Rivian no longer installing tires from third party sellers

[Eric_partman]

I was just told this morning that Rivian is no longer installing parties from third party sellers. The change was made this morning because I literally had tires installed Friday.

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[2kwik4u]

That's good to know. I'm days away from asking the same question of my local service center!

Also, makes sense, Rivian techs could better spend their time/training on more Rivian specific tasks than changing tires. Whole industry of local shops already in place to support that.

 

[SadHill]

That must have been your SC as mind said 4 months ago that they don’t do that any longer.

 

[SeaGeo]

For a company that needs revenue, they don't seem to want to make money.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Not surprised. Any work to support non-factory equipment is unnecessary legal liability. At a time when company growth is the focus, and being sensitive to CAPEX, it’s unnecessary risk.

 

[lefkonj]

Mavis won't install tires that aren't new with the stickers still on them. This is a liability thing, I completely understand.

Having said that locally in NJ I have only found 2 shops that will work on my Rivian's tires.

 

[NY_Rob]

Can't blame them, they have no clue where outside sourced tires came from.

 

[SeaGeo]

Mavis won't install tires that aren't new with the stickers still on them. This is a liability thing, I completely understand.

Having said that locally in NJ I have only found 2 shops that will work on my Rivian's tires.

That's odd... I haven't had an issue with anyone.

Can't blame them, they have no clue where outside sourced tires came from.

Check that the tire meets spec, check that it is road worthy like they would for any OEM tire that someone asks to put on a wheel, and have a liability waiver. It's not complicated. Tire shops do this all of the time. Rivian could make a very easy $200 from people who would rather take it to them than discount tire or wherever.

So will they not put my OEM tires back on after I have their recommended winter tires on my OEM wheels? They wouldn't know where my OEM tires came from.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Check that the tire meets spec, check that it is road worthy like they would for any OEM tire that someone asks to put on a wheel, and have a liability waiver. It's not complicated. Tire shops do this all of the time. Rivian could make a very easy $200 from people who would rather take it to them than discount tire or wherever.

Rivian is paying SC staff a wage. Time = money. Checking all those specs for each instance take time. Time = money. Sure, they could pass the cost to customer to make it worthwhile. But then customers would complain that the service is "overpriced". If you are not new to Rivian related online communities, you'd know people are already complaining that a fairly average price of $235 for multi-point inspection is "overpriced".

No one is saying it's complicated to verify tire compatibility. It's absolutely and completely about legal liability and cost.

 

[SeaGeo]

Rivian is paying techs a wage. Time = money. Checking all those specs for each instance take time.

They pay them a wage, and they charge out at a rate higher than that wage. Look at the sidewall to see if it matches the OEM spec, that takes about five minutes. Check the tires for road worthiness like they should already be doing. Charge $200 to do a tire swap. Make money. Service should not only be a cost center, they can make some money off of it, and this is very low hanging fruit.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

They pay them a wage, and they charge out at a rate higher than that wage. Look at the sidewall to see if it matches the OEM spec, that takes about five minutes. Check the tires for road worthiness like they should already be doing. Charge $200 to do a tire swap. Make money. Service should not only be a cost center, they can make some money off of it, and this is very low hanging fruit.

Eh. Moot to argue over it. Policy is set. Get your tires done elsewhere. Problem solved.

 

[2kwik4u]

this is very low hanging fruit.

It's also a distraction from current corporate goals, and a time suck of resources that could be better spent on more important work. Tire work is commodity level service, repairing a HV battery, a drive unit, or suspension issue is a much better utilization of the talent at hand, and the time available to get work done.

We can't have "Service Center wait times are horrendous, they really need to fix this" AND "Why don't they perform commodity services" at the same time.

 

[Dark-Fx]

For a company that needs revenue, they don't seem to want to make money.

Rivian has probably paid a lot for rental cars for anyone who had their vehicle waiting because of basic tire services that a customer could receive elsewhere.

 

[SeaGeo]

It's also a distraction from current corporate goals, and a time suck of resources that could be better spent on more important work. Tire work is commodity level service, repairing a HV battery, a drive unit, or suspension issue is a much better utilization of the talent at hand, and the time available to get work done.

We can't have "Service Center wait times are horrendous, they really need to fix this" AND "Why don't they perform commodity services" at the same time.

This makes the most sense to me. They are constantly bringing on entry level techs who are limited in scope of what they can/are allowed to do, this is something that would be a good option of them.

That being said, corporate goal #1 is make money. I'm not the person going to them to get my tires done, so it doesn't directly impact me. It just seems silly to turn down commodity, fast turnaround work at their not-commodity rates for the people who want to get winter tires put on by Rivian for example. They have quick service bays in service centers for this exact type of thing.

Rivian has probably paid a lot for rental cars for anyone who had their vehicle waiting because of basic tire services that a customer could receive elsewhere.

lol. Yeah... Rivian is cutting costs everywhere *except* rental car costs. It's baffling. My R1S has been hanging out in their lot for two weeks now without being touched. The only reason it's in for service was to get some rattles addressed before my 12 month adjustment warranty expired.

 

[runningdenver]

I got a flat in my tire wall driving down from the mountains 10 days ago. I was VERY GLAD I'd bought the inflatable spare or it would have been a lot more drama.

I didn't bother to contact Rivian - just went straight to Discount Tire who are much closer. They had 2 Rivian approved options for my 21s (yes - I know - lucky me on the 21s....) - the original pirellis and some michelins. They had the pucks and got it done within an hour.

With other vehicles I'd owned - I'd never have gone back to the dealership for something like tires, and here in Denver at least - there's absolutely no reason to either for Rivian. Plenty of other options.

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