New owner - Rivian work order language, not making me comfortable

[frostpine_82]

I just experienced this today regarding my hvac issue (at a certain temp, my truck makes a puddle of water, and my driver side floor is wet) and I got the diagnostic fee charges (times two!), I almost panicked because my previous work orders were already 0 without diagnosing, but also the work order had no technician initials so it might have been done automatically.

until i remembered that someone told me the work estimate is a "worst-case scenario" type of thing. i can come back and report on how it'll go, but I am at least very sure that this issue is covered under warranty and that my final cost will be $0.

just dropped her off the other day, service center confirmed to me that the diagnostic fee is waived if issue is found to be under warranty! Also my initial estimate was close to $700, idk what my advisor did that cut it down to ~$400 work estimate before taxes, and this was the day of the drop off

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[PowerFactor]

OK, to wrap this up from my original post, the night before I was to drop it off, I got another work order to sign. This one had no diagnostic fee, zeros everywhere. Very strange, maybe my complaining to the customer service person caused this correction. It said they would order a "bottle degas" and some hoses. So I dropped it off the next day. However, the next day they found that an ERV valve was bad, so they ordered parts, hooked it up to a flush machine to make sure there were no metal bits anywhere, recharged it and gave it a good test. And gave me a loaner R1S meanwhile. Happy ending to the story, at least for now.

Thanks to everyone for your comments

 

[frostpine_82]

OK, to wrap this up from my original post, the night before I was to drop it off, I got another work order to sign. This one had no diagnostic fee, zeros everywhere. Very strange, maybe my complaining to the customer service person caused this correction. It said they would order a "bottle degas" and some hoses. So I dropped it off the next day. However, the next day they found that an ERV valve was bad, so they ordered parts, hooked it up to a flush machine to make sure there were no metal bits anywhere, recharged it and gave it a good test. And gave me a loaner R1S meanwhile. Happy ending to the story, at least for now.

Thanks to everyone for your comments

that's awesome! Yeah, never ever trust the work order nor the work estimate that's showing in the app. Mine showed up close to $1,200 but your SC should be transparent to let you know what the actual cost will be. I do appreciate them not having surprise costs

 

[DanielEV2023]

If covered you pay nothing. Get used to it. This is how it’s done and not just at Rivian. Common with dealerships of other brands. Nothing burger and not the first to ask about it.

Legacy car brands generally speaking do not do this. Customer satisfaction at stores like Lexus is truly first rate. Certain rogue dealerships with some poorly managed retail brands may do such unseemly practices.

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Legacy car brands generally speaking do not do this. Customer satisfaction at stores like Lexus is truly first rate. Certain rogue dealerships with some poorly managed retail brands may do such unseemly practices.

Disagree, but obviously everyone's experience is going to be different. I used to work at what was (at the time) the 36th largest auto dealership chain in the country. We had 29 dealerships across nearly every brand (ranging from Ford, Honda, Nissan, Toyota, etc.). And they absolutely would give you a written document showing $ amount while waiting for the tech to inspect the vehicle and for the manufacturer to determine if the repair was covered by warranty or not.

Just my experience, obviously YMMV. Good luck.

 

[Rivianero]

It is not the estimate that bothers me.
It is the wording that asks me to approve expenditure of the worst case scenario prior to any inspection. I understand that this is not how the SC actually works; they do their diagnostics and then update the estimate and determine if the work will covered by warranty.

However in legal terms, the paperwork required owners to pre-approve all expenses for worst case scenarios. It pushes all the risk exposure onto the owner. I find that unfair, disrespectful, and taking advantage of the service option monopoly also imposed by Rician's warranty.

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