Introductions & Welcome Thread 👋

[NineElectrics]

So is the Brooklyn location.

I’ve never been to Brooklyn location, but I presume there are at least a few parking spaces controlled by Rivian, or it’s close to the subway. The Venice location has no parking lot, and taking public transportation from LAX would take about an hour one way. Rivian sells cars, right? They should be a bit more friendly to car owners. I suppose Uber means that even people who own a car take rideshares around L.A. Crazy, that would be $70 round trip from LAX to peek at a Rivian.

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[cdub]

I originally ordered R1S. Switched to R1T to get it earlier. Now after seeing R1S in person, I feel R1T is better choice. Larger, more versatile, unless you absolutely need 6~7 seats.

Ah I'd want the 7 seats.

 

[cdub]

I’ve never been to Brooklyn location, but I presume there are at least a few parking spaces controlled by Rivian, or it’s close to the subway. The Venice location has no parking lot, and taking public transportation from LAX would take about an hour. Rivian sells cars, right? They should be a bit more friendly to car owners. I suppose Uber means that even people who own a car take rideshares around L.A. Crazy, that would be $70 round trip from LAX to peak at a Rivian.

There has to be parking somewhat near there. I used to work in Venice.

 

[SANZC02]

There has to be parking somewhat near there. I used to work in Venice.

There is street parking so should not be hard to find some. I was there twice and was able to park.

If your in SoCal there are also the service centers in Costa Mesa and El Segundo, you may be able to schedule a test drive at those.

 

[WSea]

There has to be parking somewhat near there. I used to work in Venice.

We stopped by the Venice hub in December...parked right in front. Maybe got lucky

 

[Ngkgb]

Interesting. I'm 5'11 and my wife is 6'. My Leaf is higher up than a model 3.... Seems very low when I try to get into that car which I'm not a huge fan of. I'll head down to the Rivian hub soon to check it out.

I've seen a bunch of R1Ts around and R1Ss but not recently for some reason.

Thanks for your detailed write-up!

I have two small boys and a short wife. Just installed running boards and it made their(and my) life a lot easier. I don’t have to pick them up to put them in their car seats. They climb right in now.

 

[AxelR]

New builds, I believe as of Feb/Mar 2023, have upgraded air compressors for near silent suspension adjustments

Has this been confirmed?

 

[Chewy734]

I love our R1S! We need that 3rd row most of the time, so there wasn’t really any other options for an EV (the Model X 3rd row sucks for adults, and I’m sure the Model Y 3rd row is a joke).

Charging isn’t difficult, and for around LA we just have the Rivian charger hardwired at home. For long trips, just plan in advance and and always have a plan B in case your first choice of chargers is broken.

Parking at the Venice center isn’t too hard, but it really depends on what day/time you go. You may need to walk a bit, but there should be parking somewhere on a side street.

I live less than a mile from the El Segundo SC, and I’ve seen them also schedule test drives for customers. So, you can go there and try it out as well. If you have a guide, they can help you schedule one on the phone and it’ll save you a trip.

 

[cdub]

and I’m sure the Model Y 3rd row is a joke

It is. I had a Y on order but cancelled in December because of the no tax credit. (At the time) I ordered a 3 row at the time but finally got a chance to check it out and it was worthless. Almost died getting into it.

 

[SASSquatch]

I originally ordered R1S. Switched to R1T to get it earlier. Now after seeing R1S in person, I feel R1T is better choice. Larger, more versatile, unless you absolutely need 6~7 seats.

After having spent time in both, I can attest that the R1T, like reviewers have said, does have different driving dynamics than the R1S (steering feel, handling, and suspension tuning for the longer wheelbase are all better in my opinion).

That said, everything is relative. If you never drive an R1T, you will never know that the R1S doesn't drive like an extremely capable SUV with very good road manners. People innately compare their test drives to their *current* vehicles, not theoretical match-ups between vehicles they aren't going to drive or own.

If you need 7 seats, there is only one option currently in the Rivian stable.

The other word of caution, however, is be advised that you are going to have to deal with early adopter hassles. There is no reliability history for the R1 vehicles and the service network is still being built out and you may have to travel significant distances to deal with potentially higher than average issues since you are dealing with the first production version of a new manufacturer.

These are issues people don't always fully process in the excitement of owning a Rivian but they can easily shape your ownership experience in a negative way if you aren't prepared for them. It's why I have personally chosen to delay my reservation (in addition to wanting a power tonneau cover). I'm not in a hurry to deal with first model production issues - already been there and done that with established OEMs in the past (including my original i3 which was an absolute NIGHTMARE!).

 

[Chewy734]

I think the steering feel for the R1T and R1S are similar, but I never drove one back to back, so I can’t make an honest comparison.

The handling was slightly better on the R1T as I recall, but the R1S has a much better turning radius due to the shorter wheelbase.

I also agree that the suspension feels better on the R1T, but I’m hoping that they dial in the R1S suspension over time via software updates. That being said, the suspension on the R1S isn’t bad, it’s perhaps just not as good as on the R1T right now. What bothers me most about it is that it occasionally feels unsettled when going on bumps.

 

[cdub]

We also started with an early 2012 Leaf, then added a Tesla X in 2016 to have a cross-country vehicle, and became all-electric at that point.
I really liked the Leaf and it became my daily driver.

The Leaf is a great car! Besides it looking really strange and the range not being good it's very fun and peppy to drive.

My previous car was a Civic hybrid and that thing was a dog performance wise. I called it Bessie when going up hills ?

The Leaf working fine after all these years (on second battery) is why I haven't bought a new car yet. That and I really can't stand car payments.

My first car ever was a blue boxy 4WD Jeep Cherokee and the R1S is the perfect throwback to that car which I LOVED.

 

[Ducky]

Venice parking/visits - Have visited the Venice Hub 6 times on different days of the week and at different times. I have always been able to find a street parking spot, at most within a block. Most of the times I have parked within 50 feet of the Hub entrance without difficulty. Always have had a friendly reception and informative conversations with the employees. The facility typically has three vehicles on site plus several they are using for prescheduled test drives. They also have sizable color samples and various exterior/interior combinations on the actual vehicles. You can spend as much time as you like sitting in and playing with the trucks.

The building itself was once the home of famous author Ray Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, Red Planet, Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Illustrated Man, etc.) and is beautifully restored and decorated.

Also there are numerous lunch/coffee/bar locations (try Abbot Kinney Blvd) in Venice proper and it's an absolutely great area to people watch.

 

[jwanderson88]

I joined the forum yesterday and I'm impressed and delighted by all the activity. I asked a couple of questions and within hours I had several very helpful replies. That's great.

 

[Marchin_MTB]

Welcome! It is a good place.

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