Clunking sound from front end.

[Deezel]

I had the jounce line and hub to knuckle fix done today and it made a world of difference. So far no noises or squeaks. I had so many rattles, clunks, chirps, and squeaks before this at low speeds. You still hear tires hitting bumps but it feels and sounds solid where before it felt like it was falling apart.

Nice. I'm hoping this takes care of my noise as well. I may get my truck back today and will report back.

It's amazing how much proper torque can affect play and clearances.

It can be as simple as a torque wrench being out of calibration, run down (frictional losses) torque not being accounted for or a torque spec being updated. I believe Rivian is learning this lesson now for this hub/knuckle fix and the previous recall they had for insufficient torque.

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[JeremyP]

Right. I do hear some limited squish/squeeling noises on suspension compression, which I'm sure is related to the air suspension, but I'm not sure it's realistic to have an air suspension be completely quiet so I'm willing to tolerate that. It rides/handles great as is.

The potential play in CV axles and metallic clunk is way more of a concern. There has to be a fix for this, it just comes down to tolerancing which I'm not saying is easy, but should be do able.

I know others have had the 'tock' noise issue when stopping/accelerating also. I'd assume that is from spline tolerancing also just in a.. circumferential direction. Meaning, the individual fit of the splines and the motor/hub housing cuts themselves.

I am hoping that the "clunk" noise does not eventually lead to the "tock" noise due to wear..

Does anyone know if there is in fact a new CV axle PN or not? It would be good to confirm.

Maybe RCV or some other well known CV axle manufacture would make some replacements that fit better. No way they would be cheap, but given the power/instant torque of these trucks I would expect them to command a premium.. The OEM CV axles are some of the beefiest I've ever seen.

RCV Performance - Ultimate CV Axles

Luckily we have our warranties for now. When that runs out though maybe aftermarket support is the solution. I can't tell you how many aftermarket parts have fixed annoying issues with my Jeep!

RCV axles are great (I have them in my 4runner's solid front axle) but they have their own noise issues. My friend put them in his Jeep's front axle and they make some horrible clicking and screeching noises even with fresh grease. They're strong but not silent!

 

[Deezel]

RCV axles are great (I have them in my 4runner's solid front axle) but they have their own noise issues. My friend put them in his Jeep's front axle and they make some horrible clicking and screeching noises even with fresh grease. They're strong but not silent!

Well damn. Compromises must always be made I suppose! Hopefully the full CV axle, not just the CV joints for solid axles are better. I know lots of Raptor owners ran them and don't recall hearing of excessive noise.

I did find some info on the CV axle PN. This is taken from a Reddit forum so take it with a grain of salt.. One user on there was claiming he had all 4 axles replaced and it eliminated the noise. Apparently the user worked at Rivian so someone asked him to confirm the new PN. The PN they are referencing in the discussion was confirmed to be: PT00055489-C
Rivian R1T CV Axle Failure : r/Rivian


Suppose he could've been mistaken and they just did the washer fix or something else. My truck is a 24' so I will look and see what PN is on it when I get it back. I would assume it would be the latest-greatest but who knows.. Maybe just replacing with NEW axles eliminated it and over time the splines continue to wear and the noise comes back..

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Wow what a knowledgeable group we have here...I am amazed by all the great minds on this forum.

Mine goes in on Monday. I just talked to service support today. I am also getting some slight surging as well now. Weather here in Maryland has been up and down. Like others, my noises are greatly reduced as temps drop below 50F and once I get above 70F it sounds like something is going to break off.

Soft reduces the noises. I also have what I feel is some steering slop as well. That seems to be intermittent and also corresponds to increased noise.

All this tells me that I have something going on with suspension (dampers, jounce lines, etc.).

Some level of half shaft noise is normal on these trucks unfortunately folks but I am getting crunching sounds plus a sound like the belly pan is hitting the bottom of the truck under my feet. Its not acceptable and I am confident Rivian will remedy.

I will absolutely report back to the group good or bad the outcome.

 

[Deezel]

Wow what a knowledgeable group we have here...I am amazed by all the great minds on this forum.

Mine goes in on Monday. I just talked to service support today. I am also getting some slight surging as well now. Weather here in Maryland has been up and down. Like others, my noises are greatly reduced as temps drop below 50F and once I get above 70F it sounds like something is going to break off.

Soft reduces the noises. I also have what I feel is some steering slop as well. That seems to be intermittent and also corresponds to increased noise.

All this tells me that I have something going on with suspension (dampers, jounce lines, etc.).

Some level of half shaft noise is normal on these trucks unfortunately folks but I am getting crunching sounds plus a sound like the belly pan is hitting the bottom of the truck under my feet. Its not acceptable and I am confident Rivian will remedy.

I will absolutely report back to the group good or bad the outcome.

The steering slop is interesting. You likely have a suspension piece or tie rod that's loose also. I'm not sure how the steering rack is mounted on the Riv, but I've had a steering rack loosen up on my Raptor and you could definitley hear/feel it in the steering wheel.

It probably sounds pretty bad, but it does not take much play/loose connection to cause all kinds of noises and weirdness, especially on a heavy vehicle like this.

Obviously not the same and a much more low tech design, but my Jeep can go from driving like a normal vehicle to completely unstable and full on death wobble mode just from having a loose track bar. Even a minor change to toe in/out position can cause a drastic change.

The Rivian tech will have to be diligent in finding the source of the issue. On my Jeep I had numerous techs tell me it was fine, but I had to lay under my Jeep and have my wife cycle the steering back and forth. It became very obvious what was loose by looking at the individual joints during motion. Just pulling on them though revealed nothing major.

 

[kyledmb]

Got my truck back yesterday. Highlights on suspension fixed performed at Seattle Service Center:

1. Updated front jounce subassemblies
2. Replaced front dampers (I confirmed this was an updated unit PT00437091/2-D)
3. Performed FSAM-1507 New bolts, tighten all knuckle/hub fasteners

Still rattles just as bad. In fact, it seems worse due to the absence of other noises, like the jounce squeaks. On my initial ride along with the tech, they definitely noticed the rattle sound, and their comments was, "It sounds like something loose banging around under the truck." On the item on my service request that mentioned the rattle sound, I received this dreaded message:

Cause:
Normal Operation

I'm pretty crushed. I guess my truck has no other option but to sound like its about to fall apart. I do appreciate the service center's good faith effort in proactively addressing my other concerns (jounce lines, harsh dampers, loose steering, etc.)

 

[Deezel]

Damn.. I'm sorry to hear this.

Are they sure there isn't something obvious rattling around? Do you have the underbody skid plate? I've read others saying there were loose fasteners on theirs that just needed tightening.

 

[kyledmb]

No, I don't have the skid plate. I don't see anything out of the ordinary until the truck. I imagine with how many times the truck has been in for repairs, they would have fixed anything obvious. I made another service ticket for January. Maybe someday this mystery will be solved.

 

[llacii]

Got my truck back yesterday. Highlights on suspension fixed performed at Seattle Service Center:

1. Updated front jounce subassemblies
2. Replaced front dampers (I confirmed this was an updated unit PT00437091/2-D)
3. Performed FSAM-1507 New bolts, tighten all knuckle/hub fasteners

Still rattles just as bad. In fact, it seems worse due to the absence of other noises, like the jounce squeaks. On my initial ride along with the tech, they definitely noticed the rattle sound, and their comments was, "It sounds like something loose banging around under the truck." On the item on my service request that mentioned the rattle sound, I received this dreaded message:

Cause:
Normal Operation

I'm pretty crushed. I guess my truck has no other option but to sound like its about to fall apart. I do appreciate the service center's good faith effort in proactively addressing my other concerns (jounce lines, harsh dampers, loose steering, etc.)

Sorry to hear that, but confirms my experience that the hub/knuckle tightening and damper swaps did not resolve the issue.

It got better for me after the dampers, but I'm unfortunately back to being uncomfortable with the the clunks / clanks / jiggles coming from underneath the car at low speeds on very slightly uneven pavement (speed bumps at low speed in Firm setting still sound horrible with a heavy clunk twice as both front and rear wheels go up on the bump).

Overall also feeling really sad / bummed about this, will keep monitoring for a bit longer, meanwhile I'll consider alternatives for my family as I don't believe nosies that sound like the car is falling apart should be acceptable for this price range (I recognize it appears there is no fix at this time). I took my old outback on a ride the other day, and wished the R1S could be as smooth.

Echoing the thanks to everyone for continuing to share their experience!

 

[kyledmb]

Do all the R1 vehicles do this half-shaft rattle? Dual motor Gen 2s even?

Are there any vehicles out there that don't rattle like this?

 

[DaveA]

I haven’t heard of dual motor vehicles having issues…yet.

 

[Jonger1150]

I haven’t heard of dual motor vehicles having issues…yet.

Oh yes they do. 55F or above. Below, it's minimal.

 

[DaveA]

Oh yes they do. 55F or above. Below, it's minimal.

Oops…forgot you were dual.

 

[Frisbee]

My first R1T was a LE QM. At around 3,000 miles the gear lash, marbles in a tin can noises started and notwithstanding numerous repairs (including front drive units) continued to get worse. At 12,000 miles I was finally able to get Rivian to replace it. I refused a QM replacement R1T. My replacement R1T is a DM and at 4,000 miles appears to be rock solid. I am keeping my fingers crossed. While sheer speculation on my part, since Rivian now offers a tri-motor, I do wonder if they will continue to offer the QM.

 

[R1Tom]

My first R1T was a LE QM. At around 3,000 miles the gear lash, marbles in a tin can noises started and notwithstanding numerous repairs (including front drive units) continued to get worse. At 12,000 miles I was finally able to get Rivian to replace it. I refused a QM replacement R1T. My replacement R1T is a DM and at 4,000 miles appears to be rock solid. I am keeping my fingers crossed. While sheer speculation on my part, since Rivian now offers a tri-motor, I do wonder if they will continue to offer the QM.

That is odd....my early R1T has 48k on it and no noises like you experienced. I do think they have a fair amount of quality control variences so some are really good...some are really bad...

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