12 Volt Demons Caught Up With The Count

[bael]

Third set??? Six batteries in 4.25 yrs.. .that's terrible and the opposite of "green" which Rivian likes aspire to.

And as a stockholder.. who the hell is paying for all these batteries and labor?
Early on we used to postulate that Rivian "must have gotten a bad batch" from their original supplier and that the supplier was replacing them at no cost to Rivian. Now Rivian is on their second 12V battery supplier and we're still seeing dead batteries and now even in the much newer Gen2 R1 vehicles. At this point we have to assume it's not still "a bad batch" or a problem with the 12V batts from the second supplier. That being the case, and if we know it as a 3rd party, the battery suppliers certainly know it and I would assume they won't be paying for failed batts either?

Set since I have the dual’s with the early versions.
first ones had to have been bad or sat forever since they had croaked pretty quickly after having had the truck.
Really hoping I can get a good long time like the count - I think the dual set runs what 8-900?

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[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Third set??? Six batteries in 4.25 yrs.. .that's terrible and the opposite of "green" which Rivian likes aspire to.

Can't speak for your other points, but on the subject of "green", aren't normal lead-acid batteries completely recyclable pretty easily? I know it's not much, but at least that's something...

 

[Dark-Fx]

Third set??? Six batteries in 4.25 yrs.. .that's terrible and the opposite of "green" which Rivian likes aspire to.

And as a stockholder.. who the hell is paying for all these batteries and labor?
Early on we used to postulate that Rivian "must have gotten a bad batch" from their original supplier and that the supplier was replacing them at no cost to Rivian. Now Rivian is on their second 12V battery supplier and we're still seeing dead batteries and now even in the much newer Gen2 R1 vehicles. At this point we have to assume it's not still "a bad batch" or a problem with the 12V batts from the second supplier. That being the case, and if we know it as a 3rd party, the battery suppliers certainly know it and I would assume they won't be paying for failed batts either?

Lead acid batteries are some of the most recycled components in existence. Majority of a new battery is made with recycled components.

 

[NY_Rob]

Can't speak for your other points, but on the subject of "green", aren't normal lead-acid batteries completely recyclable pretty easily? I know it's not much, but at least that's something...

Yeah, pretty much, supposedly 97% of a standard automotive battery is recoverable. But there is some waste and it takes quite a bit of energy to re-purify the lead. Interestingly, "new" lead-acid batteries today are made up of over 80% recycled lead. I've read that the main reason automotive batteries don't last as long as they did years ago is in fact due to their high percentage of recycled lead. Is that accurate? I have no idea

 

[rodhx]

I'm on my 3rd set in 4.25 years of ownership. So, what's that, average of just under a year and a half!

I’m now on set #4 and today is my four year ownership anniversary. Set #1 died the day after I brought the truck home from a 10-day stay at the service center where it largely sat around idle and never on a charger.

 

[runwithscissors]

Mine was just replaced under warranty: ESS_LV_BATTERYPart# PT00044052-D
Is that a dual-battery? Never asked them when I picked it up.

 

[NY_Rob]

Mine was just replaced under warranty: ESS_LV_BATTERYPart# PT00044052-D
Is that a dual-battery? Never asked them when I picked it up.

Single battery vehicle production started around March 2023..

 

[NSRoamer]

The Count received a text to approve the estimate for thursday's mobile service. nothing has populated yet. over/under says $826

That price is insane for those little batteries - even with the "Rivian premium"!!

I can buy 2 X2Power deep cycle group 27F batteries from BatteriesPlus+ for less than that! Too bad one of those bad boys doesn't fit in the Rivian. X2Power batteries are made in Springfield, Missouri by Enersys/Northstar - maybe Rivian should consider getting their batteries from Enersys. Since they already make motorsport batteries, a drop in for Rivian shouln't be a problem.

 

[bael]

I’m now on set #4 and today is my four year ownership anniversary. Set #1 died the day after I brought the truck home from a 10-day stay at the service center where it largely sat around idle and never on a charger.

There must be something else going on with some of our early builds that has us winning dead 12v awards

 

[Rivian Owner]

Lead acid batteries are some of the most recycled components in existence. Majority of a new battery is made with recycled components.

Except the lead smelting to reform the lead plates for new batteries releases tons of lead into the air and pollutes the surrounding environment. Most lead acid recycling has moved overseas because worker and environmental protections are nonexistent. Just because you can repurpose something does not make it better than other options. Li batteries can be recycled.

 

[McLovin]

So, this may have been mentioned earlier (not going to scroll through 11 pages), but I asked the service rep this morning about my battery. He said the most recent update was better tuned to detect "possible 12v issues", which is why so many of us are suddenly being flagged.

Another great experience at my SC (Sterling, VA), btw. In & out in 2 hours, including a car wash (we're on drought restrictions in my county, so no washing vehicles at home...). They even offered to get me a ride to get coffee if I needed it (which I didn't).

They would have done this as a mobile service, but I don't have a Level 2 charger at home.

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