My concerns as a potential Rivian Owner

[iansriv]

Alec-you have very specific needs and standards. Nothing wrong with that. Like others have said-Rivian might not be for you, today. All the best.

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[howler99]

I agree with most on here that you might be overanalyzing this, but but speaking to a few of your concerns:

- Regen braking - I live in the mountains of Western NC close to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and I love the regenerative braking. I will admit 80% of my driving is casual or stuck in slow traffic on 2 lane roads. I have the 20inch wheels with original Pirelli AT tires. I keep the regenerative braking at max and love it. On my most recent service (15k miles), the technician estimated that I would get 100k on my front brakes, and I might never had to replace the rear brakes. Keep in mind this is my first EV, but I'm happy with that.

- I love the native Nav system on the Rivian too. It does everything I need with the possible exception of real-time traffic updates. We rarely have traffic issues up here, so I cant speak to that. It a great job of finding and navigating to out of the way - trails, waterfalls, dirt roads etc., but sometimes I do have to use Alltrails directions on my phone as a backup.

4g coverage is an issue up here, a couple of times I have been stuck with continuous spinning on the nav, and had the native music options (Spotify, Amazon, drop out), but overall that is a rare issue. I'm not a fan of Apple anything so I don't miss that.

- No vehicle to load. I hear you! Why should I have to buy a huge battery for my truck and another for my house?! If I recall recall correctly, RJ has been talking about this a while. On the other hand, does anyone really have this figured out yet? I would like to know. It seems like the Ford Lightning is as close as anyone, and it was only a partial solution that still required thousands to integrate with your house. I know Tesla is touting that with the Cybertruck, so they may be further along.

- Service times. I agree if you have to go into a service center. However, after a little more than 2 years of ownership, I have only had to do that one time (for a recall). I have been fortunate to only need recall work and scheduled maintenance. The mobile service for recalls and maintenance has been superb. I don't know how they do it in a remote area, but it could not be better.

I also want to ask if there is another EV (or any) automaker that does well with service? I hear discouraging stories about Tesla repair, and I doubt that any legacy automaker has dealers equipped to service EVs.

One item not on your list that concerns me is what I hear about the cost of body damage repair on Rivians. My understanding is that is it skyrocketing for most EVs and especially for Rivian. Thankfully, I have no direct experience in that area. Rivian has a 5 star collision rating. My understanding is that it is designed to give up frame, panels, and other expensive stuff to save the occupants. It makes for costly accident repairs, but isn't that what you really want?

Ok, I'm biased. I love the Rivian, but I tried to be as objective as possible.

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

You can almost guarantee you will be disappointed because many of your concerns are legitimate. There simply isn't a highly evolved EV at this point that meets all of your needs. If you can live with a 5-seater, maybe the new Macan?

We love both of our Rivian's, but knew going in, what to expect as early adopters....

 

[COLORODO]

I will be taking it on a lot of mountain roads and getting the most out of regen is big. I have a Polestar 2 currently and the friction brakes virtually never get used and the blending of regen and friction is so seamless I'm surprised Rivian is noted as being so aggressive on the friction brakes

I also have a Polestar 2 and I have an R1S. The Polestar 2 has been a great car but it doesn't even come close to comparing to the R1S. I can't think of a single way the Polestar 2 is better than the R1S. You won't be disappointed.

 

[Fraslin]

I am most curious on this one:

• Ride height adjustment can life up while trying to hook up trailer (safety concern)

Where did you read or come up with this one? I have never seen this and don't think it can happen while you are in park. There is some auto leveling once connected but this is FOR safety not a concern.

 

[NDIrish]

I've been wanting a Rivian for a couple of years and seriously considering for a few months now. I've been lurking around here, Reddit, and watching a ton of YouTube videos. I compiled a list of fairly important items that I thought I'd post to see whether things I've read about have been resolved, or to flag for Rivian corporate what's between me and dropping $100k on one of their cars.

Important issues to me:

• Ride height adjustment can life up while trying to hook up trailer (safety concern)
• Infotainment maps sub par compared to Apple/Google. I navigate all the time and expect very accurate directions, POIs, traffic, offline downloads, etc.
• No vehicle to load adapter
  • The idea of plugging into one of those solar chargers as an intermediary may alleviate this concern
• No native NACS and adapters not readily available
• Want more aggressive regen and less friction brakes
  • I will be taking it on a lot of mountain roads and getting the most out of regen is big. I have a Polestar 2 currently and the friction brakes virtually never get used and the blending of regen and friction is so seamless I'm surprised Rivian is noted as being so aggressive on the friction brakes
• Apple Music costs more and needs a special subscription
• Gen 2 AC/Heat pump is loud/vibrating
• No native way to use text messages through infotainment (kind of a safety issue here too)
• Service time is very long
• Demo drive times are poor
  • I live in the greater DFW area currently and the service center has no demo drives on the weekends?? How's a working person supposed to get over there without taking time of of work. I shouldn't have to take time off of work (the latest appointment is 6:15 pm, which can mean leaving work early if you know DFW traffic).

Annoyances but not critical:

• The support site is so lean on details about the car. Interior dimensions, battery statistics, etc.
• Disabled blind spot monitoring while trailering.
• Autonomy driving has been described as that it kind of bounces between the lane rather than staying centered (or ideally Manual Lane Biasing like Lucid)
• Limited interior pictures compared to competitors (which have, e.g. 3D views)
• Website is not clear at all what the difference between "Adventure" and "Ascend" is.
• I'd like to see the company profitable so that I know there's some longevity to the brand. I'm willing to take a risk on the brand, but would want to see the product itself move past the "beta" phase since it's a generation 2 premium product commanding a premium price tag.

A lot of good answers to your concerns posted. Only thing I didn't see mention....

Have you seen the current wait times for dealer service? My son's Camaro for warranty transmission work was 6 weeks. So it's not a Rivian issue, and your baseline may be non past dealer service.

 

[adam12]

I was about to order a Bugatti - but the lack of CarPlay made me change my mind.

- In all seriousness I would wait or look elsewhere for your purchase.

 

[ukyank]

I was about to order a Bugatti - but the lack of CarPlay made me change my mind.

- In all seriousness I would wait or look elsewhere for your purchase.

New Bugatti’s have CarPlay ?

 

[Dave Cundiff]

@blueberrybeat, something in you made you do this much research. You and me both!

Your research findings, and the positives and negatives stated in this thread, are all valid.

If you proceed to purchase, you will have a fairly steep "learning curve" as a Rivian owner. I sure did.

***

Here are some of the reasons this busy person, who now owns both R1S and R1T, thinks the "learning curve" has been -- and continues to be -- worthwhile:

First, our Rivians are pleasant to drive. We feel safer in Rivian than in any other vehicle we've ever owned. Some of this is due to collision avoidance features. Some of it is due to the vehicle's weight and solid build. We aren't likely to get into a crash, and we are confident we won't be hurt in a crash.

Second, with Adaptive Cruise (NOT Highway Assist, just Adaptive Cruise), we feel refreshed even after long trips.

Third, the Rivian community -- owners, drivers, and even the company itself -- is basically a great group of people.

Fourth, Rivian is "all in" on electric propulsion. Our EVs aren't a "side bet" for Rivian, they're the WHOLE bet! The world needs an electric future, and a successful Rivian will be a big part of it. So my partner and I want Rivian to succeed.

***

Since you've done all this work already, @blueberrybeat, consider a meaningful Demo Drive or equivalent. You'll either love it as we do -- in which case the shortcomings won't matter -- or you won't. Then you can proceed confidently, one way or the other.

***

Because this decision is significant for you, I offer a poem by Piet Hein:

"Whenever you're called on to make up your mind,
and you're hampered by not having any,
the best way to solve the dilemma, you'll find,
is simply by spinning a penny.

No - not so that chance shall decide the affair
while you're passively standing there moping;
but the moment the penny is up in the air,
you suddenly know what you're hoping."

(https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/183757-whenever-you-re-called-on-to-make-up-your-mind-and)

***

Very best wishes! Consider keeping the Rivian community in touch!

 

[Thebiglubinsky]

I just picked up my R1S from being serviced at the Miami location. It was an excellent experience, quick, professional, courteous. All cars have issues (except maybe Lexus). Get the vehicle. You will love it.

 

[Nolf]

I've been wanting a Rivian for a couple of years and seriously considering for a few months now. I've been lurking around here, Reddit, and watching a ton of YouTube videos. I compiled a list of fairly important items that I thought I'd post to see whether things I've read about have been resolved, or to flag for Rivian corporate what's between me and dropping $100k on one of their cars.

Important issues to me:

• Ride height adjustment can life up while trying to hook up trailer (safety concern)
• Infotainment maps sub par compared to Apple/Google. I navigate all the time and expect very accurate directions, POIs, traffic, offline downloads, etc.
• No vehicle to load adapter
  • The idea of plugging into one of those solar chargers as an intermediary may alleviate this concern
• No native NACS and adapters not readily available
• Want more aggressive regen and less friction brakes
  • I will be taking it on a lot of mountain roads and getting the most out of regen is big. I have a Polestar 2 currently and the friction brakes virtually never get used and the blending of regen and friction is so seamless I'm surprised Rivian is noted as being so aggressive on the friction brakes
• Apple Music costs more and needs a special subscription
• Gen 2 AC/Heat pump is loud/vibrating
• No native way to use text messages through infotainment (kind of a safety issue here too)
• Service time is very long
• Demo drive times are poor
  • I live in the greater DFW area currently and the service center has no demo drives on the weekends?? How's a working person supposed to get over there without taking time of of work. I shouldn't have to take time off of work (the latest appointment is 6:15 pm, which can mean leaving work early if you know DFW traffic).

Annoyances but not critical:

• The support site is so lean on details about the car. Interior dimensions, battery statistics, etc.
• Disabled blind spot monitoring while trailering.
• Autonomy driving has been described as that it kind of bounces between the lane rather than staying centered (or ideally Manual Lane Biasing like Lucid)
• Limited interior pictures compared to competitors (which have, e.g. 3D views)
• Website is not clear at all what the difference between "Adventure" and "Ascend" is.
• I'd like to see the company profitable so that I know there's some longevity to the brand. I'm willing to take a risk on the brand, but would want to see the product itself move past the "beta" phase since it's a generation 2 premium product commanding a premium price tag.

I stopped reading the minute you said Reddit and were not an owner. Reddit sub is full of whiny losers - mostly Tesla owners that don't know shit about cars, likely can't afford the Rivian they bought, or morons with 4 infants that should have bought a minivan - and only care about software. They compare Rivian to their shitty interior vehicles and think the Tesla "ride like shit" is how all EVs should drive. The fact you spout a list of shit without actually owning anything tells me you are a gullible rube that can't make a decision unless getting validation from internet losers.

 

[blueberrybeat]

Thanks all, yes maybe I am reading too much about the noisy minority who come online to complain. As I've mentioned, I haven't had an opportunity to go test drive so I still need to do that.

I really appreciate the targeted feedback on specific points! It helps get a balanced view versus the issues that others have raised.

 

[boosted20v]

May not be helpful but if you find yourself in Houston on a weekend their service center is open for test drives. I just left. Now to figure out which one I want because I'm sold.

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

I also want to ask if there is another EV (or any) automaker that does well with service? I hear discouraging stories about Tesla repair, and I doubt that any legacy automaker has dealers equipped to service EVs.

Chevy, Kia, and Nissan have excellent service centers with a lot of experience working on EVs.

FWIW - the EV9 is a universally praised 3 row EV with 6 seats. You struggle to find even a luke warm review on it from a reputable site.

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

I stopped reading the minute you said Reddit and were not an owner. Reddit sub is full of whiny losers - mostly Tesla owners that don't know shit about cars, likely can't afford the Rivian they bought, or morons with 4 infants that should have bought a minivan - and only care about software. They compare Rivian to their shitty interior vehicles and think the Tesla "ride like shit" is how all EVs should drive. The fact you spout a list of shit without actually owning anything tells me you are a gullible rube that can't make a decision unless getting validation from internet losers.

Who hurt you, bro?

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