Plastic underbody ripped off

[gunslinger201]

Not sure if anyone else has experienced this, but this happened last night...
Was driving at night during heavy rain on a dark paved road and hit some standing water on the road doing about 25. Couldn't see it until I was in it... Slowed immediately but heard a noise from underneath and thought I must've run something over.
About a mile from home, I hear a scraping noise and figure I must be dragging like a small branch or something, no big deal. Get home and look underneath to find that basically the plastic underbody panels around the rear drive assembly are either gone or badly ripped. Some of the metal pieces that had bolts are torn and even the rear subframe crossmember (where there were two bolts) have been blown out from the bolts being ripped out.
So... has anyone else had this happen or seen it before? I find it astonishing that a truck that is supposed to be able to ford 3 feet of water that these panels can be removed so easy. Completely get that water can be destructive, etc but what I experienced last night was nothing more than a normal day in South Florida. Just seems like a bad design on a truck that is a capable offroader.
I've contacted Rivian about a potential warranty claim but I'm not holding my breath.
Bonus question: Anyone know how dangerous it is to run without those panels underneath? Seems like they are mainly for aerodynamics, so I'm thinking I just take them all the way off...
Anyway, enjoy the carnage pics.

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[runwithscissors]

Should've went for the reinforced underbody! That's absurd if they don't fix it but wouldn't be surprised given their money crunch. I've heard of guys doing this before in the forums and I believe they fixed it for free. Best of luck...

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Holy shit guy. I'm willing to bet your "approximately 25 MPH" was 35-45MPH. Yes this truck can ford 3' of water, but SLOWLY. Because of surface tension, hitting water at 25MPH has the density of concrete. So even if it was only 25MPH, that's like hitting a solid curb at 25. Not surprising you ripped the panels.

 

[RivianNeighbor]

Collision with objects (including standing water) isn't covered under warranty.

 

[majorfriend]

Holy shit guy. I'm willing to bet your "approximately 25 MPH" was 35-45MPH. Yes this truck can ford 3' of water, but SLOWLY. Because of surface tension, hitting water at 25MPH has the density of concrete. So even if it was only 25MPH, that's like hitting a solid curb at 25. Not surprising you ripped the panels.

The force at 25mph would be significant, but not like concrete, more like a heavy powder.

Still enough to rip off aero panels, obviosuly.

 

[Cycliste]

Is sand a heavy powder? I’m not sure what heavy powder is.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Is sand a heavy powder? I’m not sure what heavy powder is.

Try carrying a sandbag. 90-100 lbs per cubic foot. 62.4 lbs for same volume of water.

Force of impact=mass x acceleration

 

[gunslinger201]

So...wanted to ask and see if anyone could give me more info.
Rivian is still playing coy about whether they'll warranty this - if they do, great. If not, not gonna lose sleep.
I am thinking about "bulletproofing" this regardless. By that I mean trying to source the reinforced underbody shield panels, or at least the rear ones - I do not foresee any need for the extra battery protection.
I saw a thread on here where a guy took the shield off a junked donor and was able to fit it no issues, literally bolted up and after studying the pics, it looks like it's a series of panels, not one big one. Anyone have any info about that?
If so, aside from the main battery panel, are the others just carbon fiber instead of plastic? On eBay, I can find both a plastic version of the big rear panel (PT00101120-C) and what looks like CF (PT00000392). Another panel I need looks like this one (PT00553009), which also appears to have a CF alternative (PT00000384). My thought process is that carbon fiber would hold up better than plastic in a standing water situation....
So - if anyone has the part numbers for the reinforced shield panels or can confirm the above pieces are part of that package, I would be grateful.
Any thoughts or info would be appreciated. Thanks!

p.s. - the front "skid plate" on my truck (non-RUS) is made of carbon fiber (PT00550775) but there's also another one...? (PT00006431) I'm so confused...

 

[Riviot]

Docs coming soon

 

[Glembi2]

A fabricator in Texas made one for the front plate out of aluminum but I have not seen anything for the rear.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

A fabricator in Texas made one for the front plate out of aluminum but I have not seen anything for the rear.

Two options exist for the front: Rival and DCE. But one forum member said it's really not needed, the factory carbon shield is fine as is and he probably wouldn't have bought the Rival if he had known how substantial the stock one is. No one has made one for the rear.

 

[Riviot]

I believe the panel you see under the main battery is actually part of the battery, and they're all the same, so you can't change that. I'm happy to be wrong, but pretty sure I'm right.

On eBay, I can find both a plastic version of the big rear panel (PT00101120-C) and what looks like CF (PT00000392)

(PT00101120-C) Is indeed plastic.

(PT00000392) Doesn't come up in the system.

Another panel I need looks like this one (PT00553009), which also appears to have a CF alternative (PT00000384).

Again, (PT00553009) appears and is plastic.

(PT00000384) Is not in the system.


Docs are attached.

 

[mikehmb]

If I'm seeing the damage correctly, were it me, I would go aftermarket and replace with something beefy.

https://evsportline.com/collections...-r1t-r1s-heavy-duty-aluminum-front-skid-plate

There may be others. I recall a thread or three on the forums a while back.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

If I'm seeing the damage correctly, were it me, I would go aftermarket and replace with something beefy.

https://evsportline.com/collections...-r1t-r1s-heavy-duty-aluminum-front-skid-plate

There may be others. I recall a thread or three on the forums a while back.

It's the rear piece he damaged. Not the front.

 

[gunslinger201]

@Riviot
Thanks for the info!
Looks like the docs you attached only list the part numbers for the bolts holding the panels on (which I'll likely need anyway, so thanks) but not the panels themselves.
Interesting that some of the part numbers aren't appearing in the system... I wonder if they are part of a larger package (the RUS) and aren't meant for individual resale, therefore aren't listed as individual parts for purchase...?
This is what {PT00000392 looks like:

Clearly it is not plastic and looks to be some sort of composite...? Here's a close up:


For reference, here's the plastic one ( PT00101120-C)

There are essentially three panels from the battery to the back bumper:
- a small rectangular piece, listed in your third doc as " Panel, Underbody, HV Battery, Rear". That is PT00553009
- a large triangular piece that covers the rear drive motors in your first doc and detailed above, PT00101120-C.
- a diffuser, PT00101121-C.
All of these components appear to have composite counterparts with different part numbers.
( PT00000384, PT00000392 and PT00000381 respectively).

I've reached out to a few of the eBay folks to see if they can tell me the difference and when I hear back, I'll report. It'd be amazing if I could upfit the truck to have an mostly composite (carbon fiber?) underbody for less than $1k....

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