Dual Rivian ownership thoughts after 1+ year in R1T and 1 month in R1S

[FL_EV]

I thought that I should share my thoughts on ownership of my 2022 LE R1T and 2023 LE R1S after benefiting from so many other stories on this forum. First, my journey. I preordered my R1T several years ago when first learning about Rivian. I was driving my first EV at the time, a Chevy Malibu hybrid. While it only went from 0-60 in about 10 seconds, I loved the fact that I was getting 45 mpg. By the time my guide contacted my in late April 2022, I had transitioned to a Tesla Model 3 Performance (going 0-60 in under 4 seconds), which I loved but was willing to part with for my 1st pickup truck. Within 2 weeks of guide contact I was driving my Launch Green R1T with black interior and 20’s.

The R1S was a completely different journey. My wife, who has never given any thought to what she drives, was driving a 2022 Tesla MY Performance, which I had ordered for her. Our daughter had an R1S on order and she just got access to the shop in July 2023. While looking at R1S’s with her I was intrigued by the vehicle. My wife had driven Yukons and Tahoes for years so the size was perfect for her. I put a deposit down on an R1S thinking we would replace her Tesla in a couple years. On a lark, I searched for local pre owned R1S’s and found one 30 minutes away. It was a midnight LE with OC and 22’s. It was also about $6K less than a newly configured one like I had ordered. I took her to see it thinking she would never go for it but she fell in love with the color combo, size and everything about it. It looked brand new with only 165 miles on the odometer. We made a deal and picked it up that night while trading the Tesla to the dealer.

Now, after a year+ in the R1T and almost a month in the R1S, here are my thoughts:
1. There is no comparison between my 2 Teslas and 2 Rivians. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED my Teslas. However, they felt like toy cars compared to the Rivians. Granted, the Rivians are a lot more $’s but for me, they just can’t be compared. The Rivians are rock solid and drive like real trucks/heavy duty SUV’s.
2. The Rivians are luxurious inside and out while the Teslas felt “plasticy”. To me they were more like “toy” cars.
3. My mileage range was never what was promised on both my Teslas, usually falling about 10% less. Tesla would just brush it off. I now know that this was intrinsic (and known to Tesla) to all Teslas. However, both my Rivians are dead on what was promised as range.
4. IMHO, as an audiophile, who has been searching for the best audio in vehicles over the last 50 years, the R1T is the best I have ever experienced. Yes, I have read about the AA/CP debates, but to me it is a situation of know what you are buying and I have been w/o CP since my Tesla days so I knew what I was getting into. To me, there is nothing better than Tidal or Amazon Music playing through the R1T at the highest quality. And every update gets a few more of the little bugs out.
5. The stock audio system in the R1S is a different story. While completely adequate for my wife, I find it disappointing when held up against the R1T Meridian. It could have been a deal breaker for me as my ride since I now have been tainted by owning the Meridian system. I probably would have searched for an early pre owned R1S with the Meridian.
6. While nobody likes service issues, I will say that dealing with Rivian has been a pleasure compared to Tesla. I compliment the service support phone guides constantly at Rivian for their pleasant attitude, responsiveness, and ability to troubleshoot. Tesla could learn a lot from them. Also, while I have had some minor issues, recalls/inspections, and mobile service visits, it is a lot less than I would have expected for a startup. I am thrilled that a new service center is opening by the end of the year 15 miles away from me in Tampa instead of driving 70 miles to Orlando. Also, the mobile techs have been great. They started with 1 in my area and are now up to 8, I think. They were mostly poached from Tesla and love working for Rivian.
7. I love the R1S for its ability to configure the rear 2 rows of seats for whatever we need to accomplish. It is extremely flexible and comfortable in all configurations. And while I don’t like light interiors, due to the grandkids, the OC is spectacular.
8. Cons-there are none. I love everything about both my Rivians. While I have read all the negatives and complaints about the vehicles I remind myself that this is a startup and we all have been on the front line with Rivian in enjoying these quality built vehicles. I pinch myself every time I get in them.

And BTW, our daughter is trading in her 2022 Tesla Model 3 for her new Limestone R1S next week. Our son is the only one left in a Tesla.

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[Zybane]

Interesting you say the Rivians are "luxurious". Having driven both the R1T and R1S, I felt the interiors were mediocre. Then again I've owned actual luxury cars. The Rivian steering wheel especially feels like it came out of an economy car.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Interesting you say the Rivians are "luxurious". Having driven both the R1T and R1S, I felt the interiors were mediocre. Then again I've owned actual luxury cars. The Rivian steering wheel especially feels like it came out of an economy car.

I agree with this. I like the Rivian interior but " vegan leather" AKA Vinyl is crap compared to a fine leather appointment in a German car. I like the styling of the Rivian interior and the wood trim is great but I would pay more for better material. Leather and Alancantara headliners are just much higher quality.

Rivian tries to get away with substandard interiors by calling them eco but the reality is meat isn't going away and leather is pretty easy to come by without any additional ecological strain. All the cobalt mining for the batteries is much more harmful than giving me a decent seating surface.

I deal with it because style wise it is well done and they did the understated thing well. It's an interior style closer to Audi or BMW than Cadillac or current Mercedes.

 

[ElGuapo]

Maybe OP means luxury interior compared to Tesla since that what he was mainly comparing to.

As someone who has owned four Teslas, including a “refreshed” X, I definitely believe my Rivian interior is much nicer than the Tesla interior. Except I do think the seat material is worse in the Rivian. Truthfully, it’s not great in a Rivian or Tesla and I’d prefer legit leather. I think the “vegan leather” is just an excuse to make the interior cheaper vs leather.

Teslas are not just minimalist inside - they’re cheap. My Y uses the same window buttons as my refreshed X.

Now - my Teslas have a MUCH better “go” pedal response. They go when you tap them. The Rivian, as many have said, has more “mush” or “give” and t requires you to really mash it. Unless you’re in sport mode - but that creates other issues.

 

[timgradywy]

I think it all depends on what your frame of reference is and what you're expecting.
IMO, the interiors of the R1T and R1S are luxurious, but they're also simple and intended to be somewhat rugged. To me, it's a really good balance for a truck and the polar opposite of most trucks on the market today.

It's obvious that they weren't going for a GLS/Cayenne/Taycan sort of aesthetic, but they're also not at that price point. A GLS 63 is ~2x the launch price of a R1T and a Cayenne Turbo S Hybrid is 2x today's R1S price (chosen for similar performance). They remind me much more of a Mercedes W124 or BMW E39 before they needed buttons, lights, and screens everywhere.

I think the closest modern comparison is the Volvo XC90. It's similarly priced and sized and has a similar interior aesthetic, but its interior is a bit nicer than a Rivian and it's certainly a lot less powerful.

 

[FL_EV]

My original post was comparing my Rivians with my previous EV’s, the Teslas. I certainly was not comparing to my previous MB’s or Jaguar’s. I find my R1T completely luxurious in the segment that it serves, the EV pickup market. Similarly, my R1S compares favorably to my wife’s previous Yukon Denalis. My original post was only meant to convey my personal experience and preferences between my Teslas and Rivians. My comment of “luxurious“ was for the segments that the Rivians play in, EV pickup and EV SUV.

 

[HJP1]

I agree that you have to keep everything in context, you can not use the term luxury to describe the Rivian as you would a big Lexus LS or Mercedes S class. As someone also coming from a Tesla Mod 3 the Rivian interior is much more polished and nicely designed with materials that look and feel good but are also designed to get dirty when playing in the mud. As far as driving the R1T VS the Tesla, no comparison as obviously the 3 is a small/midsize sedan and the R1T is a truck. While the Tesla was fun to drive the R1T is much more enjoyable as you can do so much more with all the different drive modes, plus you have the utility and storage of a pickup truck .

 

[defcon888]

1. There is no comparison between my 2 Teslas and 2 Rivians. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED my Teslas. However, they felt like toy cars compared to the Rivians. Granted, the Rivians are a lot more $’s but for me, they just can’t be compared. The Rivians are rock solid and drive like real trucks/heavy duty SUV’s.

I was watching a youtuber the other day.....he calls the Teslas "California Camry's".......LOLOL

 

[CrazyOne]

I was watching a youtuber the other day.....he calls the Teslas "California Camry's".......LOLOL

It's the size of a Civic/Corolla, based on combined legroom numbers.

 

[mini2nut]

You can’t beat the luxury, great smell or quality of real leather in an automobile interior.

The word “Vegan Leather“ is simply a marketing term for vinyl seats.

 

[Deacon]

I thought that I should share my thoughts on ownership of my 2022 LE R1T and 2023 LE R1S after benefiting from so many other stories on this forum. First, my journey. I preordered my R1T several years ago when first learning about Rivian. I was driving my first EV at the time, a Chevy Malibu hybrid. While it only went from 0-60 in about 10 seconds, I loved the fact that I was getting 45 mpg. By the time my guide contacted my in late April 2022, I had transitioned to a Tesla Model 3 Performance (going 0-60 in under 4 seconds), which I loved but was willing to part with for my 1st pickup truck. Within 2 weeks of guide contact I was driving my Launch Green R1T with black interior and 20’s.

The R1S was a completely different journey. My wife, who has never given any thought to what she drives, was driving a 2022 Tesla MY Performance, which I had ordered for her. Our daughter had an R1S on order and she just got access to the shop in July 2023. While looking at R1S’s with her I was intrigued by the vehicle. My wife had driven Yukons and Tahoes for years so the size was perfect for her. I put a deposit down on an R1S thinking we would replace her Tesla in a couple years. On a lark, I searched for local pre owned R1S’s and found one 30 minutes away. It was a midnight LE with OC and 22’s. It was also about $6K less than a newly configured one like I had ordered. I took her to see it thinking she would never go for it but she fell in love with the color combo, size and everything about it. It looked brand new with only 165 miles on the odometer. We made a deal and picked it up that night while trading the Tesla to the dealer.

Now, after a year+ in the R1T and almost a month in the R1S, here are my thoughts:
1. There is no comparison between my 2 Teslas and 2 Rivians. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED my Teslas. However, they felt like toy cars compared to the Rivians. Granted, the Rivians are a lot more $’s but for me, they just can’t be compared. The Rivians are rock solid and drive like real trucks/heavy duty SUV’s.
2. The Rivians are luxurious inside and out while the Teslas felt “plasticy”. To me they were more like “toy” cars.
3. My mileage range was never what was promised on both my Teslas, usually falling about 10% less. Tesla would just brush it off. I now know that this was intrinsic (and known to Tesla) to all Teslas. However, both my Rivians are dead on what was promised as range.
4. IMHO, as an audiophile, who has been searching for the best audio in vehicles over the last 50 years, the R1T is the best I have ever experienced. Yes, I have read about the AA/CP debates, but to me it is a situation of know what you are buying and I have been w/o CP since my Tesla days so I knew what I was getting into. To me, there is nothing better than Tidal or Amazon Music playing through the R1T at the highest quality. And every update gets a few more of the little bugs out.
5. The stock audio system in the R1S is a different story. While completely adequate for my wife, I find it disappointing when held up against the R1T Meridian. It could have been a deal breaker for me as my ride since I now have been tainted by owning the Meridian system. I probably would have searched for an early pre owned R1S with the Meridian.
6. While nobody likes service issues, I will say that dealing with Rivian has been a pleasure compared to Tesla. I compliment the service support phone guides constantly at Rivian for their pleasant attitude, responsiveness, and ability to troubleshoot. Tesla could learn a lot from them. Also, while I have had some minor issues, recalls/inspections, and mobile service visits, it is a lot less than I would have expected for a startup. I am thrilled that a new service center is opening by the end of the year 15 miles away from me in Tampa instead of driving 70 miles to Orlando. Also, the mobile techs have been great. They started with 1 in my area and are now up to 8, I think. They were mostly poached from Tesla and love working for Rivian.
7. I love the R1S for its ability to configure the rear 2 rows of seats for whatever we need to accomplish. It is extremely flexible and comfortable in all configurations. And while I don’t like light interiors, due to the grandkids, the OC is spectacular.
8. Cons-there are none. I love everything about both my Rivians. While I have read all the negatives and complaints about the vehicles I remind myself that this is a startup and we all have been on the front line with Rivian in enjoying these quality built vehicles. I pinch myself every time I get in them.

And BTW, our daughter is trading in her 2022 Tesla Model 3 for her new Limestone R1S next week. Our son is the only one left in a Tesla.

Good write up. Thanks.

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

I think it all depends on what your frame of reference is and what you're expecting.

Great post. And also ^^ this comment right here. My previous daily driver was a 15-year-old Chevy WT. It is like night & day, going to the Rivian. Absolutely amazing experience. Althoughhhh... my WT did have AA and satellite radio.

 

[swhme]

Wow, this thread took a quick turn

Glad you're loving your Rivians!

 

[Taiga]

Glad you're loving the audio in the R1T. I feel like I'm missing something though. I have the Meridian system and it's as though all the sound is coming from the front dash. I play with the button to move the center of the sound back but then it's way behind me. It also doesn't sound like the speakers up by the headliner have any sound coming out. My previous car was a Volvo (Bose) and it sounded like the music was very much surrounding the driver and couldn't be located as coming out of any one place in the car. I love everything else about the truck but the audio seems like it's missing something. Is it me, are others experiencing this? Any fixes?

 

[FL_EV]

What is your source? Spotify, Amazon music, Tidal? If any of these, are you setup for the highest quality?

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