Anyone else looking at 5+ year wait.

[VSG]

We originally ordered an Explore Package R1T. We were forced to change to the Adventure Package as Rivian decided that they were never going to produce the Explore Package. They should have known this from day 2.

Ah. Well, that does sort of explain things. You got caught in a Rivian "donut hole". If you had chosen Adventure on day 1 then you would have had your truck by now. But by the time they canceled Explore and made you switch, they had also decided they couldn't continue to support deliveries far from any service center.

I think Rivian really did want to produce the Explore edition, but the supply chain problems in 2021 and 2022 really affected their decision making and they couldn't keep bleeding money by offering three different trims of R1T, three different trims of R1S, and two different trims of EDV all at the same time. Offering a lower-cost trim will actually earn them MORE money in the long term (there have been lots of pricing studies addressing the psychology between two choices and three choices) so I expect a lower-cost trim to become available again eventually. Maybe this is the role that the Dual motor will fill ...

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[JOSH565]

My delivery estimate is for end of 2024 as well, because of no service center in Hawaii. Pretty sure my delivery time will be pushed back even more, as I have not heard of any update as to when they plan to build here. Sucks, gives me time to redo my driveway, but still sucks.

 

[moosetags]

Ah. Well, that does sort of explain things. You got caught in a Rivian "donut hole". If you had chosen Adventure on day 1 then you would have had your truck by now. But by the time they canceled Explore and made you switch, they had also decided they couldn't continue to support deliveries far from any service center.

I think Rivian really did want to produce the Explore edition, but the supply chain problems in 2021 and 2022 really affected their decision making and they couldn't keep bleeding money by offering three different trims of R1T, three different trims of R1S, and two different trims of EDV all at the same time. Offering a lower-cost trim will actually earn them MORE money in the long term (there have been lots of pricing studies addressing the psychology between two choices and three choices) so I expect a lower-cost trim to become available again eventually. Maybe this is the role that the Dual motor will fill ...

I agree wholeheartedly. They actually would have been better off filling the Explore orders first. That's my luck of the draw.

Brian

 

[moosehead]

This is ridiculous. Rivian should accommodate these extreme cases like @Bill Tolar and @moosetags, at minimum get them access to the Rivian shop, and allow pickup wherever works best for the buyer including Normal.

 

[Guy]

Ah. Well, that does sort of explain things. You got caught in a Rivian "donut hole". If you had chosen Adventure on day 1 then you would have had your truck by now. But by the time they canceled Explore and made you switch, they had also decided they couldn't continue to support deliveries far from any service center.

I think Rivian really did want to produce the Explore edition, but the supply chain problems in 2021 and 2022 really affected their decision making and they couldn't keep bleeding money by offering three different trims of R1T, three different trims of R1S, and two different trims of EDV all at the same time. Offering a lower-cost trim will actually earn them MORE money in the long term (there have been lots of pricing studies addressing the psychology between two choices and three choices) so I expect a lower-cost trim to become available again eventually. Maybe this is the role that the Dual motor will fill ...

As suggested by Rivian they would have lost more money on the Explore because there was nowhere near $5500 of difference in content. I would think at most $2000 of less content which means over $3000 of net less profit than with adventure. Then the efficient argument also helps them make the decision and some pre March people drop out and others spend $5500 more (like me). It worked out for them.
If explore comes back then I expect greater differentiation (no glass roof etc).

 

[VSG]

As suggested by Rivian they would have lost more money on the Explore because there was nowhere near $5500 of difference in content. I would think at most $2000 of less content which means over $3000 of net less profit than with adventure. Then the efficient argument also helps them make the decision and some pre March people drop out and others spend $5500 more (like me). It worked out for them.
If explore comes back then I expect greater differentiation (no glass roof etc).

I wasn't referring to the profit margin on each of the models - I don't know what those are and I don't think anyone outside of Rivian does.

The studies I mentioned are classic B-school material. Search for "good better best pricing". When you have two price levels, most people will pick the cheaper one. When you have three price levels, most people will pick the middle one. So potentially, having three price levels can help to maximize your profit. And it's a mistake to leave off a "premium" price level, because there are always some people who will pay for the "best", and you can make the most profit off of them and make them happy at the same time.

I agree that a future version of Explore should have greater differentiation. And I would have liked the Launch Edition to have greater differentiation - LE is just a label on the dashboard plus some free upgrades (if desired). A lot of things that used to be exclusive to the LE were folded into the Adventure. They could have made the camp speaker and a bunch of other little things exclusive to LE and saved a lot of money on the Adventure orders where most people don't really need or want the camp speaker for example but they're getting it anyway.

 

[madgrey]

You would think that more mobile service centers would be a good idea. It appears that Rivian leans more toward big fancy service centers with a floor show and dancing girls. I've seen photos of the service centers. They have couches and lots of fashionable young people to discuss Rivians with potential customers. Rivian could have a lot more service centers if they would do away with all the fluff.

An effective Rivian service could consist of industrial warehouse space with a couple of lifts, a supply of parts, and a half dozen competent technicians. They could also have a mobile unit or two to do home visits.

Brian

We definitely need more service centers and service options but are they really that swank?

At Bellevue, there's no dancing girls or floor show. I did see a couch or two, but you have to sit somewhere. I suppose the people were relatively young? But that's just a reflection on me... The public restroom is directly behind the service desk (the toilet can't be more than 8 feet away) so there's that. ?

 

[Bill Tolar]

This is ridiculous. Rivian should accommodate these extreme cases like @Bill Tolar and @moosetags, at minimum get them access to the Rivian shop, and allow pickup wherever works best for the buyer including Normal.

I did have a customer service rep try to get me into the Rivian Shop, however request was rejected. ?
I do have a very early reservation (5 minutes in) on the Tesla truck, so it's going to be over 4 year wait on that also.

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