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@Pixelshot

Great stuff, watched everything through once by myself and then again with the wife (on a big screen in Dolby Digital :D)

I'm kind of in the same place - I haven't done an "intro" post, but I'm looking to replace our Tesla M3P, and our other vehicle is a Wrangler 4xe (which we're keeping).

The latter was the result of: 1) wanting to try out an EV by way of a PHEV, got it back in April '21, and 2) coming from a Durango DD/RT and we realized we didn't really need a 3-row.

That second point is sort of where I'm at with a Rivian, don't really need the extra people space - and also, like you pointed out, our need for a truck (with an open bed) is pretty infrequent too.

I guess - sort of thinking out loud:

I've never owned a truck (Dad did, and in the SE, I'm surrounded by them, there's two across the street :D), so it would be something new, probably make trips for mulch a little easier.

I think the cases of needing to seat for that 5 are less than the situations where a truck would be handy.

I'm sort of in want-this-now mode, and there are some low mileage R1Ts for sale, right now, that I could have in a week (vs. waiting on a new R1S and/or for the used market to get a decent number of vehicles).

We have, and are keeping, our "closed back" SUV-ish sort of ride with the Wrangler (though we're about to remove the top ... :cool:)

Sounds like I've talked myself into the T vs. the S :D
@Pixelshot

Great stuff, watched everything through once by myself and then again with the wife (on a big screen in Dolby Digital :D)



I'm kind of in the same place - I haven't done an "intro" post, but I'm looking to replace our Tesla M3P, and our other vehicle is a Wrangler 4xe (which we're keeping).

The latter was the result of: 1) wanting to try out an EV by way of a PHEV, got it back in April '21, and 2) coming from a Durango DD/RT and we realized we didn't really need a 3-row.

That second point is sort of where I'm at with a Rivian, don't really need the extra people space - and also, like you pointed out, our need for a truck (with an open bed) is pretty infrequent too.

I guess - sort of thinking out loud:

I've never owned a truck (Dad did, and in the SE, I'm surrounded by them, there's two across the street :D), so it would be something new, probably make trips for mulch a little easier.

I think the cases of needing to seat for that 5 are less than the situations where a truck would be handy.

I'm sort of in want-this-now mode, and there are some low mileage R1Ts for sale, right now, that I could have in a week (vs. waiting on a new R1S and/or for the used market to get a decent number of vehicles).

We have, and are keeping, our "closed back" SUV-ish sort of ride with the Wrangler (though we're about to remove the top ... :cool:)

Sounds like I've talked myself into the T vs. the S :D
First off, welcome to the Forum @MaskedRacerX - very cool avatar.

I hear you 100%. I was set for an R1T but seeing all the coverage of the R1S and having to put my R1T on hold because of the Power Tonneau Cover mess has put me back into a place where I'm reconsidering.

I'm concerned that they will never really get the power cover figured out completely and it will be a headache now and in the future. I'm hoping to keep an R1 vehicle for quite some time - minimum 5 years but likely longer as long as it holds up.

The power cover in my mend helps the R1T be less of a traditional pickup and more of an SUV hybrid. Like you, I've never owned a pickup nor do I really have a use case for one. The R1T is more like an adventure vehicle than a traditional work truck so that is the use case that I fit in. We have stuff, and bikes, and gear, and camping, and beach gear - but not really people. 4-5 is really the max and the R1T can handle that, especially considering you can keep the cabin space CLEAR of stuff because there is so much storage in the R1T. I mean, even below the rear passenger seats for crying out loud!

But - I really like the utility of the R1S from a not worried about dealing with the undesirable issues of a truck bed. For example, the fact that even if a power cover is worked out the bed will never fully be waterproof or weather-proof. Do I want to be cleaning it or messing with it or worrying about water getting in there when there is running electricity?? for the next 5-10 years?

The R1S and that very cleverly designed split tailgate still has amazing utility and storage. Even though it apparently drives less well than the R1T (at least on pavement) and isn't as innovative (no gear tunnel) it still checks a lot of boxes. The people storage can be converted and left as stuff storage indefinitely and you have the flexibility to go back to people - if you ever needed it. You can't do that in the R1T.

And to your very excellent point - it looks amazing in white. Notice how Rivian in their advertisements on their website feature it in White - that isn't by accident.

It is a tough call and I wish I had the opportunity to test drive one or see one in person before having to decide about switching and potentially being delayed even more.
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Kudos to Rivian Dad for reporting the trip.

I did take a 2000+ trip with the R1S from the SF Bay Area to Temecula to Phoenix back to L.A. and back to SF Bay Area.
  • Agreed that we need more charging points. I mostly used Electrify America and used an EVGo near L.A. The $4.99/month of the EA monthly fee is totally worth it. I cancelled my EVGo membership once I got back, not worth it.
    • One incident when I drove from Temecula to Phoenix using the Rivian map; the map showed that I should stop at Blythe CA at the state line for ChargePoint charging but when I got near Blythe, it changed my next stop for charging to Quartzsite AZ and my car had not enough juice to get there.
    • So I decided to stop at the ChargePoint station anyway but found that all the charge points were down. I was lucky to find another ChargePoint 220V station at the City Hall and added 8 miles after an hour and half of charging. My car showed that I have 26 miles to spare and the distance to Quartzsite was 22 miles. So I think I was good... but... was I wrong!
    • Once I started driving, the car started to pre-condition the battery for charging and the estimated miles left went down way faster than normal. I was down to zero% with 5 miles to go.... with no phone signal... luckily, when there was 4 miles to go and we got phone signals back... so my mind was if the car stops, I could call AAA.
    • For those that who had driven that stretch, you would know it's all downhill from there. So, I turned off my A/C, rolled down the windows, stayed behind a big truck to minimize the draft; my car went 4 miles with zero%, in turtle mode. When I got to the EA charging station, the car basically had no power.... but we got there.
  • My lesson learned was... don't always trust or believe the charging map. Believe the old saying... when you have a chance to pee... pee! It goes the same for charging.
 

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Kudos to Rivian Dad for reporting the trip.

I did take a 2000+ trip with the R1S from the SF Bay Area to Temecula to Phoenix back to L.A. and back to SF Bay Area.
  • Agreed that we need more charging points. I mostly used Electrify America and used an EVGo near L.A. The $4.99/month of the EA monthly fee is totally worth it. I cancelled my EVGo membership once I got back, not worth it.
    • One incident when I drove from Temecula to Phoenix using the Rivian map; the map showed that I should stop at Blythe CA at the state line for ChargePoint charging but when I got near Blythe, it changed my next stop for charging to Quartzsite AZ and my car had not enough juice to get there.
    • So I decided to stop at the ChargePoint station anyway but found that all the charge points were down. I was lucky to find another ChargePoint 220V station at the City Hall and added 8 miles after an hour and half of charging. My car showed that I have 26 miles to spare and the distance to Quartzsite was 22 miles. So I think I was good... but... was I wrong!
    • Once I started driving, the car started to pre-condition the battery for charging and the estimated miles left went down way faster than normal. I was down to zero% with 5 miles to go.... with no phone signal... luckily, when there was 4 miles to go and we got phone signals back... so my mind was if the car stops, I could call AAA.
    • For those that who had driven that stretch, you would know it's all downhill from there. So, I turned off my A/C, rolled down the windows, stayed behind a big truck to minimize the draft; my car went 4 miles with zero%, in turtle mode. When I got to the EA charging station, the car basically had no power.... but we got there.
  • My lesson learned was... don't always trust or believe the charging map. Believe the old saying... when you have a chance to pee... pee! It goes the same for charging.
What is your opinion of ride and noise?
 

BeanEW

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What is your opinion of ride and noise?
The ride - I mostly set on All Purpose, Standard height and Knell mode. I set it on Standard instead of Auto to avoid unnecessary height adjusting. The ride quality is very very good.

The noise - from what I’ve read, it’s really from cars to cars. I did not notice much noise in my R1S, except for two times that the car was preconditioning the battery for charging, it came with vibration too. However, not all preconditioning would make that noise and vibration, most the times were quiet.
 

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see my other reply.
As for form factor, they are very similar (same width) but the truck does feel longer.

I'm planning to do a proper side-by-side review as soon as I can get my head on straight. You know, kids, holidays... yikes.

Thx for watching!
thanks for making such quality videos!

seriously, I felt like your snow performance comparison for each car was not only fair, candid but also quite informative; it helped me to prepare adequately in my planning - if I plan to take a Rivian up into the mountains on ice or snow, I’ll definitely be upgrading from the AT pirellis & might even go for a studded snow-tire. That helped me to better plan for my initial purchase & budget for an extra set of wheels.

As for the comparison video, I’ll be eagerly awaiting that (and I totally get it with the holidays making things busy); I’m in basically the same position as others: no hauling of major cargo like lumber or lots of people yet, so the smaller size of the R1S is better for me in a city, but I also favor a max pack & the best ride I can get, so will be paying close attention to your comparison. I’m all in for this brand at this point but it’s just a question of which model at this point…

speaking of which, does anyone know what spare tire holder they used for the
 

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For those interested, there is a great write-up from a fellow forum member on their R1S delivery, inspection, and first impressions driving and hauling some things.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...nce-and-initial-impressions-sf-bay-area.9954/

They noted that having driven the R1T, they noticed that the R1S definitely pitches and porpoises (front to back) considerably more on bumps than the truck.

They were also surprised, in a not good way, at cargo volume because the 3rd row takes up considerable volume in terms of height floor to ceiling limiting the space somewhat.

On non bumpy pavement, the truck handles well especially in the turns.

Like almost everyone who has commented on the handling issues, the OP stated that they think the suspension can get re-tuned. to deal with some of the handling issues.

I however, am deeply skeptical for two reasons:

1.) I think that there is physics here that can't be overcome with respect to center of gravity and weight distribution between the wheelbase lengths and design of the R1T and R1S.

2.) Why wouldn't RIvian have already tuned the suspension for the R1S after YEARS of development and testing? Employees have been driving these things around for over a year. If there was tuning to be done, I think it would have already been done. Maybe some OTAs can improve somewhat, but I don't think the fundamentals are going to change.

That said - everything is relative. Compared to the R1T, the R1S may very well exacerbate some of the handling issues like floatiness, porpoising on bumps and squating in hard acceleration. But relative to other SUVs? I doubt the R1S compares unfavorably.

So, let's keep things in perspective.
 
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Thanks for sharing the insights. Did you wrap your car glossy? I have the exact same configuration as yours.
Yes, glossy XPEL. Same for the R1T. I considered a stealth wrap but I like the reflection of the glossy finish - great for videos and photos. :) If you’re in Denver area, go to Denver Auto Shield. Tell them I sent you and they’ll give you a discount.
 

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Yes, glossy XPEL. Same for the R1T. I considered a stealth wrap but I like the reflection of the glossy finish - great for videos and photos. :) If you’re in Denver area, go to Denver Auto Shield. Tell them I sent you and they’ll give you a discount.
I am based out of San Francisco area 😀
I been considering stealth over glossy but wanted to see both before nailing on one
 
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I am based out of San Francisco area 😀
I been considering stealth over glossy but wanted to see both before nailing on one
Wish you were in Denver - we had a get together yesterday with 33 Rivians! (Video coming tomorrow) lots of options to see. I’m all in for glossy, but the matte does look cool.
 
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For those interested, there is a great write-up from a fellow forum member on their R1S delivery, inspection, and first impressions driving and hauling some things.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...nce-and-initial-impressions-sf-bay-area.9954/

They noted that having driven the R1T, they noticed that the R1S definitely pitches and porpoises (front to back) considerably more on bumps than the truck.

They were also surprised, in a not good way, at cargo volume because the 3rd row takes up considerable volume in terms of height floor to ceiling limiting the space somewhat.

On non bumpy pavement, the truck handles well especially in the turns.

Like almost everyone who has commented on the handling issues, the OP stated that they think the suspension can get re-tuned. to deal with some of the handling issues.

I however, am deeply skeptical for two reasons:

1.) I think that there is physics here that can't be overcome with respect to center of gravity and weight distribution between the wheelbase lengths and design of the R1T and R1S.

2.) Why wouldn't RIvian have already tuned the suspension for the R1S after YEARS of development and testing? Employees have been driving these things around for over a year. If there was tuning to be done, I think it would have already been done. Maybe some OTAs can improve somewhat, but I don't think the fundamentals are going to change.

That said - everything is relative. Compared to the R1T, the R1S may very well exacerbate some of the handling issues like floatiness, porpoising on bumps and squating in hard acceleration. But relative to other SUVs? I doubt the R1S compares unfavorably.

So, let's keep things in perspective.
I tend to agree with this philosophy - the ride differences seem to be more about wheel base than suspension so probably not going to change much.

But, in case I haven’t been clear enough in the past, let me say again: the R1S drives VERY WELL. Excellent I would say.

It’s a bit of a shame that it will inevitably get compared its R1T sister (which I will also be doing) because it’s not really right to say it has driving problems. It doesn’t in my opinion. I do like driving the truck better, but my wife likes driving the R1S better - she prefers the shorter form factor, which is understandable. And that gap in my preference has closed significantly after the road trip. In my mind, it’s a trade off between shorter form factor/more maneuverable (R1S) with a slightly more ”flat” drive of the R1T. Both have pros/cons. But they are BOTH head and shoulders better than any other vehicle I’ve owned or driven. Note that there are a lot of vehicles I’ve never driven, so It’s a limited opinion, but for what it’s worth, I enjoy driving them both Immensely. Don’t let the very subtle drive difference change your mind about vehicle choice. Let it be decided by most frequent use case, or most important feature, etc.
 

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But, in case I haven’t been clear enough in the past, let me say again: the R1S drives VERY WELL. Excellent I would say.

It’s a bit of a shame that it will inevitably get compared its R1T sister (which I will also be doing) because it’s not really right to say it has driving problems. It doesn’t in my opinion.
I think it is great the you are emphasizing how well the R1S drives. I haven't driven the R1T yet but there was nothing "wrong" with the R1S I drove, even though it may ride a little different than the R1T.
 
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@Pixelshot

Great stuff, watched everything through once by myself and then again with the wife (on a big screen in Dolby Digital :D)



I'm kind of in the same place - I haven't done an "intro" post, but I'm looking to replace our Tesla M3P, and our other vehicle is a Wrangler 4xe (which we're keeping).

The latter was the result of: 1) wanting to try out an EV by way of a PHEV, got it back in April '21, and 2) coming from a Durango DD/RT and we realized we didn't really need a 3-row.

That second point is sort of where I'm at with a Rivian, don't really need the extra people space - and also, like you pointed out, our need for a truck (with an open bed) is pretty infrequent too.

I guess - sort of thinking out loud:

I've never owned a truck (Dad did, and in the SE, I'm surrounded by them, there's two across the street :D), so it would be something new, probably make trips for mulch a little easier.

I think the cases of needing to seat for that 5 are less than the situations where a truck would be handy.

I'm sort of in want-this-now mode, and there are some low mileage R1Ts for sale, right now, that I could have in a week (vs. waiting on a new R1S and/or for the used market to get a decent number of vehicles).

We have, and are keeping, our "closed back" SUV-ish sort of ride with the Wrangler (though we're about to remove the top ... :cool:)

Sounds like I've talked myself into the T vs. the S :D
I waffled on this one for a long time. When the option came to get both, we decided we wanted to really put it to the test so we ponied up the cash. I know it's a real luxury that most people don't get, which is one reason we're documenting as much as we can so others can learn with us.

What it will come down to for me is the most common use case. It's so often that I have to throw something in the back that I decided on the T. I can see the value of the S as well. Both are great.
 
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Pix,

MATE!!! One of the best Rivian reviews, ever! You are my 2nd favourite reviewer now. Chris Harris is the first so you're in good company. What I loved was the way you went over the essential gear. I would have never thought of 90% of that. The trash can was brilliant. Your entire approach was very different compared to most of the reviews out there.

PLEASE, keep this up! Thank you mate!
WE'RE NUMBER TWO! WE"RE NUMBER TWO!

Chris Harris, I'm right on your heels!
Now, to brush up on my British accent and hit the gym. :)

Seriously though, thank you for that amazing compliment. Oh and the trash can idea comes from sheer survival instinct - two kids who constantly hand me trash.

Cheers.
 

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I tend to agree with this philosophy - the ride differences seem to be more about wheel base than suspension so probably not going to change much.

But, in case I haven’t been clear enough in the past, let me say again: the R1S drives VERY WELL. Excellent I would say.

It’s a bit of a shame that it will inevitably get compared its R1T sister (which I will also be doing) because it’s not really right to say it has driving problems. It doesn’t in my opinion. I do like driving the truck better, but my wife likes driving the R1S better - she prefers the shorter form factor, which is understandable. And that gap in my preference has closed significantly after the road trip. In my mind, it’s a trade off between shorter form factor/more maneuverable (R1S) with a slightly more ”flat” drive of the R1T. Both have pros/cons. But they are BOTH head and shoulders better than any other vehicle I’ve owned or driven. Note that there are a lot of vehicles I’ve never driven, so It’s a limited opinion, but for what it’s worth, I enjoy driving them both Immensely. Don’t let the very subtle drive difference change your mind about vehicle choice. Let it be decided by most frequent use case, or most important feature, etc.
@Pixelshot well said. And most Rivian owners will never own both vehicles so making this comparison directly is so unlikely.

The decision between the R1S and the R1T should come down to which vehicle will fit your use case, not driving dynamics. If you have a family and need the extra people space vs the extra gear space, the choice is obvious.

If you don't have a large family, then it becomes trickier because both the R1T and R1S have such great utility. If you are genuinely in a position where either the R1S and R1T would serve your needs, then potentially the driving dynamics might come into play.

When journalists and reviewers make the inevitable comparison it is because the R1T is their immediately obvious frame of reference. If you compared the R1S to a Ford Explorer, you would say that the R1S handled like a supercar, relatively speaking.

Case in point. Relative to my BMW i3s (I will argue the greatest city car ever made) the R1T drives like a marshmallow. But the comparison is meaningless because the vehicles serve completely different use cases and have no business being directly compared. The i3s is a carbon fiber bodied, suicide doored EV hot hatch with zero ability to go offroad and 5.5 inches of ground clearance and the R1T can literally drive into the ocean...
 

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@Pixelshot
Can you share the shopping links to the following?
1. RV electrical outlet adapter
2. Tesla Destination charger adapter
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