3 day-old R1S died on freeway.

[piggity]

My wife was driving at night on the freeway with three of our kids, and our 3 day-old R1S with < 500 miles flashed a bunch of warnings ("System fault detected", "Critical battery issue", "Electrical hazard possible") and rapidly slowed itself to a stop before shutting off. Thankfully nobody was hurt, but this was certainly a dangerous situation for all involved, as she was barely able to move out of the fast lane and was stopped with no lights in the middle of the night while waiting for help to arrive.

Thankfully Rivian SOS was responsive and helpful, stayed with my wife on the phone until towing arrived, arranged Uber credits, rental car, etc., but this obviously does not instill confidence in the car, and we're trying to decide if we should return it under the 7 day warranty.

Very sad, as we were so excited to take delivery after a 2 year wait.

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[Ryanortev]

Dual or quad

 

[COdogman]

I definitely don’t blame you for being concerned, especially after having issues so soon. But Rivian service will get it sorted out If you decide to keep it. It’s worth noting that the majority of owners have had little to no issues, although we have seen a few stories just like yours as well. It can happen with any new vehicle. Do what you think is best for your family.

 

[Christopher]

Was your pricing before the increase? If so, I think if you return it and want a new one then they won't honor the original pricing. If you paid current pricing I'd probably return it and start over, depending on what the service center comes back with.

This is an unfortunate event but having been through the same with a Silverado purchased brand new and then breaking down on the way home from the dealer, I went through the warranty process and enjoyed many years of it after the repair.

 

[beyondgravity]

It is disconcerting. I hope you and your family is safe.

 

[Redline]

Glad you’re ok and Rivian service so far has been helpful.

I had a critical battery error this morning after a DC charging session. I was 5 hours away from home at a friends house with my wife and I drove back to our friends and called Rivian. He pretty much knew right away that it was an issue when finishing charging and removing the cable. We did a hard reset, and we were good to go. He was super knowledgeable and helpful. Amazing what they can see going on with your car in real time.

I hope they get everything solved for you. It does seem like any of these issues that have popped up, have been fixed and fixed for good from Rivian service.

 

[J-Flo]

My new R1S also failed on its third drive. On the freeway, I heard a prominent hissing sound (like from an air hose) and the Driver+ switched off, telling me to adjust the suspension height. I quickly figured out that I was stuck in low mode, pulled off the freeway, and the ride was extremely rough on normal city streets. The air suspension had crapped out and the truck was sitting at the bottom of its travel, with essentially no suspension.

I was speaking to someone very helpful from Rivian within 5 minutes, went through a reset (no joy) and then was able to carefully drive the remaining 30 miles home. A mobile tech came a few days later, quickly diagnosed and then fixed it (though the rear of the truck had to be taken apart). An installer had failed to tighten a high pressure air hose and it blew off. The solution was to put it back on and tighten it — no issues since. The mobile tech also fixed a few minor trim issues and a slightly misaligned rear hatch. Overall a good experience.

Hope they are able to fix your battery problem quickly!

 

[CrazyOne]

Reliability is poor during the first few days/hours on average. You can make a call based on what the problem is and if you feel like they are making it right. It takes me a long time to trust a new vehicle.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathtub_curve

 

[PhatDaddy]

…My wife was driving at night on the freeway… this was certainly a dangerous situation for all involved… was stopped with no lights in the middle of the night…

A question… from a guy still waiting for delivery of his Rivian. Does this mean when/if my Rivian dies with, let’s say, similar errors to these or the myriad of similar issues reported here in the Forum, that I will likely not even be able to run my flashing hazard lights on my disabled vehicle!? That had never occurred to me, and the possibility REALLY bothers me, and as the OP said…it could be incredibly dangerous! Say it ain’t so!

 

[piggity]

Thanks for all the replies.

"Dual or quad"

Quad.

"Was your pricing before the increase? If so, I think if you return it and want a new one then they won't honor the original pricing."

The pricing is not a primary concern for us. In any case if we returned now, we would get a different vehicle altogether.

"Does this mean when/if my Rivian dies with, let’s say, similar errors to these or the myriad of similar issues reported here in the Forum, that I will likely not even be able to run my flashing hazard lights on my disabled vehicle!?"

Indeed this is what happened to us. Nothing in the vehicle worked, including hazards.

Honestly the only reason we are thinking of keeping the vehicle is because of how responsive and helpful Rivian service has been, and that gives us hope that they will be there for us if problems arise in the future. We will see what the diagnosis/repair situation is over the next 24 hours. I will post any updates here.

 

[tosehee]

Hrm.. The quality of their is questionable... Why can't these be caught before the delivery?

 

[LL75]

Hrm.. The quality of their is questionable... Why can't these be caught before the delivery?

Number one question for every car companies. You will see this type of problems reported in every car forum of everry brand including Tesla.

 

[mkhuffman]

There is a known defect with my Mustang Mach-e that can leave you stranded on the side of the road. It has been known for about two years, and just a few weeks ago Ford finally did a recall for it. Many, many MME owners have been stranded or experienced a less severe version of the failure that just reduces power. (I have not had the failure yet.)

The point is, even the established manufacturers can have similar issues. Personally I would make the decision based on how Rivian responds to the failure. If they work to get your problem resolved, I would keep it. I would probably keep it anyway just because your experience is rare, and once it is fixed you will probably never have another issue like that.

Do what is best for your family, of course! Good luck!

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Man this sucks but I am glad all are ok. Let's hope it's the 12v battery as that would be a quick and easy fix. Sure sounds like the 12v if you lost everything.

Either way, Rivian will get it fixed. My experience with their service has been good aside from the long wait times for an appointment.

 

[Gr8Barn]

Rivian needs to do a better job with software and manufacturing build/quality issues. As a long term Tesla owner (since 2012, five teslas later), I have lived through some challenges with a new car company, but technology has improved, and Rivian isn’t the first EV company. While I am a fan of Rivian, I think stories like this will deter buyers and create a difficult secondary market for current owners. Bottom line is no one should buy a $100,000 vehicle and have this happen to them.

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