Clunk / multiple rebound from rear suspension, service center says it feels "normal"

[Druidspirit]

For sure a factor. I have a rattle in the passenger door I can only hear from the drivers seat. When I have someone else drive and I sit on the passenger side, total silence. Urgh!!

It's the curse of EV's. They're so quiet you hear everything. And Rivian still hasn't perfected all the spots to add soundproofing, deadening materials.

I have a clicking somewhere on the driver's side that only I can hear. Not sure if it's coming from the door or the dash or the steering wheel. haha I've tried to find it, but it doesn't always do it.

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[TTedP]

Last thought, if they offered a simpler S with normal coil springs, I'd consider it (basically the R2 suspension in R1 form).

 

[TTedP]

I have a clicking somewhere on the driver's side that only I can hear. Not sure if it's coming from the door or the dash or the steering wheel. haha I've tried to find it, but it doesn't always do it.

Getting OT - Lots of tips posted in here for where to look but this is one that I had, didnt see posted and took me a good month to find. Maybe it helps. Drivers side footwell under the dash. Pull that cover off and add some felt.

I also had the clicking steering wheel which is a spring or something that comes loose in there. SC fixed it (whole new steering wheel) and it came back 2 months later. No sense in going in again.

 

[Druidspirit]

Getting OT - Lots of tips posted in here for where to look but this is one that I had, didnt see posted and took me a good month to find. Maybe it helps. Drivers side footwell under the dash. Pull that cover off and add some felt.

I also had the clicking steering wheel which is a spring or something that comes loose in there. SC fixed it (whole new steering wheel) and it came back 2 months later. No sense in going in again.

oh, I didn't think about under the dash. I need to check that out. thank you.

 

[rogersmj]

Last thought, if they offered a simpler S with normal coil springs, I'd consider it (basically the R2 suspension in R1 form).

I would buy that immediately. I don't need hugely adjustable air suspension, I'd rather have something simpler and more reliable, but still with the third row and all the space.

 

[FreddyFugazi]

This seems like a long shot given how much this issues has been looked at on your R1 already, but try extending the suspension to max height then to lowest. I read on another thread that the suspension calibration can sometimes drift over time and cause this type of issue. Forcing it to exercise the full range of motion will reset any miscalibrations that have developed. I'm probably not describing that accurately, but I was having a similar behavior coming from the front-right on my R1T shortly after I got it (I thought the shock was blown) and after doing this the problem went away for me.

 

[Druidspirit]

This seems like a long shot given how much this issues has been looked at on your R1 already, but try extending the suspension to max height then to lowest. I read on another thread that the suspension calibration can sometimes drift over time and cause this type of issue. Forcing it to exercise the full range of motion will reset any miscalibrations that have developed. I'm probably not describing that accurately, but I was having a similar behavior coming from the front-right on my R1T shortly after I got it (I thought the shock was blown) and after doing this the problem went away for me.

Were you moving when you extended to max height? I did it in my garage and I don't think it really made any difference. But if it needs to be moving a bit, I'll try that.

 

[FreddyFugazi]

Were you moving when you extended to max height? I did it in my garage and I don't think it really made any difference. But if it needs to be moving a bit, I'll try that.

No, I was parked. I figured it was a longshot but its easy enough to try.

 

[TTedP]

This seems like a long shot given how much this issues has been looked at on your R1 already, but try extending the suspension to max height then to lowest.

For giggles, I dropped it to 'Lowest' on the way home. The rumbling wasn't there. Also stayed quiet in 'Low'. Sport mode > Lowest/Low > Firm/Medium were all no chatter from the rear.

 

[Druidspirit]

For giggles, I dropped it to 'Lowest' on the way home. The rumbling wasn't there. Also stayed quiet in 'Low'. Sport mode > Lowest/Low > Firm/Medium were all no chatter from the rear.

I'll have to try that around the neighborhood. Not sure I want to do it too much, doesn't it cause extreme wear on the tires?

 

[Jonger1150]

I don't think you will ever see an R1 without air suspension. It's literally the defining aspect to the vehicle. It's noisy and high maintenance, but that's part of owning a high end vehicle.

Put ear plugs in and drive an F150 and R1T. With the noise aspect removed, you'll be shocked at how tremendously articulate and capable the R1T is compared to the competition. The noise sucks, but that's just how 7 inches of verticle adjustment is.

 

[TTedP]

I don't think you will ever see an R1 without air suspension.

Never say never! They did it with the Cybertruck (I'm 94% joking)

 

[2kwik4u]

........but that's part of owning a high end vehicle.

The noise sucks, but that's just how 7 inches of verticle adjustment is.

These, in my opinion, are awful takes.

Owning a high end vehicle should not be a noisy and rattly experience. Of all the engineering prowess that Rivian maintains I refuse to believe these are SUPPOSED to sound/act this way.

I've had air suspension for decades and it didn't sound like this. The electro-mechanical shocks are the same conceptual system as used in McLarens, and those owners sure as heck wouldn't accept this as "normal".

 

[Jonger1150]

These, in my opinion, are awful takes.

Owning a high end vehicle should not be a noisy and rattly experience. Of all the engineering prowess that Rivian maintains I refuse to believe these are SUPPOSED to sound/act this way.

I've had air suspension for decades and it didn't sound like this. The electro-mechanical shocks are the same conceptual system as used in McLarens, and those owners sure as heck wouldn't accept this as "normal".

I agree, but I have to wonder what the fix could be. The noise is a combination of half-shafts and air suspension. Are there other air suspension options that double as the sway bars? How many ball spline half-shafts are on the market? Also remember that this thing is 2000 lbs more than your Land Rover.

 

[2kwik4u]

I agree, but I have to wonder what the fix could be. The noise is a combination of half-shafts and air suspension. Are there other air suspension options that double as the sway bars? How many ball spline half-shafts are on the market? Also remember that this thing is 2000 lbs more than your Land Rover.

You're not wrong. It's a first edition of a very unique suspension system. There isn't anything else on the market like it, which I think leads to some of the "Well, it's just this way" mentality.

The noise isn't the air springs. It's the half shafts and the active hydraulic dampers that make the noise.

I've had air suspension, both factory and aftermarket, for over the last decade and NONE of them rattled/clanked like this one. The Q7 had similar articulation (~5in compared to~7in on the Rivian), and I drove it well over 100k miles without noise. When it did start to rattle, it was a strut mount, not the strut itself. Had aftermarket air suspension on my Sierra, granted those airbags were separate from the dampers, the supported weight was similar.

I've also designed industrial machinery that has sliding splined shafts that don't rattle like these. Some transmitting 100's of HP with significantly more articulation, AND in a vibratory environment. Those were, arguably, "beefier" shafts, but it's the same premise. Articulating joint on each end, and a sliding splined shaft in the center. Service life for those was around a year, and they were designed to run 24/7/365 (60k hrs), which is equivalent to ~1.5mil miles (25mph assumed). With that said, they were custom built, and not high volume production pieces, so I get they aren't completely apples to apples there; but I think it's close enough for this conversation.

**edit** Found a video of the machine I designed that used those sliding connections. This is a "steady state" video. Startup and Shutdown had amplitudes in the 10-15in range depending on loading. Steady state amplitude was closer to an inch or so.​

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https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ghh9qiRXypUtxTbaA​

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**/edit**​

Personal opinion here, not backed by any measurements, just backed by decades as a mechanical engineering and self-proclaimed car guy status.......The half shafts have a poor manufacturing tolerance as well as poor design, and the electro-hydraulic suspension suffers from cavitation due to poorly sized lines/valves/fittings.

Better tolerances on the splined shafts would add cost, but eliminate the "rattle" that they have under reversing loads. Also, moving the splines from the moving bit to the stationary bit would also likely help that issue. Putting the splines on the output shaft of the drive units, and not in the middle of the shaft would eliminate a good portion of the loading it sees. It's a more difficult sealing arrangement to solve, but I doubt it would rattle.

--I THINK--The hydraulic dampers are "loud" due to the "water hammer" style effect of cavitation as fluid moves rapidly into/out of the cylinders under reversing loads. This particular effect is worsened by less than consistent air bleeding techniques by different service centers and the factory. Lines sizing, fitting radius considerations, and internal routings could likely lessen this effect.

So, while "they all do this" is likely accurate at some level, I think letting Rivian think it's anything other than unacceptable is a misstep. I've taken mine to 3 different service centers, none of which could resolve the issue, so I pursued a lemon buyback with Rivian, which ultimately resulted in me keeping the truck and getting a cash payout. Enough of us raise our voice in this manner it will get their attention eventually. They'll either fix it, or decide it's good enough and just payout those of us that complain loud enough (likely cheaper than resolving it).

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