bbonkk
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- howard
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2021
- Threads
- 11
- Messages
- 198
- Reaction score
- 285
- Location
- Corrales NM
- Vehicles
- Citroen 2cv6, Tesla Model 3, Sprinter van, BMW x5
- Occupation
- pain in the ass
- Thread starter
- #1
I have a Launch Edition 2022 R1S Quad. Last year, it would not charge at either Rivian or Electrify America Level 3 chargers along Hwy 395 between Los Angeles and Mammoth Lakes. This was in August 2024, and I didn’t have the adapter yet. Since it’s about 300 miles to my house, I needed at least one charge along the way.
I stopped at the Olancha Adventure Network charger and tried all three stations, assuming the site was down. I tiptoed to the Inyokern RAM chargers and experienced the same issue. I called Rivian Service and was told to perform the usual reboot, but it didn’t work. Rivian and I agreed that maybe a Level 2 charger was the solution, so I switched to Conserve Mode and drove 45 mph to Palmdale, where the hospital had a faster 21 kW Level 2 charger.
Unfortunately, due to the 110-degree heat, the chargers had been downgraded to 8.6 kW. We ended up sitting there for five hours, ordered Uber Eats, and went into the hospital to cool off. My wife and I took turns holding our Catahoula Leopard Dog under the shade in the drop-off area. After drinking about a gallon of bottled water each, we were back on the road.
I dropped the R1S off at the El Segundo Service Center for a “Sunshine Treatment” so they could run diagnostics. I was given a rental car—thank you, Rivian. It turned out the HV battery and/or the BMS was defective. They installed a re-manufactured HV battery pack at no cost to me.
Now, almost exactly a year later, I had the same problem on my way back from the Bluesapalooza. I started charging at the new Tesla V4 chargers in Coso Junction—no luck. I tried three other stands, then went to the EA chargers next door. Still no luck. I performed four hard reboots, waiting five minutes each time. Nothing worked.
Back on the road to Inyokern, limping along with the GOM (guess-o-meter) showing just 4% battery left upon arrival. Again, no luck at either the Tesla or RAM chargers. I hoped the Level 2 Rivian chargers there would save the day—but they were out of order. Now I was stuck in what felt like hell.
Rivian set up a tow for the next day and arranged a taxi to Lancaster, followed by an Uber home. The total was close to $600, which they said they'd cover, but they only provided a $300 Uber voucher. I had to pay $250 for the taxi out of pocket.
The next day, I met with Rivian at the Havenhurst Service Center and explained the problem. We hooked up to a Level 2 charger in the lot—it charged just fine. They then took it to Burbank the following day, which has a Level 3 charger, and again—it charged without issue. They comped the tow and inspection, but nothing was resolved.
Anybody have an answer???
The only things I can come up with are:
So far, I’ve used Level 3 charging successfully about seven times without issue. One other oddity: I’ve seen my motor temps spike over 200 degrees while going down the mountain to Bishop. This only happened once and was noted via a data drop to Rivian for review.
Any ideas would help. Rivian hasn’t reached out since, and I get the sense they’ve swept it under the rug because the vehicle is “working now.”
p.s. thanks chat GPT
One more point. I noticed that after trying to charge at the NEW Coso Junction Tesla charger I pulled out the charge cable and went to another stand, the app told me that the bank of #4 -A, B, C and D were out of order. I was at 4 A. I don't know if the Rivian caused it or they were already out of order.
I stopped at the Olancha Adventure Network charger and tried all three stations, assuming the site was down. I tiptoed to the Inyokern RAM chargers and experienced the same issue. I called Rivian Service and was told to perform the usual reboot, but it didn’t work. Rivian and I agreed that maybe a Level 2 charger was the solution, so I switched to Conserve Mode and drove 45 mph to Palmdale, where the hospital had a faster 21 kW Level 2 charger.
Unfortunately, due to the 110-degree heat, the chargers had been downgraded to 8.6 kW. We ended up sitting there for five hours, ordered Uber Eats, and went into the hospital to cool off. My wife and I took turns holding our Catahoula Leopard Dog under the shade in the drop-off area. After drinking about a gallon of bottled water each, we were back on the road.
I dropped the R1S off at the El Segundo Service Center for a “Sunshine Treatment” so they could run diagnostics. I was given a rental car—thank you, Rivian. It turned out the HV battery and/or the BMS was defective. They installed a re-manufactured HV battery pack at no cost to me.
Now, almost exactly a year later, I had the same problem on my way back from the Bluesapalooza. I started charging at the new Tesla V4 chargers in Coso Junction—no luck. I tried three other stands, then went to the EA chargers next door. Still no luck. I performed four hard reboots, waiting five minutes each time. Nothing worked.
Back on the road to Inyokern, limping along with the GOM (guess-o-meter) showing just 4% battery left upon arrival. Again, no luck at either the Tesla or RAM chargers. I hoped the Level 2 Rivian chargers there would save the day—but they were out of order. Now I was stuck in what felt like hell.
Rivian set up a tow for the next day and arranged a taxi to Lancaster, followed by an Uber home. The total was close to $600, which they said they'd cover, but they only provided a $300 Uber voucher. I had to pay $250 for the taxi out of pocket.
The next day, I met with Rivian at the Havenhurst Service Center and explained the problem. We hooked up to a Level 2 charger in the lot—it charged just fine. They then took it to Burbank the following day, which has a Level 3 charger, and again—it charged without issue. They comped the tow and inspection, but nothing was resolved.
Anybody have an answer???
The only things I can come up with are:
- Something to do with the altitude (from 8,000 feet),
- The extreme heat,
- A software glitch,
- A fault triggered by the new Tesla V4 chargers,
- Bad luck,
- Or maybe the Bermuda Triangle…
So far, I’ve used Level 3 charging successfully about seven times without issue. One other oddity: I’ve seen my motor temps spike over 200 degrees while going down the mountain to Bishop. This only happened once and was noted via a data drop to Rivian for review.
Any ideas would help. Rivian hasn’t reached out since, and I get the sense they’ve swept it under the rug because the vehicle is “working now.”
p.s. thanks chat GPT
One more point. I noticed that after trying to charge at the NEW Coso Junction Tesla charger I pulled out the charge cable and went to another stand, the app told me that the bank of #4 -A, B, C and D were out of order. I was at 4 A. I don't know if the Rivian caused it or they were already out of order.
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