Does Rivian have what it takes to survive?

[Gentilly7]

You want someone to give a definitive yes or a definitive no, which is not possible. No amount of explanation will answer your actual question.

Buy the Rivian if you want it. If you want a Tesla, buy that instead.

I have no idea what you are talking about with definitive yes or no. You are responding to a reply that I had to another person. He asked if I wanted him to explain more. I replied telling him to explain it to me.

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[SASSquatch]

Before Tesla, there hadn't been a new auto OEM for 100 years for a reason. It is really f'ing hard.

Comparisons to Tesla are just not appropriate because Tesla was operating in a completely different environment than Rivian is now. When Tesla was struggling, they were David fighting Goliath but they also had zero meaningful competition. They were the electric vehicle market. And even with near total dominance they were weeks from bankruptcy as they were desperately trying to ramp up M3.

Rivian faces substantial competition and a regulatory environment with the next administration that will likely punish Rivian and other newcomers who don't have the vertical integration, cost control, and volume sales of Tesla.

It is fair to ask whether Rivian is up to the challenge. Rivian has been making the right moves for survival - some of which I have been on record advocating for - negotiating supplier contracts and streamlining production (check) delaying the Georgia plant and building R2 in Normal (check) seeking strategic partnerships (check) securing capital without having to go to the capital markets and taking on sky-high interest rates (check).

The next 18 months will make or break the company. I'm not sure there are any answers though since we can't predict the future.

 

[Rivdog]

I have no idea what you are talking about with definitive yes or no. You are responding to a reply that I had to another person. He asked if I wanted him to explain more. I replied telling him to explain it to me.

You want to be convinced with evidence that cannot be provided. You clearly want someone to say that yes, Rivian will survive, or no, Rivian will not survive. No one can answer that question - it’s impossible to know.

Many people who have been on the forums for a few years are Rivian enthusiasts who have waited a long time for their vehicles. Many of us are at least a little biased (myself included) towards believing Rivian will succeed. I have a vested interest in it, seeing that I have a very expensive vehicle that I hope will have a company to service it in the future. Considering how many posts like these we’ve seen over the years, particularly from non-Rivian owners, it appears to be an attempt to “stir the pot,” which gets pretty old after a while. At some point, people get sick of seeing such posts because they all ask the same unanswerable question.

The only people with enough knowledge to have even a remotely educated opinion are people who work at Rivian. If any of those people were to answer your question, they would say yes, Rivian will survive. Even if they didn’t believe Rivian would survive, they would not come onto a forum and say so.

 

[nodor]

If the R2 launches with as many reliability issues as the current R1’s without having stepped up the service center experience, than no, my opinion is that they will not survive.

I may be biased. We took delivery of a 2nd gen R1S in September. It spent 4 weeks at a service center. Had it back for only two days before it ended up being towed back to the service center where it has sat since.

They were last on consumer reports reliability rankings and without the service centers built up to handle it they are setting themselves up for a crash and burn with the R2.

Of course this forum won’t say that. It’s an echo chamber of people with deep pockets who will gladly spend tens of thousands for a vehicle with such poor reliability.

The consensus will change when the door is opened to those without as deep pockets.

 

[emoore]

If the R2 launches with as many reliability issues as the current R1’s without having stepped up the service center experience, than no, my opinion is that they will not survive.

I may be biased. We took delivery of a 2nd gen R1S in September. It spent 4 weeks at a service center. Had it back for only two days before it ended up being towed back to the service center where it has sat since.

They were last on consumer reports reliability rankings and without the service centers built up to handle it they are setting themselves up for a crash and burn with the R2.

Of course this forum won’t say that. It’s an echo chamber of people with deep pockets who will gladly spend tens of thousands for a vehicle with such poor reliability.

The consensus will change when the door is opened to those without as deep pockets.

While I agree their reliability needs improvement it isn’t all doom and gloom. Sucks about your truck but mine has been great for over 2 years and 20k miles.

 

[photoquests]

I’ve always been bullish on Rivian, but I recently experienced being a customer shopping for a Rivian and it makes me second guess if they have what it takes to survive. The local sales associates are unresponsive to follow ups. The corporate sales reps are not knowledgeable of the products. The vast drivetrain and battery options for a company that barely produces 50k vehicles a years seems like a poor strategy for increasing volume and becoming profitable.

This is a stark contrast to how Tesla was operating before the Model 3 launched.

I hope I’m wrong.

Purchased my R1s in December and was impressed with the sales process and digital sales experience. My friend has been trying to order a Cadillac EV for months through a couple different dealers, he finally called me and I turned him on to my commercial contact at the dealer I used when I owned my business, he got the deal done in a week. Point is it’s all about the person you are dealing with, ask for someone else if you’re not connecting.
I had the same concern about survivability and decided on a 3 year lease to hedge my bet. Of course my experience in building IT companies over the past 20 plus years makes me reluctant to commit to a V2 computer on wheels for a longer term knowing how fast technology changes. Just look at the changes from the V1 Rivian platform to the V2, excited to see what is coming next.
Also, my rig has been trouble free for the couple thousand miles I have put on it, that being said it is a complex computer on wheels undergoing regular updates, so you have to be willing to deal with that, I love that but I can see where it’s not for everyone.

 

[VSG]

Please don't feed the trolls. If he really wanted to know what the forum thinks, he could have read the thousands of existing posts about this. I'm tired of these demands to regurgitate information just because someone is too lazy to search for themselves.

 

[Gentilly7]

Totally agree on all points. I took possession of my 2025 R1S Tri-motor about 2 months ago and have put about 3,000 miles on it. Every step of the purchase process was sloppy, slow, uninformed and two months after taking delivery Rivian is still trying to figure out how to fill out the registration and title paperwork correctly so I can get my truck registered and my permanent plates; thus far they've sent the paperwork back to me twice with semi-literate post-it-notes directing unclear messages. Three years into delivery they don't have the retail supervision to have this process down pat?

When I call to get clarification? We'll get back to you,,,,,,, still waiting. Poor customer service will lead to their death. That doesn't even begin to address the service issues that I read about on this forum. There is a very limited number of people who will spend over $100,000 on a car and tolerate that level of poor and ineffective service.

The vehicle itself I'm thrilled with. It's unbelievable. 99.9% impressed. Can not imagine going back to an ICE.

The fact that for $110,000 I don't get a spare tire and they can't sell me a spare tire because they don't have any and don't know when they will,,, WTF?

Certain design issues are interesting but not necessary and ill-advised simply because there is not broad outside support available and Rivian can't provide the support in a timely manner. For an example see 12v battery replacement. Sorry but I don't want to schedule an appointment to either have someone come change my battery or me go somewhere to change my battery; 12v dies, stop off at NAPA buy replacement, get out the crescent wrench replace battery, coupled with an automatic reset of saved functions.

Now I have to have someone take the front passenger seat out to replace a 12v? Now I can't even call AAA in a pinch to come to me in an hour and replace my 12v?

I can't pay for XM satelite radio capability? Now I have to pay a monthly subscription to Rivian for cell connected XM? I already have that with BlueTooth with my cell phone and lifetime subscription. Problem is, when I'm on a "real" adventure outside of San Fran, LA, Manhattan etc, there ain't no cell service.

This is an example of over complication and consistent with rejection of even basic right to repair and frankly overly disruptive and controlling.

I like many of us on this forum, I suspect, invested early in Rivian stock and want to see them succeed, but they have to match customer service quality to the brilliance they applied to the design of their vehicles.

RJ, surely you studied Toyota and more specifically Lexus while obtaining the MIT, PhD. You may have the best product but you need a professional sales force with professional adults behind the service desk coupled with accessible service centers and even "after-market" service support to survive.

Give us Lexus/Mercedes quality service or eventually Lexus and Mercedes will give us Rivian quality EV engineering with Lexus and Mercedes level customer service and service centers for repairs.

And to be clear I want to see Rivian survive and thrive and pound the hell out of the legacy auto-makers.

Man! Sorry to hear of your experience. Notice how nobody responded to your post? Like you and everybody here, I’m rooting for Rivian. But I won’t have blind loyalty to the point where I won’t acknowledge shortcomings. Thank you for sharing your experience. Hopefully they figure out your registration and the rest becomes smooth sailing. Best of luck to you.

 

[Ohm Boy]

Does Rivian have what it takes to survive?

YES

 

[Gentilly7]

If the R2 launches with as many reliability issues as the current R1’s without having stepped up the service center experience, than no, my opinion is that they will not survive.

I may be biased. We took delivery of a 2nd gen R1S in September. It spent 4 weeks at a service center. Had it back for only two days before it ended up being towed back to the service center where it has sat since.

They were last on consumer reports reliability rankings and without the service centers built up to handle it they are setting themselves up for a crash and burn with the R2.

Of course this forum won’t say that. It’s an echo chamber of people with deep pockets who will gladly spend tens of thousands for a vehicle with such poor reliability.

The consensus will change when the door is opened to those without as deep pockets.

Man, sorry to hear that. I hope they get you rolling again soon. If not, they should give you a replacement. I know all manufacturers can produce lemons but how they handle it and how many lemons they produce is the differentiator.

A lot of people got their feelings hurt by my post, telling me to go buy a Tesla lol. But I really wanted to hear people’s opinion on if they feel like Rivian, as a company, is doing all it can to survive. There’s always room for improvement but some of the experiences shared are unacceptable.

Thanks for chiming in, best of luck to you.

 

[Zoidz]

I’ve always been bullish on Rivian, but I recently experienced being a customer shopping for a Rivian and it makes me second guess if they have what it takes to survive. The local sales associates are unresponsive to follow ups. The corporate sales reps are not knowledgeable of the products. The vast drivetrain and battery options for a company that barely produces 50k vehicles a years seems like a poor strategy for increasing volume and becoming profitable.

This is a stark contrast to how Tesla was operating before the Model 3 launched.

I hope I’m wrong.

Don’t be ”lazy and ignorant” like me. Explain it to me like I’m 8 years old. I really want you to break down the point you are attempting to make.

Perhaps it was not intended that way, but your comments come across as complaining, baiting and trolling.

You posted a comment about Tesla profitability which was incorrect, and then replied with a snarky tone when someone clearly provided a detailed explanation.

You make a comment about "The vast drivetrain and battery options..." which again seems trolling and snarky. In what alternate universe does 3 battery and 4 motor options, for a total of 12 combinations, equate to "Very great in size, extent or quantity; enormous" ?

vast
/văst/
adjective

1. Very great in size, extent, or quantity. synonym: enormous.
2. Very great in scope or import.
   a vast improvement.

From various keynotes, interviews, videos, etc. presented by Rivian personnel, it's pretty clear that they did their market research when deciding on the battery and motor options. Did you read or watch anything that RJ et al said about this over the past few years? Three battery options are targeted towards the lower cost, average and long range/towing customer demands. Three motor options just like a four cylinder, six cylinder and eight cylinder ICE option, plus the quad appealing to the horsepower enthusiast buyer like the Corvette Z06. In fact, Rivian was blasted by customers and the press by NOT have more battery options for the Gen 1.

 

[JeromePowell]

Why would you ask a question that literally nobody on this forum is properly equipped to answer (other than the obvious rhetorical purpose of an opportunity to complain about a recent experience). Maybe email RJ asking him this question, because the honest answer from everyone here is ?‍

It is highly likely that even RJ Scaringe does not know if RIvian will "make it." No one has a crystal ball.

 

[CharonPDX]

.
This is a stark contrast to how Tesla was operating before the Model 3 launched.

you’re right. Rivian is SIGNIFICANTLY more mature today than Tesla was in 2015. (The beginning of the third year of shipping of their mass-production vehicle - Model S for Tesla, R1T and R1S for Rivian.)

 

[RivianPVE]

I’m no fortune teller so I have no idea if Rivian will survive. The product itself is their strong point and service is their weak point.

It is nice to see tons of Rivians on the road out here in LA. I probably run into at least 10 per day now. There are so many out here, in fact, we don’t even wave to each other anymore ?.

 

[SparkyR1t]

I didn’t ask for purchasing advice. I asked for opinions on if Rivian has what it takes to survive.

Agree with you I have my doubts. It’s not that a company has problems it’s how they recover from them and correct for the future. Tesla almost went bankrupt in 2015 but look at them now. Rivian needs to increase their overall image from the purchase experience to that dreaded appt with service. At this time I am not sure I will purchase another Rivian ( yes I have an R2 reservation) and because Tesla has no new offerings I do not want another Tesla I personally am disappointed in that Rivian is not openly speaking to the issues.

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