TractorJackie
Well-Known Member
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This is the story of how my R1S behaved when I didn't plan far enough ahead, and what I learned from it.
For context: I’m a 65-year-old woman road tripping alone with my dog in my 2026 R1S.
I was staying at The Lodge at Summer Lake when I realized I had a charging problem. I asked to use an exterior 110 outlet overnight and was refused due to “insurance issues.” (Oh, whatever.) An employee told me that Santa’s Hardware in Christmas Valley had an EV charger. Great!
At the time, I had about 60 miles of range. Mind you, this is the Oregon Outback. Middle of NOWHERE. Christmas Valley required backtracking roughly 30 miles—so 60 miles round trip. Tight, but theoretically possible. I called the hardware store before leaving and confirmed the charger existed and worked. That part was true.
I drove there, plugged in, and quickly realized the charger was effectively no better than a standard 110 outlet. Painfully slow. After waiting long enough to gain just enough charge to return, I unplugged and drove back to the lodge—now with about 15 miles of range left. Worse than when I started. Overnight temps were forecast in the 20s, which made everything more precarious.
Across the highway from the lodge is an Oregon Fish & Wildlife station. I walked over, explained my situation, and the rangers generously allowed me to plug into a 110 outlet in their barn overnight. It technically charged, but in those temperatures it was barely effective. After another night at the lodge, I looked at my Rivian app and saw I still had only 15 miles of range, and declining before my eyes, due to the frigid temps. I had to get out of there.
Warning: Do not rely solely on ChatGPT for navigation, especially in remote areas.
Good news was Chat told me that if I could get to the RV campground at Summer Lake Hot Springs "just up the road," my portable charging cable would work on their RV hookup. I did not know this, so that was great to learn. It said the campground was about 3 miles away.
Bad news: It’s closer to 17.
I started driving toward the RV spot and after just six miles realized I wasn’t going to make it. I turned around and crept into Playa, an artists’ retreat just before the hot springs. They kindly let me use a standard 110 outlet, for which I gratefully repaid them with drone footage of their property.
After about two hours, I had a whopping 14 miles of range—actually much better than expected. I was optimistic because I believed I only needed 10 miles to get to the RV hookup.
My optimism evaporated quickly. As soon as I was back on the road, my range suddenly dropped from 14 to 9 to 6 to 0, in just a few minutes. I crawled, watching for downhills to regen. The display read zero for maybe a mile. Then the car told me—very firmly—to pull over. "You're done." The vehicle rolled to a stop on the side of the road. The worst part? I could see the hot springs ahead of me, no more than 1,000 feet.
I called a tow operator out of Paisley and told him not to bother with a flatbed—just a rope. I was that close. He pulled me the short distance (I was able to put the vehicle in neutral), and all interior electronics were still functioning, which lulled me into thinking I was in the clear.
This is probably the most important thing I learned...
There are two kinds of “dead” in a Rivian: Brick and Cinder Block
The moment the tow truck rolled me up to the RV hookup, the Rivian threw a warning about sensors going offline and the wheels locked completely. Not “can’t drive” dead—full doornail dead. If that had happened 20 feet earlier, I’d have been in real trouble.
I plugged into the RV’s 240V (NEMA 14-50) outlet using the Rivian portable charger and immediately began charging normally. They put me up in their deluxe cabin and they also gladly took payment in the form of drone footage! Wow.
My dog and I were back on the road the next morning with a full tank and the rest of the road trip went without any further hitches.
What I learned:
For context: I’m a 65-year-old woman road tripping alone with my dog in my 2026 R1S.
I was staying at The Lodge at Summer Lake when I realized I had a charging problem. I asked to use an exterior 110 outlet overnight and was refused due to “insurance issues.” (Oh, whatever.) An employee told me that Santa’s Hardware in Christmas Valley had an EV charger. Great!
At the time, I had about 60 miles of range. Mind you, this is the Oregon Outback. Middle of NOWHERE. Christmas Valley required backtracking roughly 30 miles—so 60 miles round trip. Tight, but theoretically possible. I called the hardware store before leaving and confirmed the charger existed and worked. That part was true.
I drove there, plugged in, and quickly realized the charger was effectively no better than a standard 110 outlet. Painfully slow. After waiting long enough to gain just enough charge to return, I unplugged and drove back to the lodge—now with about 15 miles of range left. Worse than when I started. Overnight temps were forecast in the 20s, which made everything more precarious.
Across the highway from the lodge is an Oregon Fish & Wildlife station. I walked over, explained my situation, and the rangers generously allowed me to plug into a 110 outlet in their barn overnight. It technically charged, but in those temperatures it was barely effective. After another night at the lodge, I looked at my Rivian app and saw I still had only 15 miles of range, and declining before my eyes, due to the frigid temps. I had to get out of there.
Warning: Do not rely solely on ChatGPT for navigation, especially in remote areas.
Good news was Chat told me that if I could get to the RV campground at Summer Lake Hot Springs "just up the road," my portable charging cable would work on their RV hookup. I did not know this, so that was great to learn. It said the campground was about 3 miles away.
Bad news: It’s closer to 17.
I started driving toward the RV spot and after just six miles realized I wasn’t going to make it. I turned around and crept into Playa, an artists’ retreat just before the hot springs. They kindly let me use a standard 110 outlet, for which I gratefully repaid them with drone footage of their property.
After about two hours, I had a whopping 14 miles of range—actually much better than expected. I was optimistic because I believed I only needed 10 miles to get to the RV hookup.
My optimism evaporated quickly. As soon as I was back on the road, my range suddenly dropped from 14 to 9 to 6 to 0, in just a few minutes. I crawled, watching for downhills to regen. The display read zero for maybe a mile. Then the car told me—very firmly—to pull over. "You're done." The vehicle rolled to a stop on the side of the road. The worst part? I could see the hot springs ahead of me, no more than 1,000 feet.
I called a tow operator out of Paisley and told him not to bother with a flatbed—just a rope. I was that close. He pulled me the short distance (I was able to put the vehicle in neutral), and all interior electronics were still functioning, which lulled me into thinking I was in the clear.
This is probably the most important thing I learned...
There are two kinds of “dead” in a Rivian: Brick and Cinder Block
The moment the tow truck rolled me up to the RV hookup, the Rivian threw a warning about sensors going offline and the wheels locked completely. Not “can’t drive” dead—full doornail dead. If that had happened 20 feet earlier, I’d have been in real trouble.
I plugged into the RV’s 240V (NEMA 14-50) outlet using the Rivian portable charger and immediately began charging normally. They put me up in their deluxe cabin and they also gladly took payment in the form of drone footage! Wow.
My dog and I were back on the road the next morning with a full tank and the rest of the road trip went without any further hitches.
What I learned:
- Zero means zero.
- Cold weather dramatically accelerates range loss at low SOC.
- Plan beyond the next charger.
- 110 outlets are not reliable.
- RV campground hookups are your friend.
- Carry 220V adapters.
- Know Brick vs. Cinder Block.
- Always pack the drone.
- Stay calm. You'll figure it out. Enjoy the journey.
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