Article: Will Rivian Get a Pass for Putting 100 HP Behind a Paywall?

[Count Orlok]

Will Rivian Get a Pass for Putting 100 HP Behind a Paywall?

Right now, the situation regarding the drivetrain options is as follows:

• dual-motor all-wheel drive – over 600 hp (608 ps), 600 lb-ft (813 Nm) of torque, zero to 60 mph (97 kph) in 4.5 seconds;
• enhanced dual-motor all-wheel drive – around 700 hp (710 ps), 700 lb-ft (949 Nm) of torque, zero to 60 mph (97 kph) in 3.5 seconds;
• quad-motor all-wheel drive – over 800 hp (811 ps), 900 lb-ft (1,220 Nm) of torque, zero to 60 mph (97 kph) in 3 seconds.

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[CommodoreAmiga]

Other brands do this and always get a pass. Volvo, for example, offers Polestar Optimization as a post-sale software upgrade.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

There's no issue if it's charged as a performance package upgrade upfront. If an ICE car gets a little better exhaust and a bigger turbo that's fine. What's the difference if it gets a better engine map? The company is taking a warranty risk by unlocking that power, the harder you run the motors the more likely they are to break. Why shouldn't they charge more for vehicles that might run the motors hard enough that someone of them might fail within the warranty period instead of performing low enough to have them last long enough?

 

[R1Sky Business]

It's just the performance package

 

[John G.]

Welcome to the new world of EV's.

It doesn't suprise me that "EV options," based of hardware of software, or even "subscriptions of software" (soon coming to Rivian), or even leases of hardware could get put behind a paywall. It's part of what EV manufacturers have to offer?

Why does this surprise you, so?

 

[COdogman]

Welcome to the future. I expect someday to pay an additional $4.99/ mo for the privilege of activating ventilated seats to cool my a$$.

 

[frostbit3]

Tesla also does something similar with the acceleration boost with the Model Y for 2K.

 

[Yellow Buddy]

Will Rivian Get a Pass for Putting 100 HP Behind a Paywall?

It’s not a pass, it’s transparency. If anything it’ll be appreciated because there will likely be an upgrade path down the line.

Didn’t Dodge do this with the Hellcat as well? I remembered there being an option that unlocked more power.

 

[RabidRat]

At this point I wouldn’t even be mad if Rivian offered to enable CarPlay for a fee.

I’d pay anything to end the suffering that is the default nav & media UI lol.

 

[moosehead]

Still hoping there’s another bump hiding in the R1 Quads.

 

[lmr]

Manufacturers putting performance and other features behind paywall's is nothing new, and if anything the practice is becoming more common, especially with more and more vehicles shipping with connected features and OTA update capability:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech...-car-subscription-based-services/10882060002/

 

[kizamybute']

Can think of it more as a discount for those not needing / wanting the power. Rather than charge everyone X number of dollars for 700 HP when 75% of those couldn't care less about that extra horse power, they're offering it for Y number of dollars instead.

How many people would have not bought their Rivian's if they only made 700 HP and did 0-60 in 3.5 seconds instead of 3.0 seconds? Probably less than 15%. I think it's a good option to offer a cheaper version to the mass majority that have no need for the added HP and for those that do want it, it's a good revenue stream that really doesn't cost them anything.

Tesla has been doing this on the Y and 3 for a while. They did something similar with selling cars that had 60 kwh battery available yet actually had 75 kwh batteries in the car.

Does tell you that they have the margins in these vehicles to be able to include the more expensive hardware yet not charge for it. But, that's effectively their base package, which is more than good enough, so they're able to pull back to make it more affordable so it attracts more customers, then gain a premium for those that want the added benefit. Everyone wins.

 

[Rivian_Hugh_III]

There’s an EV tax credit MSRP threshhold. Anything to lower the MSRP could be valuable to buyers and help Rivian sell more trucks. Especially if that 100hp can be later unlocked through a one-time fee.

 

[s4wrxttcs]

The only issue I have with this is whether it sticks with the vehicle when sold.

With Tesla the rumor is that they remove any purchased SW upgrade (like the acceleration boost) on trade it, and they don't give any additional money for it.

The justification for this practice is its free to them.

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