Did I buy a lemon?

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

I picked up my R1T 10 days ago and wish I could say things are going better than they are. The service has been slow to respond and completely unhelpful. I am curious if others have had similar feelings or potential solutions.

• On delivery the truck had 2 large scratches on the hood. To be repaired at the service center in February
• Phone will not pair as a key (tried resetting and reinstalling, ect)
• Key card will not unlock the doors, but does start from the inside. The tech on the phone was stumped about the card and phone issues
• My mobile/home charger has stopped working (tried 120 and 240)
• Just learned this morning that the automatic wipers are not working

What do you think?

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[Nuclianba]

You mentioned a reset, I assume you did a hard reset (left button on steering wheel and hazard lights at same time for a couple seconds until it reboots)? I've had weird ghosts in the machine in the past, usually after a software update, and that has always resolved them. Won't help your hood tho!

 

[BeanEW]

What is the definition of "lemon"? To me, it is something that the car maker cannot fix.

When you pickup the car, the rep should step you over how to pair the car; did you buy the car new?

Did you put the key card at the right place? If you can start the car, the car should recognize the key card.

Have you try charging at other places or using other chargers?

The auto wiper setting doesn't always work. It works at most times but sometimes I had to push the button to manually wipe.

 

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

You mentioned a reset, I assume you did a hard reset (left button on steering wheel and hazard lights at same time for a couple seconds until it reboots)? I've had weird ghosts in the machine in the past, usually after a software update, and that has always resolved them. Won't help your hood tho!

Yeah, tried the reset. But that's a good start.

 

[MidnightRivian]

Not a lemon.

 

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

What is the definition of "lemon"? To me, it is something that the car maker cannot fix.

When you pickup the car, the rep should step you over how to pair the car; did you buy the car new?

Did you put the key card at the right place? If you can start the car, the car should recognize the key card.

Have you try charging at other places or using other chargers?

The auto wiper setting doesn't always work. It works at most times but sometimes I had to push the button to manually wipe.

Look, I want to be supportive of Rivian just as much as everyone here. My definition of a lemon is a truck that rolled of the assembly line on a Friday afternoon. After giving them 90k I shouldn't have this many issues and then not be able to get them repaired. Everyday is a new problem.

The rep was never able to get my phone to pair properly, said it was key but couldn't do any of the key functions. I know where to place the card, doesn't work. Used an electrify america charger successfully.

Fingers crossed they will repair all of these and then it will smooth out.

 

[COdogman]

It's pretty bad they tried to deliver a vehicle to you with scratches on the hood, but they will definitely repair all of those things.

 

[Nuclianba]

Look, I want to be supportive of Rivian just as much as everyone here. Me definition of a lemon is a truck that rolled of the assembly line on a Friday afternoon. After giving them 90k I shouldn't have this many issues and then not be able to get them repaired. Everyday is a new problem.

The rep was never able to get my phone to pair properly, said it was key but couldn't do any of the key functions. I know where to place the card, doesn't work. Used an electrify america charger successfully.

Fingers crossed they will repair all of these and then it will smooth out.

Does the key fob work as a key? It should basically work just like paak. Could help determine if this is software or hardware related. Regardless, they'll make it right but expect to wait for service. Right now everybody at rivian is going to be 100% focused on end of quarter deliveries.

 

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

Key fob works. Agreed, new deliveries is the focus. The service center when I picked it up seemed swamped.

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Instead of lumping everything together and getting frustrated / calling it a "lemon", I would take each of these points individually.

Scratches - Rivian will fix that (assuming you bought it new)
Phone - Try a different phone? This will narrow down whether it's an issue with the car, the phone, or app settings
Key card - Maybe a door sensor? Let them try with a different card and if it still doesn't work they can replace the sensor. Maybe try on passenger side door for giggles? (not sure if there's a sensor on both sides)
Home charger - what have you tried? Is it Rivian brand or some other? Reset circuit breaker? Does charging somewhere else work? Is the charger paired to your app - what does it show? Was charger installed by qualified electrician using correct wiring and 60A breaker? Correct DIP switch settings? Any lights or indication of activity when you plug in? Lot of variables here.
Wipers - nine months of ownership and I've never used automatic. There's a sensor in the windshield, maybe test for functionality by setting it to "automatic" and spray it with a hose?

Imo all of these things can be resolved with a visit to a SC and a little more troubleshooting. Good luck! ?

 

[Nuclianba]

Key fob works. Agreed, new deliveries is the focus. The service center when I picked it up seemed swamped.

What phone do you have? I had all kinds of paak issues when I got the truck, but my phone was old. A factory reset on the phone solved some of them, I think the Bluetooth stack was getting corrupted or something (even after the rest it still disconnected a few times a week requiring a Bluetooth on/off on the phone). I got a new phone in November (pixel 8) and it's been bug free since, literally no issues.

It does sorta sound like you may have a bad keycard sensor in the door tho. There isn't one on any other door so it should only work on the driver door. Mine can take a second to respond but holding the card to the handle always works within a couple seconds.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

I get that your frustrated and you should be. You purchased a new vehicle and should expect it to work as designed.

I think the SC needs to address how to use these functions. With the key card you have to hold it right by the door handle. It is very slow until most recent updates. If you go into your Rivian app under vehicle information what software version does it say your truck is running?

The phone as a key is finicky to get setup but the delivery specialist should have taken you through this when you took delivery. Once I got mine setup it has been flawless except for the slowness mentioned above...again fixed in 2023.42.1 update.

The mobile charger we need more info. When you say it stops is the circuit breaker tripping? What exactly is happening when it stops and what are you expecting to happen?

Automatic wipers work well most of the time...when they don't you need to manually set the speed. I have found this happens most with misting rain or in foggy conditions.

The paint scratches will be addressed by Rivian but it will not be prioritized due to its cosmetic. SC are swamped but they should have given you a proper delivery experience. Not setting up your key is unacceptable.

 

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

Shortly after posting this a Rivian tech called me and thinks that this is mostly software issues. They have created about six tickets and sent them to different teams. I will follow up as this progresses.

For the charger, they think it is a software issue with the truck, not the actual charger.

 

[Santa Cruz Rivian]

What phone do you have? I had all kinds of paak issues when I got the truck, but my phone was old. A factory reset on the phone solved some of them, I think the Bluetooth stack was getting corrupted or something (even after the rest it still disconnected a few times a week requiring a Bluetooth on/off on the phone). I got a new phone in November (pixel 8) and it's been bug free since, literally no issues.

It does sorta sound like you may have a bad keycard sensor in the door tho. There isn't one on any other door so it should only work on the driver door. Mine can take a second to respond but holding the card to the handle always works within a couple seconds.

Agreed about the key card. I have a pixel 7a and my wife has an iphone.

 

[rivianbuff]

Sorry to hear about the issues. I have had almost no issues in 18 months of R1T ownership, but i did have a sensor replaced in the driver door as the key card didn’t work after delivery. Mobile tech fixed it in 15 minutes or so…

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