Jimi
Active Member
- Thread starter
- #1
We picked up our R1S PDM 12/29 in San Jose, and then drove 3 hours home in torrential rain and flood warnings. It was a great way to start our Rivian adventure!
The R1S is our first all electric car. Over the last 20 years, I owned two Lexus Hybrid SUVs and most recently a Volvo XC90 PHEV. In most ways, I like the Rivian much better than the others, though they were awesome cars. The Rivian is an amazing vehicle. Here are my initial thoughts after one month.
• Our experience purchasing went very smoothly, but on a short time frame which created some stress and quick decisions. Our guide experience wasn’t great, until the last few days when he woke up. Pickup was seamless.
• We have so far found no flaws or had any major issues. Fit and finish are really good! I had ordered front end PPF, but they cancelled it due to installer issues. I’ll get that done locally.
• I love the way this car drives and handles, my wife too. I have driven some great cars and trucks (over 2M miles) in my 60 years of driving (guess my age) and the R1S tops the list. The power, suspension, and overall handling is a treat; lots of fun. I especially love driving in the mountains.
• The learning curve on their software is low. I quickly figured out how to slow “phantom leaking” and use all the other features, gauges, etc.. Sure there are some adjustments having no buttons, but once you know what to do it’s easy. So far, I like their navigation.
• We bought the R1S specifically to tow our camper. We haven’t been able to do that yet, but I really like the towing software features. I am not concerned with range anxiety, especially with Tesla coming on board soon. Plus, the car holds a lot of grand kids too!
• Others have complained about the sound system, not me. The whole family has sat and listened to it, including my recording engineer son, and, all think its excellent. I miss SeriusXM, but know it’s coming. I had Spotify and Amazon music accounts, so that’s covered. Alexa is OK. It would be nice if it worked with the navigation system.
• I have 36 solar panels on my house, so charging is pretty much cost free unless traveling. I am looking forward to bidirectional charging whenever the hardware comes available. The Rivian charger works flawlessly.
Improvements Needed:
• This is my first car in 20+ years that doesn’t have good phone and text management software. This is a shocker given that Rivian is a very hi-tech, innovative company; and, not having this is a real pain in the ass! The Volvo was great, easy to use, similar to AA and ACP, which I love. This is a fix Rivian needs to do ASAP!
• The Rivian proprietary garage opening software is also quite flawed! I spent an hour with the service tech trying to get it working, to no avail. We have new, high end Linear openers which are not compatible with the Rivian system. Go figure. They would have saved money and avoided a lot of disgruntled customers if they had used HomeLink! This is an good example of wasting time and energy when there is an off the shelf solution. I get why they don’t want to use AA & ACP, there are real data and control issues there. Not so with opening a frig’n garage door!
Overall, the R1S is impressive, well made, fun to drive, and so worth the investment. I am disappointed with the naysayers on line. There is room to complain about anything, which solves nothing. Reality check – Rivian rises far above the competition with a bold environmental agenda and business plan, outstanding products, and the energy/talent to execute well and be succesful!
The R1S is our first all electric car. Over the last 20 years, I owned two Lexus Hybrid SUVs and most recently a Volvo XC90 PHEV. In most ways, I like the Rivian much better than the others, though they were awesome cars. The Rivian is an amazing vehicle. Here are my initial thoughts after one month.
• Our experience purchasing went very smoothly, but on a short time frame which created some stress and quick decisions. Our guide experience wasn’t great, until the last few days when he woke up. Pickup was seamless.
• We have so far found no flaws or had any major issues. Fit and finish are really good! I had ordered front end PPF, but they cancelled it due to installer issues. I’ll get that done locally.
• I love the way this car drives and handles, my wife too. I have driven some great cars and trucks (over 2M miles) in my 60 years of driving (guess my age) and the R1S tops the list. The power, suspension, and overall handling is a treat; lots of fun. I especially love driving in the mountains.
• The learning curve on their software is low. I quickly figured out how to slow “phantom leaking” and use all the other features, gauges, etc.. Sure there are some adjustments having no buttons, but once you know what to do it’s easy. So far, I like their navigation.
• We bought the R1S specifically to tow our camper. We haven’t been able to do that yet, but I really like the towing software features. I am not concerned with range anxiety, especially with Tesla coming on board soon. Plus, the car holds a lot of grand kids too!
• Others have complained about the sound system, not me. The whole family has sat and listened to it, including my recording engineer son, and, all think its excellent. I miss SeriusXM, but know it’s coming. I had Spotify and Amazon music accounts, so that’s covered. Alexa is OK. It would be nice if it worked with the navigation system.
• I have 36 solar panels on my house, so charging is pretty much cost free unless traveling. I am looking forward to bidirectional charging whenever the hardware comes available. The Rivian charger works flawlessly.
Improvements Needed:
• This is my first car in 20+ years that doesn’t have good phone and text management software. This is a shocker given that Rivian is a very hi-tech, innovative company; and, not having this is a real pain in the ass! The Volvo was great, easy to use, similar to AA and ACP, which I love. This is a fix Rivian needs to do ASAP!
• The Rivian proprietary garage opening software is also quite flawed! I spent an hour with the service tech trying to get it working, to no avail. We have new, high end Linear openers which are not compatible with the Rivian system. Go figure. They would have saved money and avoided a lot of disgruntled customers if they had used HomeLink! This is an good example of wasting time and energy when there is an off the shelf solution. I get why they don’t want to use AA & ACP, there are real data and control issues there. Not so with opening a frig’n garage door!
Overall, the R1S is impressive, well made, fun to drive, and so worth the investment. I am disappointed with the naysayers on line. There is room to complain about anything, which solves nothing. Reality check – Rivian rises far above the competition with a bold environmental agenda and business plan, outstanding products, and the energy/talent to execute well and be succesful!
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