]

"Remember, this outrageous price is what new, prospective customers will pay now (or not). The "or not" is what I find concerning. Everyone thinks we're getting a deal now, but if there are very few customers in line (wanting) a 90K+ plus truck, we'll be stuck with a massively depreciating, possibly unsellable vehicle."


Luckily for me I plan to keep mine forever. My concern would be Rivian folding and I can not get service. EVs need less service, but they do need some (especially one that might get some thrashing on the weekends).

 

[Patiently Waiting]

Spoke to Customer Service today and they said not only will it take a few days to get all of the cancelled orders back in the system but also if your check was already processed (like mine) then you do not need to send another $1000 back in and to keep the check and your invoice will just reflect you not having a deposit when your vehicle delivers. I cancelled yesterday and reinstated it today after the e-mail. RJ, if you read these forums, you did the right thing.

 

[SANZC02]

I am curious regarding the 7 seat configuration. To all those wanting a 5 seater. If the 7 seater's rear seats are foldable, why the concern in getting it over the 5 seater? Last I check there wasn't a price difference between the two and space will be the same.

I think it is an efficiency decision. Probably order rate for 5 seats were well below 7, if they have fewer configurations to build and fewer part numbers they can reduce cost in some material and line performance.

I agree I do not need the 7 seater either but getting and LE had no choice. In reality if I ever want to sell down the road it probably opens up the buyer pool having it.

 

[SANZC02]

"Remember, this outrageous price is what new, prospective customers will pay now (or not). The "or not" is what I find concerning. Everyone thinks we're getting a deal now, but if there are very few customers in line (wanting) a 90K+ plus truck, we'll be stuck with a massively depreciating, possibly unsellable vehicle."


Luckily for me I plan to keep mine forever. My concern would be Rivian folding and I can not get service. EVs need less service, but they do need some (especially one that might get some thrashing on the weekends).

I think the tech is there, if for some reason they could not make it as a company, someone would buy the tech, it would not just disappear.

 

[irvineboy]

So this is for all people who reserved the car before March 1, 2022 and not just customers who were working with a guide to order the car?

Does that mean I will get the $78k price R1S with the large battery and quad motor (0-60 in 3 seconds) and not get charged extra for the Ocean interior?

 

[HokieBird7980]

So this is for all people who reserved the car before March 1, 2022 and not just customers who were working with a guide to order the car?

Does that mean I will get the $78k price R1S with the large battery and quad motor (0-60 in 3 seconds) and not get charged extra for the Ocean interior?

Yes it does!!!!

 

[stynes]

Great message, now had you only sent it to RJ instead of the unofficial forums people think he visits.

I actually did send RJ an email this morning thanking him for reversing course. And surprise of surprises... he responded. It was brief, but polite, and addressed a couple of the specific points I brought up which showed me that he read it. I'm beyond surprised.

 

[Playah]

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​

The letter to preorder holders from RJ is sincere. And, RJ DID THE RIGHT THING! Let’s hope the Board of Directors allows him to make good. I’m not sure how this will all work out since I cancelled within minutes of notification and the preorder is wiped out from my account. How do they fix that? Anyway, if all is true to RJ’s word, I will place my deposit again for my original R1S configuration and expect not to see it until 2024. I’ve read posts that spoke to a less severe increase or drawing a line going forward. I’m not an automotive wiz or business person. But, I would think that if you intend to build a vehicle for commercial scale and sale, you would buy enough critical parts (chips) in advance and even critical spare parts to service those vehicles once launched because stuff happens (chips can fail and do fail). I could go on and on but the voices of preorder holders has been heard. Now, I’m waiting for that email that allows me to hopefully keep my place in line, same configuration and same price. Meanwhile, I’ve extinguished my torch and put my pitchfork away.

 

[TollKeeper]

I think it is an efficiency decision. Probably order rate for 5 seats were well below 7, if they have fewer configurations to build and fewer part numbers they can reduce cost in some material and line performance.

I agree I do not need the 7 seater either but getting and LE had no choice. In reality if I ever want to sell down the road it probably opens up the buyer pool having it.

Is all about pricing. Even Ford/Chevy did this a long time ago, and dropped the option for 3rd row seat removal. It saves them on tooling as the no longer need 2 floor pans, as one fills the need, and the 3 row has a few more weld points. Time and money, and they can upcharge the customer to save them time and money, its a win/win for the OEM.

The only thing I have not heard on the Rivian, is that the 3rd row seat on the Chevy/Ford are removeable by the consumer, are they going to be the same?

 

[E.S.]

I actually did send RJ an email this morning thanking him for reversing course. And surprise of surprises... he responded. It was brief, but polite, and addressed a couple of the specific points I brought up which showed me that he read it. I'm beyond surprised.

Thank you for further proving my point. Glad to hear you had a surprised, but welcoming experience directly contacting him

 

[kizamybute']

Regarding the price increase, I don't see the "corrected" pre-order price when I log into my account... it now says my estimated price for the R1S is over $100,000!! Do others have the original pre-order price listed in their accounts, or do they have the new (outrageous) price listed?

To everyone who had pre-ordered prior to 03/01/2022. All reservation holders will have their original pricing honored. Those that cancelled, can re-instate their orders at prior price points.

 

[stynes]

Thank you for further proving my point. Glad to hear you had a surprised, but welcoming experience directly contacting him

I wasn't disagreeing with you, I was just adding my experience. I've always had positive interactions with RJ. A snippet from my email...

"I had a chance to meet you at the Atlanta event for pre-orders back in 2019. You took time with every person that wanted to chat and we had an opportunity to talk about the R1S I had preordered as well as the fact that we both have Pacifica Hybrids to shuttle our kids around, the pain of fitting car seats in a car, the impact of our decisions on our kids. I walked away from that encounter just as inspired by your accessibility, optimism, perspective, and seeming earnest desire to do good as I was by the product."

 

[E.S.]

I wasn't disagreeing with you, I was just adding my experience. I've always had positive interactions with RJ. A snippet from my email...

I didn't take it as that (pardon if it came off that way). It was an indirect message to others that keep insisting addressing RJ via these forums vs the more productive approach of reaching him directly, which your actions just proved works. Thank you again.

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