Another "critical battery issue" story

[Perix]

1 month and about 1,500mi since our R1S was delivered, it suddenly started beeping and flashing the now well-documented "critical battery issue, electrical hazard possible, drive to service center immediately, avoid driving through water" message.

The vehicle did not die/discharge the 12V batteries, but the tow truck came and picked it up the next morning. It's been sitting at the South San Francisco service center for two days now. Just got an initial confirmation that it had arrived, and nothing since. I had to call in 3 times to get updates, the switchboard folks could not get through to the service center. I finally received a call-back 2 days after it was picked up, saying it had not been examined yet and the return window is currently 2 weeks from now. Before they picked up the vehicle, I was told it should be a couple of days.

I am trying to be zen about the whole thing and accept that being at the cutting edge is hard, but this is a hard pill to swallow after waiting for 2.5 years to receive the R1S and going into big debt to own it. Who ever experienced a car being held for an unknown amount of time and not even knowing what is wrong? I've waited for a service window or for parts in the past with other vehicles, but this black hole situation is new to me.

I also can't help but wonder how frequent these occurrences are, and whether the vehicle is truly reliable for adventure driving. This happened outside my garage, but what if it had happened in the middle of a snow storm in winter in the mountains? The vehicle is super capable, but is it reliable?

I would appreciate any thoughts from those who have owned their vehicle for longer on its reliability and their service experience.

This is certainly a test of nerves, of patience, and of trust in the vehicle and the company.

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[Donald Stanfield]

I had some issues in the beginning but I've had my truck just about a year now and it's been trouble free since. I get how the people who are completely new would start to wonder about the truck but as I was told once the initial bumps were smoothed out it should be trouble free and they were telling the truth in my case.

It's been a great vehicle overall and I had a drive unit replaced pretty much immediately in my ownership process. I don't think they are all destined to be crap, I think it is probably closer to the opposite of that. I'd say hang in there and keep it 6-8 months and give it an honest chance before starting to worry. I would take my T on a cross country road trip without hesitation. The T is our road trip car.

 

[LL75]

It is rough time to get into service center because of their back log. However, I definitely think your vehicle would be piroirty to fix. Mine sat there for 10 days before they even touch it since those issues are minor and not critical. Yes, rivian is very shitty about giving up any form of update.
I have seen members here experienced the same issues but it is a rarity.

 

[NY_Rob]

Rivian's centralized Call Center approach for the customer facing side of the service experience has pretty much been a huge fail and has only lead to increased customer frustration. I mean what's the point of using a centralized Call Center if they can't even get through to the Service Centers? Bash Tesla all you like, but a least you can call your local Tesla Service Center to get updates on your vehicle from the people who performed the service vs. some clueless Call Center attendant.

 

[Soju1]

I live near ssf sc but since I work in sj I do my service out there. They have been good from my experience. I took mine in and they said all my stuff would be fixed in 3 days. They gave me a rental. I called on the third day and they said they were waiting on a part so it was going to take a couple more days. Explained that I was gonna be out of town with their new return estimate and they decided to return the car to me while the part was in transit then scheduled a mobile service for that which was right when I returned from my trip. Everything went well so I’ll continue with the sj sc. I have a mobile service in a couple days for a frunk issue.

 

[Greg Chick]

I have been "stone walled" when I bought my used R1T, the issue was only purging old owners name and entering my name into the key system. It took almost 2 months. But, my key pass worked every day so I was never locked out. They had a tech come to my house and do a recall sort of thing, he was fantastic. The Los Angles shop has treated me well. My R1T is all it is sold to be and more. Ok, the 21" tires are not at every tire dealer, but they sold me a pair when I was down to the 1MM mark. I would do a cross country trip with mine. Yea, the charging stations would be the issue, but not the Rivian.

 

[trez63]

Rivian's centralized Call Center approach for the customer facing side of the service experience has pretty much been a huge fail and has only lead to increased customer frustration. I mean what's the point of using a centralized Call Center if they can't even get through to the Service Centers? Bash Tesla all you like, but a least you can call your local Tesla Service Center to get updates on your vehicle from the people who performed the service vs. some clueless Call Center attendant.

This is by far my biggest complaint so far. The disconnect is just plain infuriating. I waited a full week to get an update and eventually had someone from the service center text me from his personal phone. I will be saving that number for next time

 

[Perix]

Thank you all for your input and experiences. They are a glimmer of needed optimism right now...

We are at the 10-day mark now and as far as I can tell, the R1S is just sitting there in the lot at the South San Francisco service center, and no one has looked at it. Let alone provide any updates.

At what point do I ask them to start covering part of the monthly loan payment?? Is there a mechanism for escalating a case or filing a complaint?

 

[LL75]

Thank you all for your input and experiences. They are a glimmer of needed optimism right now...

We are at the 10-day mark now and as far as I can tell, the R1S is just sitting there in the lot at the South San Francisco service center, and no one has looked at it. Let alone provide any updates.

At what point do I ask them to start covering part of the monthly loan payment?? Is there a mechanism for escalating a case or filing a complaint?

Yeap. It is amazing how much money Rivian is wasting on car rentals and uber credits. My car sat at the lot for 10 days until I called for update before they brought it inside to fix. it took them 1 day to fixed btw.

 

[Guy]

Yeap. It is amazing how much money Rivian is wasting on car rentals and uber credits. My car sat at the lot for 10 days until I called for update before they brought it inside to fix. it took them 1 day to fixed btw.

Exactly this, they are wasting lots of money and causing repetitional harm by having vehicles sit around for many days before even starting. It could be that other more urgent customer issues arise. But if this is the case that speaks to continued poor QC/build assembly quality which is why I have my order on hold and am nervous about proceeding.

 

[LL75]

Exactly this, they are wasting lots of money and causing repetitional harm by having vehicles sit around for many days before even starting. It could be that other more urgent customer issues arise. But if this is the case that speaks to continued poor QC/build assembly quality which is why I have my order on hold and am nervous about proceeding.

Yes , they need hire more people and open more service centers since the ramped up of deliveries. I wouldn't say qc is any worse than my tesla considered rivian is new. I had my car since March and absolutely love it. I don't love seeing it sit in the lot for 10 days though. Could have told me to bring it when they ready to fix and wasted money on rental

 

[SACDFJC]

Have you pinged your guide yet? They might have better luck getting you an update. My guide was pretty proactive when my HV battery was replaced. She reached out to make sure I felt like I was kept in the loop.

 

[R1TruKaLa]

1 month and about 1,500mi since our R1S was delivered, it suddenly started beeping and flashing the now well-documented "critical battery issue, electrical hazard possible, drive to service center immediately, avoid driving through water" message.

The vehicle did not die/discharge the 12V batteries, but the tow truck came and picked it up the next morning. It's been sitting at the South San Francisco service center for two days now. Just got an initial confirmation that it had arrived, and nothing since. I had to call in 3 times to get updates, the switchboard folks could not get through to the service center. I finally received a call-back 2 days after it was picked up, saying it had not been examined yet and the return window is currently 2 weeks from now. Before they picked up the vehicle, I was told it should be a couple of days.

I am trying to be zen about the whole thing and accept that being at the cutting edge is hard, but this is a hard pill to swallow after waiting for 2.5 years to receive the R1S and going into big debt to own it. Who ever experienced a car being held for an unknown amount of time and not even knowing what is wrong? I've waited for a service window or for parts in the past with other vehicles, but this black hole situation is new to me.

I also can't help but wonder how frequent these occurrences are, and whether the vehicle is truly reliable for adventure driving. This happened outside my garage, but what if it had happened in the middle of a snow storm in winter in the mountains? The vehicle is super capable, but is it reliable?

I would appreciate any thoughts from those who have owned their vehicle for longer on its reliability and their service experience.

This is certainly a test of nerves, of patience, and of trust in the vehicle and the company.

?

 

[Perix]

Update on this thread. It is now Aug14, and the R1S has been at the service center since Jul12.

As far as I can tell, it sat there for at least a couple of weeks without being looked at. Eventually we were informed the the high-voltage battery was the problem: an isolation fault, to be precise. It needed to be replaced, but to do that safely it had to be discharged.

Another couple of weeks passed, apparently the new battery is in, but isn't connecting with the vehicle. I asked what that means and was told it's a software/firmware update issue (hopefully).

In any case, we've now had the R1S in service for longer than we have driven it (took delivery Jun10). Having a brand new, pricey vehicle sit there for a month is a hell of an experience. One monthly loan payment out of the window.

They make it seem as if we're almost done, but I'll believe it when it happens. Will post a final update.

 

[tcole]

Update on this thread. It is now Aug14, and the R1S has been at the service center since Jul12.

As far as I can tell, it sat there for at least a couple of weeks without being looked at. Eventually we were informed the the high-voltage battery was the problem: an isolation fault, to be precise. It needed to be replaced, but to do that safely it had to be discharged.

Another couple of weeks passed, apparently the new battery is in, but isn't connecting with the vehicle. I asked what that means and was told it's a software/firmware update issue (hopefully).

In any case, we've now had the R1S in service for longer than we have driven it (took delivery Jun10). Having a brand new, pricey vehicle sit there for a month is a hell of an experience. One monthly loan payment out of the window.

They make it seem as if we're almost done, but I'll believe it when it happens. Will post a final update.

Take a look at the California Lemon Law. I'm no expert, but my understanding is if it's out of service for repair for a total of 30 days you can make them either buy it back at MSRP or give you a new one.

Sounds like you've just passed the 30 day threshold, so you might be able to get them to give you a new one. Or at the very least, hurry up on repairing this one.

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