⛔️ Powered Tonneau cover removed from R1T production until further notice on all future deliveries

[NY_Rob]

This sucks ass by the way. Total dick move Rivian. Too bad your CEO doesn’t have an MIT PhD in automotive engineering. Oh he does? Then wtf.

Everyone seems to think Rivian is this great engineering powerhouse that can do miraculous things.
They have a couple of very serious issues to solve at this time. Now we have seen how they have solved the tonneau issue.. remove the option TFN. Not impressed.
Bash Tesla all you want, but I'd bet dollars to doughnuts they would have found a solution and a new tonneau would have already been in production.

They also have a very serious issue with their half-shafts and CV Joints, the "leaning" problem and an extremely fragile glass roof. They can't simply remove any of those parts like they did with the tonneau, so they will actually have to engineer their way out of those problems... a very good test of their ability to react to real world problems.

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[ElCapiTan]

Even though the powered Tonneau is flawed I was still excited to get it. Manual cover will just get buried somewhere in my garage and I won't be able to find when I need. So I guess it's no cover for me.

Only question I have is will this be an excuse to delay providing us with windows by the end of the month? Would have been better to announce this before the deadline we had on the 15th 16th for changes.

 

[Bigeasy70075]

I think it is smart of Rivian to stop making an inoperable cover, However they should just make the shell so that a retrofit would be easy. They know that the new design for the cover is going to be significantly more costly and are trying to save every dollar at this point. This in my opinion is a penny wise, dollar foolish mentality. Continuing to erode consumer opinion in a market that is quickly becoming very competitive may just spell the end for Rivian. I am both an investor and an order holder so I hope they can get to a stable place with both the design and manufacture of the truck soon because the good will that has been extended to them is wearing thin and I bet it is now showing in the number of new orders being placed.

 

[Gavinmcc]

I wonder how many power tonneaus are in the R1 Shop right now. Boy I wish I had access

 

[SANZC02]

Everyone seems to think Rivian is this great engineering powerhouse that can do miraculous things. The have a couple of very serious issues to solve at this time. Now we have seen how they have solved the tonneau issue.. remove the option TFN. Not impressed.
Bash Tesla all you want, but I'd bet dollars to doughnuts they would have found a solution and a new tonneau would have already been in production.

It is in production for Tesla, been shipping for a couple of years now on the Cybertruck…. Oh wait…

 

[Forager]

So what happens to that roughly 6” wide space behind the cab that the power cover currently tucks into? Will we be able to “hack” into it and use it for additional practical storage? It would make a great spot to store some recovery gear or tools.

 

[crashmtb]

So if you want a powered cover you need to defer purchase until next year? If that is the case then they may have trouble selling vehicles since Q4 is likely to be at least 5,000 R1Ts.
At least Rivian stopping now means retrofitting is limited to about 12,000 vehicles which will still strain their service capabilities.

no, you’d need to defer delivery ”for the foreseeable future”.

 

[Smytherines]

Canadian Max Pack R1T Pre Increase (barely...Feb 25th) order holder here

Given how long it's taken to get even the Long Range here in BC, I wasn't anticipating delivery until early 2024 - will be very curious to see if the camp kitchen, gear shuttle and powered tonneau re-surface before then, and at what cost.

Those three things were what drew me to the R1T vs the R1S...without them, honestly, I'm tempted to take Rivian up on the offer to switch to the R1S Standard pack at pre-order pricing and call it a day.

Haven't been waiting anywhere nearly as long as most folks here, so happy to continue to see where all of this goes in the months ahead...but for now, I'm definitely leaning in the direction of the R1S since the things that made the R1T cool are all but gone now.

And before folks here say just go with the manual cover...that won't work with the desired day-to-day setup which was to have the cross bars mostly over the bed, with a bike/ski racks/Roam adventure cargo box attached (RivianDad style). Can't very well remove the manual panels and re-add easily to access stuff in the bed when this is the setup.

I'm now finding myself also left waiting, and hoping that the RAM EV will be the saviour I desire! Hahaha, but in all seriousness, they (Rivian) better get their shit together soon, because the competition is coming and without unique, compelling features that drew someone like me to the product in the first place, their competitive advantage will begin to erode.

 

[AdamsFan1983]

Even though the powered Tonneau is flawed I was still excited to get it. Manual cover will just get buried somewhere in my garage and I won't be able to find when I need. So I guess it's no cover for me.

Only question I have is will this be an excuse to delay providing us with windows by the end of the month? Would have been better to announce this before the deadline we had on the 15th for changes.

I’m sure someone correct me if I’m wrong but I believe the power tonneau is a module supplied as a module by a vendor and it wasn’t designed in house.

Suspending the option in lieu of a redesigned unit is probably part of a settlement between the two companies that we just don’t know the details of yet.

Wouldn’t be surprised if there is a retrofit fix for existing units and an entirely new design for future implementation based on what I’m reading.

 

[COdogman]

Even though the powered Tonneau is flawed I was still excited to get it. Manual cover will just get buried somewhere in my garage and I won't be able to find when I need. So I guess it's no cover for me.

Only question I have is will this be an excuse to delay providing us with windows by the end of the month? Would have been better to announce this before the deadline we had on the 15th for changes.

This is exactly right. Why wouldn’t they announce this before 10/16 so most could make their decisions BEFORE the date they gave us to determine new delivery estimates? They also could have been more clear with the options and timeline instead of directing people to separate support articles and/ or sending out incomplete emails. Another self inflicted communications failure.

 

[bike123.com]

Gah. Rivian must worry about my brain function as they always give me more to think about.

Truthfully I don’t need the powered cover, but it was kinda cool.

But my choice now is manual, no, or wait 6 months or so for a new design.

I asked and it can’t be added later if I buy now. But I can push back my order til new design.

I might just go Manual to get truck sooner, but it kinda makes me sad.

Trucks to early people have the cover and they will get any fix needed under warranty. Later O

trucks will get it with a new design.

I’ll be in the powered cover donut hole.

But waiting is tough.

G

our powered cover died after a week
When there was a ( short lived) service center nearby they removed it
Not missing it and would take a credit , some side rails, or other gear.
It seemed like the weakest made part just watching it operate

 

[astonius]

To the folks saying you can wait for the powered tonneau, is that actually possible? Reading the email it seems to say you *must* change to either manual or no tonneau. I understand you could push it back by switching to max pack, but is there actually a “stick with large pack and wait for powered tonneau” option?

 

[sacramentoelectric]

Rivian comms are not stupid. They know we want to know these things. They also know that if they say the redesign will be available on x date, some number of people will delay purchase until then, maybe a lot of people. And if they say that it will be $3000 they’ll get hell. And if they say the powered tonneau won’t be able to be retrofitted they may lose customers and get hell. And if they say the redesign will be at pre-March prices they’ll have more people delaying purchase.

The comms are designed with two goals: inform and influence.

This comm informs us about no powered tonneau then seeks to influence us through lack of info to still take an upcoming order. After all the wait could be years. The cost could be high. It doesn’t say the new design can’t be retrofitted. So maybe I’ll still take my order.

It’s unpalatable at best and manipulative at worst, but they want people to still take orders. So write the comm that will lead to the most orders still accepted. That’s the assignment, not wrote the comm that is most helpful to the customer.

You’re imagining 4D chess when they’re just playing checkers. There’s no hidden strategy here just inexperience or apathy. They’re failing at the goals you set. These vaguely worded indefinite delays neither inform nor influence. They create confusion and frustration by omitting crucial information. It would be incredibly cynical to think so poorly of your customers to assume that you could trick them into a purchase by hiding damaging information. It will all come out eventually and every hidden disclosure sows mistrust and frustration with the brand. A drip, drip, drip of bad news is far worse than getting everything out at once.

 

[Cogentfire]

Yeah, I’m not accepting delivery anytime soon.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

***It's already a $3K option now before being unavailable until redesign.***

People who has not received confirmation of their trucks being built should expect changes in the future as Rivian is a new and young company learning the business. They are not entitled to get their trucks built as configured when it's not in the company's best interest to offer it. I'm so glad I get to own one at pre-price increase, and even more glad that it drives and looks as good as it is, that everything else is just icing on the cake as people say.

When you've been on this ride for over 3 years, it's difficult not to get irked when the product feature list is degraded more and more as you get closer

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