Customer Service letter on price rollbacks

[drivetorun]

...Lets be consistent in our outrage and stop looking a gift horse in the mouth. Frankly I think the complaining right now is a bit silly, because you don't know what they're going to do on this topic.

So, two things. I'm not complaining--I just can see that the poorly worded bullet point could mean a variety of different things at the end of the day, and in the off-chance someone at Rivian is actually looking at threads like these (I'm hoping more are looking at it now than in the past...), I hope that they'd take into consideration some of the points people have raised before making a "final" decision.

Second, the "stop looking a gift horse in the mouth" mentality is exactly the kind of mentality that Rivian management CAN'T have moving forward. If they start making decisions based on, "Well, they should be happy with xxxx regardless because they are getting their car at a $12k discount", that's not going to rebuild trust/the relationship with one side constantly acting from a place like they're always doing the other a "favor".

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[Autolycus]

I’m starting to realize why Rivian doesn’t send many emails. There just seems no way to win. I would have expected that people would have been happy to get this update. But it’s just the opposite.

I mean, is it a crazy idea to just let them fix the pricing page before we all lose our collective minds about locking in configurations? Which, BTW, wasn’t even in the email we received, and is just being assumed because of some slightly vague phrasing for one bullet.

PS. I’m usually one of the first to take Rivian over the coals for their horrific communication, but the reaction to this one seems a bit extreme.

Since I am one of the earliest posters on here, and since I have expressed some mild concern about the particular language in the email, I'm going to respond (once, since I don't see any point in us arguing about this. We can disagree about it, and that's totally fine with me. If you want to refute my argument, then please do. I will read it carefully and consider it when posting any more about this topic but won't respond directly unless you ask):

First, I hear where you're coming from on your comment about no way to win, except words do matter. The email could have easily been sent with the update saying, "We're working on it. Give us a few weeks to get things reverted to the old prices for you," and basically left it there. The bullet point that is concerning people could have easily been left out. If it doesn't mean what we fear it means, then it is superfluous language that adds needless ambiguity to customer relations at a really touchy time for customer relations. And indeed, there are TWO references to the price of the previous configuration. "Your previously configured price will be honored," is absolutely different from "We will honor the prices available prior to March 1." Two uses of "you[r] previously" cannot be an accident unless he's truly awful at a really critical part of his job as Head of Customer Engagement. It's not "our previous" or "the previous". It's "your previous".

Second, yes, I agree that pitchforks need to wait. I pointed out concerning language, but I have at least twice encouraged people to be patient and wait to see what the implementation of this looks like.

Edit: Changed the first paragraph a little.

 

[HappyCamperPNW]

How dreamy would it be if Rivian parked eight R1Ts and an R1S or two showing all the color options for two to three days at service centers and the locations where they planned to have first drives to allow pre-order holders to drop by and see the trucks and finalize the colors?

 

[LoneStar]

didn't see this thread until now (actually unplugged all day Sunday) and its already 9 pages, and I have a question ...

Have others, besides me, that got the original price-hike email and then RJ's mea-culpa rollback, still yet to get this most recent email yesterday or today yet? Maybe they are still rolling it out. I swear I don't understand what kind of email system Rivian is using where electronic comms have to "roll-out". You'd expect this to be instantaneously sent to all affected.

 

[crashmtb]

Come to Vancouver and buy a house. $1 Million site unseen gives you a real thrill.

Wait you found a house in Vancouver for only $1mm?!

and I mean IN Vancouver, not…chilliwack ?

 

[AdamsFan1983]

I’m a simple man…

So, two things. I'm not complaining--I just can see that the poorly worded bullet point could mean a variety of different things at the end of the day, and in the off-chance someone at Rivian is actually looking at threads like these (I'm hoping more are looking at it now than in the past...), I hope that they'd take into consideration some of the points people have raised before making a "final" decision.

Second, the "stop looking a gift horse in the mouth" mentality is exactly the kind of mentality that Rivian management CAN'T have moving forward. If they start making decisions based on, "Well, they should be happy with xxxx regardless because they are getting their car at a $12k discount", that's not going to rebuild trust/the relationship with one side constantly acting from a place like they're always doing the other a "favor".

Well. I don't work for Rivian, and you are getting your car at a 12k discount. I'm simply pointing out we've accomplished alot in the last seven days, at some point this all starts to look petulant.

 

[jjswan33]

Well. I don't work for Rivian, and you are getting your car at a 12k discount. I'm simply pointing out we've accomplished alot in the last seven days, at some point this all starts to look petulant.

As long as you’re happy Rivian will be ok right?

 

[kommonplace]

didn't see this thread until now (actually unplugged all day Sunday) and its already 9 pages, and I have a question ...

Have others, besides me, that got the original price-hike email and then RJ's mea-culpa rollback, still yet to get this most recent email yesterday or today yet? Maybe they are still rolling it out. I swear I don't understand what kind of email system Rivian is using where electronic comms have to "roll-out". You'd expect this to be instantaneously sent to all affected.

I have not gotten it. (My post is somewhere back on page 8-ish.) I've chatted twice. They assure me it will happen. But no email, still, even after they said they'd "resend " it.

 

[moosehead]

Captain Obvious thinks that Rivian needs to roll out as many vehicles as possible and get people driving them.

Only then the Coliseum will be wildly entertainted and all will be well.

 

[Scoiatael]

Looks like they didn't send it out to people who cancelled and then asked to uncancel. Either way I'll just wait to see how long it takes and what they do. As a stock holder though, this worries me.

 

[Attesan997]

I find it funny that the price increases all happened in like a day but the roll back will take several weeks. I'm honestly still on the fence about getting the TRX instead.

I think because in typical Rivian fashion its more complex than necessary. It's not like Rivian is just rolling back prices to pre 3/1, it reads like they're pulling specific configs that were active pre 3/1 per account. Who knows how strict they intend to be in terms of what triggers post 3/1 pricing. Ultimately I'm happy they chose to roll back and we'll see how the process actually works.

 

[drivetorun]

Well. I don't work for Rivian, and you are getting your car at a 12k discount. I'm simply pointing out we've accomplished alot in the last seven days, at some point this all starts to look petulant.

So, I wouldn't expect you to know this, but on a different thread I actually made arguments to justify Rivian's price increase for them (here). However, they chose to roll back the pricing, which was totally their decision. I would just be disappointed (not upset...do I sound like a parent now? ?) if they effectively "locked" people into their configuration on 28-Feb when some people still have delivery dates a year+ away and never felt like those were our final configurations anyway for all the reasons people have given before (haven't seen colors in-person, might've been waiting to hear what range impacts some of the tire/wheel combos had, etc.).

It just seems disingenuous to basically lock people into a config that Rivian had said multiple times along the way to play around/try different colors on/etc.

 

[AdamsFan1983]

As long as you’re happy Rivian will be ok right?

Well I do consider myself to be a fairly model consumer for Rivian, so in point of fact; yes, to an extant, your smarmy point is taken I agree. But to your wider point, I've not said that in such absolutist terms. The bigger point right now is that as a group we'd be well served to let Rivian have some time to start digging themselves out of this situation, see what they have planned, stop speculating and dial things down a bit. Nobody here knows for certain that they intend to not give you the option to make changes.

I was very vocal in my criticism of Rivian last week, I don't think anyone who recognizes my avatar would say that I'm not objective. Its going to take time. RJ said so in his email, CSS has said so via chat, and now they said so via email. Relax a bit. The sky isn't falling. Could it still? Sure., but give them a chance to make it right.

 

[Rivian_Hugh_III]

Weasely language is unhelpful. Tell us what the deal is. What prices will be the same? What won't? How will changes be dealt with?

The problem with bullet three is it seems to backtrack on what RJ said or implied.

Thus far, each communication around this issue has raised as many questions as it has answered. That's a problem, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[kanundrum]

Captain Obvious thinks that Rivian needs to roll out as many vehicles as possible and get people driving them.

Only then the Coliseum will be wildly entertainted and all will be well.

Yup.

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