Would you still buy your Rivian today?

[SANZC02]

First post, sorry for the doozy question. I'm sure I'll get some passionate responses.

Owned a Model S since 2014 and while it's been incredibly reliable even at 154,000 miles the time is coming to replace it. I love EV's, my experience despite crazy Elon mode has been mostly positive. Definitely more positive than my ICE cars in the past. So, I'm looking at Rivian as an option.

I'm used to the fact that EV's are still new technology, getting service can be a challenge (In VA, the auto dealers association continues to fight the direct sales /service model in the courts but there's a Rivian SC 15 minutes from my house), and I know all about how long it takes to charge. I've taken my family from VA to Disney twice, done Atlanta a few times, etc.

My wife swears she'd never see me in a pickup truck, but I'm keeping options open so the car may be R1T or R1S. I'm still sorting that out.

Won't go back to Tesla and Lucid seems like a risky option considering it's almost 60% owned by the Saudi PIF. Curious about Scout, too.

For people who own a Rivian, would you buy your car again?
If yes, what (if any) changes would you make?
If no, why?

Short answer yes, matter of fact we have a reservation in on an R2 to replace our 2016 Model S with 108k on it. To be honest with free premium connectivity and Supercharging we will probably keep the Model S but my wife will use the R2 as her daily driver.

We currently have an R1S that was built October 10th 2022 and I took delivery January 26, 2023 in Normal. Including the maiden trip where I went to the east coast before heading back to SoCal I have been on 3 trips covering 6500, 7500, and 7700 miles around the US. Great road trip vehicle, currently have 40.5k miles on it and based on my very positive experience I have no plans to get rid of it anytime soon.

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[SANZC02]

I don't understand the AC complaints, I live in Phoenix and find that the AC is exemplary, super fast, super cold.

I agree, we have a place in the Palm Springs area and have visited family several times in the Phoenix area in the middle of summer and have zero complaints about the AC on my G1 R1S. We have been in total sun on cloudless days in temps over 115 degrees with no AC issues.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

@hsctiger TLDR Colo(u)r coded it to make it less wind baggy...

Would I buy it again?
Yes. 100%
- I've adapted and found the range to be more than sufficient. This is my first EV, and in spite of initial range anxiety, especially around backcountry off road adventuring,

- The breadth of capability is really the draw for me, and if you read the forums, the most talked about Rivian functionality. The ability to drop it into Sport Mode on a windy stretch of highway, and then raise it into Rally Mode and hit some dusty/muddy dirt roads is really the most compelling reason for me.

- Better today than when took delivery It was already the best thing I had ever owned vehicle wise, but over the months/years, that ownership has continued to get better and better. Sure there is the odd soft glitch along the way, but the benefit has been substantial to the end user.

- The people. from the bottom up you get a sense of the passion everyone has for the brand. While it's easy for a CEO, in this case a good one, to gush over the brand, It really needs to resonate with the people that build the vehicles, service them, or just take our calls. And I honestly haven't come across anyone that hasn't been stoked on being part of the company. That passion is hard to find. I hope it can endure.

- I've been fortunate, my ownership experience has come with a service center within 15km's of my home. So while yes, my vehicle has had a couple issues along the 2.5 years of ownership, having that service center so close has made those repairs hassle free for me, and they've always gone over and above any dealership I've dealt with in the past. I will add, I have not been kind to my R1T, I use the bed for renos, fire wood, hauling debris, road trips, and as much off roading as I can. Sure I wash it often, and keep the interior as clean as I can in spite of my 2.5 year old daughter best efforts.... It's held up really well.

Would I pay full price for a maxed out Gen 2 Quad to replace my Gen 1 Quad?
- No. The value proposition isn't really there for me. If I had to buy a new one, I'd likely opt for a performance dual motor, or tri motor. The Dune Edition had me very tempted to ditch my Gen 1 Quad for the Tri.

What would my Rivian Gen 3 changes be?
- 800v or better architecture. Even on road trips, I haven't found the current 400v architecture to be limited, and often stop regardless of the Rivians need to charge or not. But, in those rare instances where I do want to dump a bunch of power in quickly, it would be nice if the vehicle could accommodate.

- Better battery cooling. Rivian needs to consider a triple cooling plate design or a strategy that better addresses the hot spots in the few cells that seem to de-rate the entire pack on more exhaustive repeated DCFC events.

- 2" more rear passenger space (R1T specific) This is a bit more of a redesign of the body in general, but even if the entire truck needs to grow by 2" to make it happen, I think there are enough "Tallies" that would appreciate a little more legroom when hauling more than 2 people. It would also make getting in and out of the rear easier overall. I know the constraints are tonneau, gear tunnel, and bed length, which is why I think the entire truck would need the extra length.

R1T or R1S?

- Depends Having only owned cars and SUV's prior, I was initially drawn to the R1T for a change up, but as the years in preorder purgatory went by, I was contemplating R1S more and more just due to the familiarity, and the fact that throughout the years, I had always made an SUV work for any task.

When it finally came time to lock in my preorder, my wife and I went for the R1T. Our life had changed and renovations etc were going to be easier with a truck. After about a year with the T, we had the opportunity to take an R1S for a week of camping. The interior and rear seat access was a clear win, but as the trip went into it's second and third day, we realized just how much we appreciate and utilize the gear tunnel for those longer items etc. Having the bulk of your gear completely out of the cabin is a huge perk and cemented the R1T as the right choice for us.

R2?
- I've had a preorder since day 1.

- The R2 and for that matter R3X are more a want, than a need that I just don't know I can justify.For us the R2 will fill the SUV sweet spot. If we follow through with the order, it will be owned along side our current R1T. The biggest hang-up on purchasing is really the lack of a second parking space at our condo in Vancouver. Our house has the space, but it would defeat the purpose. And really looking at the purchase objectively, we don't really need a second vehicle at this point. Wife can work from home, daycare is 3 blocks away.

 

[Dave Cundiff]

I'm happy with our 2023's (both Gen 1).

I suspect I'd like the Gen 2 as well, except that an easily accessible manual door release (that doesn't require us to remember any procedures when we're excited, scared, and/or injured) seems to be a very important safety advantage for the Gen 1.

I'd love to have the improved cameras of Gen 2, but I'm not willing to sacrifice door safety to get them.

***

To the poster who mentioned AI bots: When using (855) RIVIAN-5, I don't have to mess with the chatbots. I would be very frustrated with the chatbot process, but (855) RIVIAN-5 works very well with the (mostly very skilled and caring) humans who staff it.

Best to all!

 

[jagwoods]

I'm just waiting for the insurance check to buy another after getting t-boned a couple weeks ago. My 24 Quad was totaled, and I'm trying to decide between another 24 Quad or 25 dual max. I'm waking up each day nervous though that the settlement offer is going to be low and I'm going to have to fight for more. Also, I'm beyond frustrated that dealerships selling used Rivians seemingly have no idea what battery size is in the vehicle. It's incredibly difficult to figure out what they're actually selling.

 

[Dave Cundiff]

A wider sample, and less biased than an owner forum, is from Consumer Reports' most recent satisfaction survey at https://www.consumerreports.org/car.../most-and-least-liked-car-brands-a1291429338/ .

#1, by a wide margin, is Rivian -- 86% of responding Rivian owners would buy Rivian again.

Every other make ranged from 51% to 73% -- WAY behind Rivian.

Our Rivians have issues, most of which don't bother us significantly. We're in the 86% who would do it all over again if the occasion presented.

Very best wishes!

 

[runwithscissors]

I would've went with a Gen1 R1T for sure over my R1S because the suspension stinks even with 20's. R1T is way better with the loaners I had and I don't need the trunk space. I also didn't know that they were producing R1T's first so that cost me a year.

 

[10BladeDad]

1wk into ownership (less than 100mi). I'm loving my R1S TM, wife thinks seats aren't comfortable for the price

 

[portdirect]

I don't understand the AC complaints, I live in Phoenix and find that the AC is exemplary, super fast, super cold.

I agree, we have a place in the Palm Springs area and have visited family several times in the Phoenix area in the middle of summer and have zero complaints about the AC on my G1 R1S. We have been in total sun on cloudless days in temps over 115 degrees with no AC issues.

The dry heat in Phoenix requires less total cooling than the humid heat in places like Houston. Because humidity adds latent load, the outdoor-to-cabin enthalpy drop is larger in Houston, so the A/C must work harder even when its air temperature is lower. This is why you see people in humid locations complaining - Rivian have ACK'd this and have done software changes, and I'd not be surprised to see a larger condenser or other hardware tweaks in gen3.

Edit: added graph to show relative Enthalpy drops required at different times of year (on average) to get to desired cabin climate:

 

[SDH]

Bit late to the party but I'll wade in ... love our Gen 1 R1T Launch Edition. Lucky we got early pricing which made it bargain of the century. Will trade it in for the R2 and will get an R3X.

Also, the general brand and community are great. Folks on here genuinely helpful (I'm sure as a result of Rivian being a new car maker and many of us being the early beta testers). Service can be hit and miss but no problems for me in almost 3 yrs.

Do it.

 

[Ilovejunebugs]

Yes. While not perfect (had its share of service center visits), it's my favorite vehicle I've ever owned. I bought mine used and would likely choose this route again as the first owner took the depreciation. It's also the first pickup truck I've ever owned and I love the utility it provides. So much so that I'm not sure I'll fulfill my R2 reservation...at least not for myself.

 

[Dave711]

First post, sorry for the doozy question. I'm sure I'll get some passionate responses.

Owned a Model S since 2014 and while it's been incredibly reliable even at 154,000 miles the time is coming to replace it. I love EV's, my experience despite crazy Elon mode has been mostly positive. Definitely more positive than my ICE cars in the past. So, I'm looking at Rivian as an option.

I'm used to the fact that EV's are still new technology, getting service can be a challenge (In VA, the auto dealers association continues to fight the direct sales /service model in the courts but there's a Rivian SC 15 minutes from my house), and I know all about how long it takes to charge. I've taken my family from VA to Disney twice, done Atlanta a few times, etc.

My wife swears she'd never see me in a pickup truck, but I'm keeping options open so the car may be R1T or R1S. I'm still sorting that out.

Won't go back to Tesla and Lucid seems like a risky option considering it's almost 60% owned by the Saudi PIF. Curious about Scout, too.

For people who own a Rivian, would you buy your car again?
If yes, what (if any) changes would you make?
If no, why?

No. I really like my quad R1S. This is a bucket list item. I would not pay 125 K plus tax for it.

 

[Dave711]

I would buy another quad if it was 80k plus a credit for 7.5 k and I got a good price for a trade in. I can't imagine buying a non-quad. I will keep my R1S.

 

[140 degrees]

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful responses.

My wife has set a budget where I'm going to have to go used if I get one. No problem. Seems like low mileage used inventory is pretty healthy but it also looks like I should focus on Gen 2. Don't need serious off-road capability but will likely tow some but not long distances.

Appreciate the negative thoughts as well. Your comments were specific and focused on the issues. She probably won't like to hear the issues with the A/C. That's a problem in my Model S today- not enough fan motor for her liking.

When I first picked up my Model S in 2014, Tesla was a different company. The service center here in Richmond was service-focused, friendly, well-trained, but most importantly not too busy. When I had an issue- no matter how small- they took care of me. The online scheduling and the fact I could get most of the work done remotely was a huge pickup and I hope it would be the same with Rivian.

Today, the Tesla Richmond VA service center is beyond its capacity but I'm pretty sure the VADA is legally keeping them to one location and I doubt they'd move to a larger one (a West End and a Southside location would make more sense). Remarkably, my scheduling issues with them are equal parts work load and the age of my car. Not many Tesla technicians are trained on older Model S cars. So, I have to wait for "the guy" to become available which also stinks. I imagine "the guy" is like that older IT programmer who's the last one on earth who knows how to work an outdated computer language and I hope he/she's making bank for it.

I'm going to schedule a visit and test drive at the Rivian RVA SC in October. Are there any questions I should ask the person as I make my appointment? Would I get an honest answer if I asked how busy their SC was?

One of the tabs on RivianForums is call CLUBS. A quick scan showed there was a new one that is close to you. Only four members so far, but I would post in this subforum and ask about their experiences with the local Service Center. They could tell you about their experience with lead times for service. There might even be someone who would meet you for coffee, to share their experiences.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/groups/tidewater-and-coastal-virginia-rivian-club-tacvrc.109/

 

[Revo]

I am a OG waited 3 yrs and 21 days to get my pre order from 2019. Ordered a R1T glacier white, quad motor (only one you could order) 835HP with the off road package. Two moths ago I traded it for a 2025 R1T tri motor 850 HP with sport 22" street tires and dark out package.

I love the truck, the best move I made was going with the street - sport tires. I can get around 400 miles range. I road trip about 10 times a year. Only thing I miss is the median sound system, it was way better than the premium sound system I have now.

The improvements from Gen 1 to Gen 2 are awsome. What I love the new Gen 3 tonneau cover, 4k cameras, hands-free self driving, improved efficiency for range, doors close easier, suspension-ride quality is better, and the adaptive headlights are awsome.

One big disappointment for me is, I was promised a camp speaker as part of my deal during trade in by my sales representative. I have been texting with my service center and they keep saying they will look into it and get back to me, supposedly it has been elevated to a higher department as of Friday.

I would buy it again!
Hope this helps.

Gen 1 Glacier White 2022
Gen 2 Storm Blue 2025

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