Keep Door Handles Closed like Tesla?

[sub]

I think this whole issue is largely the result of Rivian breaking with the legacy model of allowing people to have something or somewhere to touch on the car which allows the vehicle to unlock if the fob/phone is present AND THE DRIVER INSTRUCTS THE VEHICLE TO OPEN BY TOUCHING OR PUSHING SOMETHING. I understand wanting to do things differently, and even saving money by omitting capacitive sensors in handles or physical buttons, but this isn’t working as many people want and expect.

So, maybe Rivian can use the existing hardware to emulate the behavior so many of us want: unlock only when a fob is close by AND I do something to indicate that unlocking is desired. I’ve seen a system used by some car dealerships where the salesperson has to have a fob or something and then they tap on the car twice to get it to unlock. I’m not sure about the specifics. If the microphone in the vehicle could be used for this type of behavior then it wouldn’t be as good as simply touching something on the handle, but it would be much better than what we have now for those of us who want more control over when the vehicle unlocks. If you have a proximity-enabled fob or PAAK and you approach the vehicle it wakes up and then starts listening. If you do a tap tap on the window it unlocks and presents the handles. When finished with a drive, maybe tapping 3 times tells it to lock.

Just a thought...

Yea, Rivian should do that too, but that is a different topic. Changing when/how the doors lock or unlock would not do anything to address the OP's concern.

This thread is about what the handles do when the doors are already unlocked.

We don't want the handles extended but we want to be able to walk out to the vehicle and open the door while not carying a phone/fob/card.

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[SurfnBike]

Update: Almost 2 hours later and the door handles are still closed in carwash mode. No timeout yet. Also I didn't put the truck in neutral, just left it in park.

 

[SoCal Rob]

Yea, Rivian should do that too, but that is a different topic. Changing when/how the doors lock or unlock would not do anything to address the OP's concern.

This thread is about what the handles do when the doors are already unlocked.

We don't want the handles extended but we want to be able to walk out to the vehicle and open the door while not carying a phone/fob/card.

Yeah, I think that Rivian needs to address multiple shortcomings with the system as-is. Of course there is no single solution so they need to give us options. Some people want the vehicle to be unlocked while the handles remain flush and it seems like it wouldn’t take much to do this as a variation of car wash mode. Others like the handles as a way of reminding them that they need to lock their vehicle. I’m guessing it would be ideal to be able to tie this behavior to location, too.

One other consideration: if the vehicle is unlocked and the handles are retracted to not advertise it, should the mirrors be extended or retracted? I’d prefer them retracted in that case but maybe it should be an option since people might prefer them extended.

 

[SurfnBike]

Another update: The car wash mode is pointless because I just went into my truck to grab something and the R1T automatically opened all of the door handles around the truck, disabling carwash mode automatically. This doesn't make much sense even in car wash mode--let's say you really are washing your car, then you stop spraying it and open a door to get your flip flops out because you just got your shoes all wet, then you close the door and realize all of the door handles are still sticking outwards and once again are liable to get sprayed and your towel to get grease all over it from the pivot joint, so then you have to reopen the door, put it back into car wash mode, and try again.

So you may as well just lock the truck manually, in which case I will go back into my house, do some more stuff, and an hour later then go back to the truck, realize it's locked, then walk back into the house and run all around to find my keys, going back to the truck, unlock it, and the game continues.

It's funny how some manufacturers try to reinvent the wheel, and in doing so they start with a square, proceed to a hexagon, then an octagon, and years later finally realize that a circle was in fact the best solution the entire time.

 

[Phatman113]

I will go back into my house, do some more stuff, and an hour later then go back to the truck, realize it's locked, then walk back into the house and run all around to find my keys, going back to the truck, unlock it

At least you get your steps?

 

[Dark-Fx]

Update: Almost 2 hours later and the door handles are still closed in carwash mode. No timeout yet. Also I didn't put the truck in neutral, just left it in park.

It'll stay in car wash mode indefinitely if you also use camp mode "stay on". Not sure about "stay off" but could be the same behavior. The vehicle waking up from sleep seems to reset car wash mode. It didn't used to, could just be a bug they haven't squashed in their search to reduce vampire drain.

 

[Phatman113]

Camp Courtesy mode disables proximity lock/unlock... but won't keep the handles in... maybe the combo of car wash mode and Camp Courtesy mode?

 

[SoCal Rob]

Another update: The car wash mode is pointless because I just went into my truck to grab something and the R1T automatically opened all of the door handles around the truck, disabling carwash mode automatically. This doesn't make much sense even in car wash mode--let's say you really are washing your car, then you stop spraying it and open a door to get your flip flops out because you just got your shoes all wet, then you close the door and realize all of the door handles are still sticking outwards and once again are liable to get sprayed and your towel to get grease all over it from the pivot joint, so then you have to reopen the door, put it back into car wash mode, and try again.

I think that Rivian envisioned this as automatic car wash mode (where the vehicle has to be in neutral as it’s pulled through a car wash) versus home car wash mode. If you think of how automatic car wash scenarios could play out it starts to make more sense. Two ways I can see this are where you stay in the vehicle as it moves through the car wash and where the vehicle is unattended through the car wash and then a drying/interior person has to get in at the end to move it and dry everything. In those cases the requirement for neutral and the extending of handles when a door is opened both make sense.

Maybe we need an automatic wash mode (current behavior) and a hand wash/stealth unlocked mode which is persistent until disabled.

 

[SurfnBike]

Washing the car at home without car wash mode will drive you nuts because the charge port opens every time you sweep a brush/rag across it, exposing the charging connector. I think I inadvertently opened the charge port about 50 times when I washed it yesterday. Likewise the door handles sticking out exposes the lubrication grease points to the power washer.

Another reason why you may want the door handles closed but unlocked when the R1T is say, parked in the garage, is so that you don't smash a love handle into the door handle when walking past the vehicle. If you've ever done that it hurts.

 

[Dark-Fx]

It's fine to wash out the connector. The risk is in an auto-wash that could get stuck on the charge port door and rip it off.

 

[goldburger]

Yea, Rivian should do that too, but that is a different topic. Changing when/how the doors lock or unlock would not do anything to address the OP's concern.

This thread is about what the handles do when the doors are already unlocked.

We don't want the handles extended but we want to be able to walk out to the vehicle and open the door while not carying a phone/fob/card.

Until every option on earth is programmed by Rivian it's not unreasonable to mickey mouse it-- car wash mode + close the app too cancel paak. One day Rivian will make everything hyper specific, but today.

 

[JamboF4]

In carwash mode, the door handles work exactly like Model 3 door handles. Pushing on the front of the handle causes the back of the handle to pivot out. Then pull on the back of the handle to open the door.

I didn’t know that and I’ve read the manual! Haha

 

[strangelove]

I'm curious if there's a hardware or motor reason Rivian wouldn't want car wash behavior all the time. Might not be good for the door handles given they have the motor that swings them out.

We sometimes park in the garage, and sometimes on the street in front of our house (when my wife needs to charge her Pacifica). We have the car set so that it doesn't auto lock when at "home", which is great in the garage... but bad on the street. So when we park out front, I have to remember to use the app to lock the doors. But then the PAAK won't unlock the doors when I walk up, so I have to take it out of my pocket, open the app and unlock the doors.

It doesn't help that the PAAK is extremely slow for me with my iPhone 13 Pro Max.

I like the overall concept, but agree with the OP that it creates some friction at times that could be smoothed out. If I could wish for one thing, it'd be a way to just tap something on the handle to lock/unlock the car manually with a key nearby (fob or phone), which would help with quick access at times when PAAK isn't ideal.

 

[Phatman113]

I didn’t know that and I’ve read the manual! Haha

With all the updates, you almost have to read the manual after every update!

 

[JamboF4]

With all the updates, you almost have to read the manual after every update!

With all the updates, you almost have to read the manual after every update!

yeah, good point

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