Letter to Rivian: Please Open R3/R3X Reservations

[Bee]

Hi Rivian,

We love you and we're loyal. We would much like to place a reservation on an R3/R3X regardless of shipping schedule. You could drop the R3X in 2031 and I would likely still be interested. Many of us are keeping our R1's and many of us are moving them for other vehicles that are more practical for our use case. For me personally, I needed more of a "Work Truck" so I wound up in a Lightning. For others the size was impractical or perhaps, the payment.

Here's the thing. We're here though, and we're fans. Almost all of us who left and obviously those of us that are still here are looking to fill out our garages with granola haulers. I have a reservation for an R2 down, but I'm going to be honest, my wife would much rather prefer something in the R3 size for her commute into an urban environment. I'm guessing there are many like me who might have a reservation on an R2 but wish they could migrate it to an R3.

If you threw us a bone on the R3 like this, at least to current customers. You will have us hooked for all of those years. You will keep us on these message boards and others. We'll click on the YouTube videos, follow the influencers on X. You may have originally envisioned the R1 as your "halo car" but I think it's going to be this. I think this is your Wrangler. We're going to love this thing. We're going to mod this thing. We're going to sleep in it and, well, you get the idea. This is America's new car.

Let us help you convince the world by taking our money. Please, take our money. I personally am willing to trade up to 1 spouse and/or child in exchange for right of first refusal on cars out of the factory, we stand ready to commit our kin if necessary. I've been stockpiling kin now for decades for just such an occasion.

Signed,
Proud former owner of,

• '87 VW Scirroco
• '89 Mustang LX Notchback
• '04 VW Jetta
• '06 VW GTI
• '08 VW GTI
• '09 Smart ForTwo
• '12 Smart ForTwo
• '15 Fiesta ST
• '19 Bolt EV
• '23 Bolt EV

(insert your former small car ownership/opinion/agreement below!)

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[Chrisy]

(might be a bit off-topic)
This ability to "reserve" a car is a very peculiar thing from the late years.

We dream of owning some cars and when you have a "reservation" on one it makes the dream even more tangible <- I think this might be the reason behind why this new system is successful to a certain degree.

Also since the Covid shortages come along people in the US got reminded that "early bird gets the worm" holds true in a resource limited environment (we got into lately) <- this might be the other half of the reason.

I wonder if not being able to reserve a car 3-4 years in the future makes us feel volatile about our dream of owning that dream car.

Thoughts?

ps) I would love to reserve an R3(X) as of today, small wonder

 

[Bee]

(might be a bit off-topic)
This ability to "reserve" a car is a very peculiar thing from the late years.

We dream of owning some cars and when you have a "reservation" on one it makes the dream even more tangible <- I think this might be the reason behind why this new system is successful to a certain degree.

Also since the Covid shortages come along people in the US got reminded that "early bird gets the worm" holds true in a resource limited environment (we got into lately) <- this might be the other half of the reason.

I wonder if not being able to reserve a car 3-4 years in the future makes us feel volatile about our dream of owning that dream car.

Thoughts?

ps) I would love to reserve an R3(X) as of today, small wonder

As long as I fall into the category of entitled, anyone can draw the boundaries wherever. Just gonna be flat out honest.

 

[beyondgravity]

Hi Rivian,

We love you and we're loyal. We would much like to place a reservation on an R3/R3X regardless of shipping schedule. You could drop the R3X in 2031 and I would likely still be interested. Many of us are keeping our R1's and many of us are moving them for other vehicles that are more practical for our use case. For me personally, I needed more of a "Work Truck" so I wound up in a Lightning. For others the size was impractical or perhaps, the payment.

Here's the thing. We're here though, and we're fans. Almost all of us who left and obviously those of us that are still here are looking to fill out our garages with granola haulers. I have a reservation for an R2 down, but I'm going to be honest, my wife would much rather prefer something in the R3 size for her commute into an urban environment. I'm guessing there are many like me who might have a reservation on an R2 but wish they could migrate it to an R3.

If you threw us a bone on the R3 like this, at least to current customers. You will have us hooked for all of those years. You will keep us on these message boards and others. We'll click on the YouTube videos, follow the influencers on X. You may have originally envisioned the R1 as your "halo car" but I think it's going to be this. I think this is your Wrangler. We're going to love this thing. We're going to mod this thing. We're going to sleep in it and, well, you get the idea. This is America's new car.

Let us help you convince the world by taking our money. Please, take our money. I personally am willing to trade up to 1 spouse and/or child in exchange for right of first refusal on cars out of the factory, we stand ready to commit our kin if necessary. I've been stockpiling kin now for decades for just such an occasion.

Signed,
Proud former owner of,

• '87 VW Scirroco
• '89 Mustang LX Notchback
• '04 VW Jetta
• '06 VW GTI
• '08 VW GTI
• '09 Smart ForTwo
• '12 Smart ForTwo
• '15 Fiesta ST
• '19 Bolt EV
• '23 Bolt EV

(insert your former small car ownership/opinion/agreement below!)

I want Rivian to be successful. Is managing R3 reservation going yo be a distraction? First you want reserve, then want yo know the features, price, production plan….

So based on their market research whatever is good for the company, I am good, of course; not my call. If they start the reservation, I am first in line. Since I am first in line (phantom one) - if they get way more R3 than R2, can they pivot?

• Prius first and second generations
• IS250

 

[Bee]

I want Rivian to be successful. Is managing R3 reservation going yo be a distraction? First you want reserve, then want yo know the features, price, production plan….

So based on their market research whatever is good for the company, I am good, of course. If they start the reservation, I am first in line. Since I am first in line (phantom one) - if they get way more R3 than R2, can you pivot )

• Prius first and second generations
• IS250

Let's be clear about what Rivian wants:

• Maximum PR exposure with first few thousand
• Minimum customer frustrations about waiting

How do I know this? I've been clear on other threads that I've spent the better part of my career in a mid-sized PR firm with automotive as a sector. That's going to manifest itself differently for every brand (ie; luxury brands typically don't like to give cars away because then it cheapens them).

EVs represent something new. It's like a special category of "OCD buyer" - you should hear how salespeople talk about you guys. You don't need to spend more than 5 minutes with a Chevy salesperson for instance to understand what I'm saying if you ask, "What's the difference between a Bolt and Equinox buyer?" (PS: the upshot is they make no money on the Bolt and you're a pain in the ass)

How that's manifesting for Rivian is people have things under a microscope. How we all reacted to them prioritizing for efficiency in delivery and serviceability was kind of nuts. If you were 1,000 miles from a service center in Idaho you wanted your place in line even if it meant the closest service center was Denver - nuts.

What I'm proposing here maximizes for getting the cars in the hands of people who are enthusiastic, will hold on to the car for 1-5 years then move on. They'll pay top dollar without outright flipping. Rivian even has stats, they can say, "If you put under 2,000 miles on your truck before selling, you're in the public line."

If they do what I'm saying then overtly put the cars in priority to YouTubers with the justification for marketing (this is more on YouTubers to appropriately contextualize than on Rivian, Rivian is bound by law to spell out all they do publicly, ie when you see an agency employee who represents a car company they'll always put #client or something in the social post) I think that will be a home run ramp up to launch.

Look at what Ford is doing with their adapters, rewarding active Forum people. I think this kind of system is great having been in communities since the beginning of the VWVortex days. That kind of investment pays dividends. If we all have a great time in year 1 with our R3s and are posting about it constantly, Rivian can capitilize that 100 years from now. Look at the Wrangler and its WWII legacy.

I could ramble for hours on this subject. The more Rivian invests in us, the better for them. Not doing anything will mean seeing 100 mile R3Xs on Carsandbids.com for the first 6 months.

 

[beyondgravity]

R2 may be higher profit margin, which Rivian absolutely needs. I do understand your thinking here.

 

[Bee]

R2 may be higher profit margin, which Rivian absolutely needs. I do understand your thinking here.

100% I agree with you. This is where we get well beyond my expertise. I'm kind of hoping the R3 is "Could be produced in 2026 if you gave us the cash to open up the Georgia plant as originally planned."

In that dream, Apple is sitting on the side lines discussing right of first refusal on stock options from Amazon so they can then turn around and give us our right of first refusal on the R3s

 

[Tango45]

I do wonder how many people would dump R2 reservations for an R3(x) reservation if they opened up today... and if that would be good or bad for Rivian.

 

[Ralph]

Reserving the creation of a waitlist for R3 variants allows them to create additional interest and excitement at a time of their choosing.

That might be only a few months away or it could be years. But it will happen at a time that is integrated into the rest of their time line.

"Don't shoot all your bullets at once."

 

[Lukeee]

21 years of brand loyalty and this (R3X) is the vehicle that has me ready to jump ship. Being first/early to the party (small hot crossover/hatch) has its merits before the market starts getting saturated. The market conditions don’t seem ideal right now, with tightened lending, interest rates, and a lull in demand. Hopefully the conditions will change by the time the car is in production.

I personally am not cross shopping an R1, R2, R3 as these size vehicles serve totally different purposes IMO.

As mentioned above, with the right elements and driving dynamics I see the R3 as an opportunity for Rivian to create a cult like following…. VW golf, Subaru WRX, Mini, FJ cruiser etc…
Or in my case… an opportunity of owning a modern interpretation to group B rally vehicle with torque vectoring and a playful attitude. Kudos to the design team on pulling this off.

PS the girls do need a bigger car sooner than later

 

[foxerson]

Reserving the creation of a waitlist for R3 variants allows them to create additional interest and excitement at a time of their choosing.

That might be only a few months away or it could be years. But it will happen at a time that is integrated into the rest of their time line.

"Don't shoot all your bullets at once."

This pretty much sums up my expectations. They really needed a boost after the last earnings report. RJ delivered the the R3 and R3X surprises last week.

Watch for R3 and R3X reservations to open up when they really need another boost in the press and in the stock market.

 

[JeepEVer]

My wife wants her R3 now!

 

[Florida Panhandler]

Rivian needs a partner in the EU to open up R3 -series ASAP. Europe is the natural fit for the R3 line and this line needs to deliver before the competition really heats up.. BMW seems to me to be the natural partner to get an R3 factory up and running in a short amount of time as possible with Service and support coinciding with deliveries. This is survival mode thinking as the worldwide carmaker count consolidates and shrinks.

 

[runningdenver]

I do wonder how many people would dump R2 reservations for an R3(x) reservation if they opened up today... and if that would be good or bad for Rivian.

 

[WorldComposting]

This pretty much sums up my expectations. They really needed a boost after the last earnings report. RJ delivered the the R3 and R3X surprises last week.

Watch for R3 and R3X reservations to open up when they really need another boost in the press and in the stock market.

This right here is the reason. They did the "One More Thing" announcement but as the R2 is still 2 years out this will get people excited about Rivian again if they need a social boost.

The R3 is that perfect vehicle for empty nesters that don't need a large SUV anymore or those who want a small easy to park vehicle for city driving.

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