R1S Ownership - 3 week update (edited)

[aim2023]

Its been 3 weeks with the R1S Performance Dual Motor 21in Road Tires and wanted to share my thoughts and some feedback with you all - please share any suggestions or tips/tricks based on what I share.

Driving has been excellent, it is my daily driver, mostly city/township roads. Been on the highway twice (1st one the 90 minute drive from the delivery center). Amazed by the range efficiency. It is exactly the miles I drive and I never get to see that efficiency on the Model Y. Hope this doesn't change a lot over time.

Getting straight to my feedback here.

1. Minor rattling in the car - have owned a Pilot, MDX, Xterra prior - so feel this is normal. The Model 3 and Model Y didn't have much rattling or quality issues fortunately. But less than 1k miles on it, R1S shouldn't have much rattling right? Most obvious is the panel on the passenger door/dash side.

2. When I am driving by myself, I turn off all radio/music to listen and get used to the vehicle noises. I hear a lot of a chirp like sound, especially when going over bumpy roads. Assuming this is the suspension? Now, I have my suspension to the lowest setting all the time. Not on auto. Is the sound normal?

3. Supercharged once using an EA charger and was a good experience. Will supercharging frequently depreciate battery quality? I know this is a topic among Tesla owners and supercharging more often is not encouraged. I rarely supercharge my Model Y unless I am on a long road trip.

4. For the 2nd row heated seats - does this only apply to the side seats and not the middle seat in 2nd row? Since the setting is only for 2 (unlike the Model Y where you can activate heated seats for the middle seat as well).

5. Does Gear Guard drain a lot of battery? Sentry mode on the Model Y does. I haven't noticed much dip in battery when Gear Guard is on. Kids love the Yeti.

6. Car wash - any recommendations or tips for car wash routine. There are very few hand car wash places in my area - rely on Auto Valet Car Wash. Tesla paint is notorious, not sure about the Rivian yet. Haven't taken it for a wash yet.

Also, is the water-less car wash thing any good? Seeing more of them recently in the market.


So far, this is the best car I have owned or even driven. The closest would be a friend's X7 M.

Sponsored

 

[ksurfier]

Its been 3 weeks with the R1S Performance Dual Motor 21in Road Tires and wanted to share my thoughts and some feedback with you all - please share any suggestions or tips/tricks based on what I share.

Driving has been excellent, it is my daily driver, mostly city/township roads. Been on the highway twice (1st one the 90 minute drive from the delivery center). Amazed by the range efficiency. It is exactly the miles I drive and I never get to see that efficiency on the Model Y. Hope this doesn't change a lot over time.

Getting straight to my feedback here.

1. Minor rattling in the car - have owned a Pilot, MDX, Xterra prior - so feel this is normal. But less than 1k miles on it, R1S shouldn't have much rattling right? Most obvious is the panel on the passenger door/dash side.

2. When I am driving by myself, I turn off all radio/music to listen and get used to the vehicle noises. I hear a lot of a chirp like sound, especially when going over bumpy roads. Assuming this is the suspension? Now, I have my suspension to the lowest setting all the time. Not on auto. Is the sound normal?

3. Supercharged once using an EA charger and was a good experience. Will supercharging frequently depreciate battery quality? I know this is a topic among Tesla owners and supercharging more often is not encouraged. I rarely supercharger my Model Y unless I am on a long road trip.

4. For the 2nd row heated seats - does this only apply to the side seats and not the middle seat in 2nd row? Since the setting is only for 2 (unlike the Model Y where you can activate heated seats for the middle seat as well).

5. Does Gear Guard drain a lot of battery? Sentry mode on the Model Y does. I haven't noticed much dip in battery when Gear Guard is on. Kids love the Yeti.


So far, this is the best car I have owned or even driven. The closest would be a friend's X7 M.

1. Rattles should be minimal unless it’s a very bumpy road. You could put in a service request and see what Rivian says…
2. Yes, air suspension makes noise, likely normal.
3. No, supercharging is perfectly fine/safe…but usually no reason to go above 60-70% (unless you really need the range to get to the next supercharger).
4. Yes, just 2 seats capable to heat in the 2nd row.
5. It seems much more efficient than Tesla, I haven’t noticed any issues with it draining the battery.

Congrats and welcome, there is a ton of great info on this forum, lots of helpful folks too…

 

[WhisperPickle]

Don’t stress about “supercharging” (you aren’t really supercharging, it’s not that fast, you are DC fast charging). I wouldn’t do it everyday, but on EVs it’s far more important not to constantly charge it to 100% to avoid battery degradation (newer LFP batteries excluded). The ideal range EV batteries like to “live” in is 30-60% charge. But for daily driving just set your charging limit at 70-80% and go about your business. And don’t stress about charging to 100% for the occasional road trip.

I have no idea though what you and the second poster are saying about efficiency compared to the model Y. This is not at all an efficient EV…..

 

[s0ysauce]

First of all congrats! As you know from owning a prior EV, there are some items that are more unexpected compared to an ICE vehicle.

The rattles in my Tesla were horrible. By comparison the R1S interior is a vast improvement. Granted, there was a time when you don't have to pay north of 60k for a great interior. I also owned a 2008 Lexus that was under 40k that had a much better interior (fit/finish). I'm not talking about infotainment.

It's air suspension and it sometimes fills up more depending on the vehicle condition and how you are driving. Think of it like a balloon. A balloon loses air over time, so does the air suspension. It's just topping off. Unless you are playing with the ride hide control all the time, then it's a minor thing that you get used to in a car.

Just like the Tesla, charge to 70-80% for daily and go to 100% if you feel the need to on longer trips. My 2018 Model 3 still has 299 miles range on a full battery.

Gear Guard, just like Sentry Modes will chew through battery based on how frequently it gets activated.

As for exterior, I opted for a PPF and ceramic coat. This vehicle is too big for my garage so it's sitting outside. Since we are no longer under severe drought conditions, I actually started washing my vehicles again. If you want to go down the rabbit hole and spend some money, look into a pressure washer, foam cannon and a leaf blower. If you want to just take a dip, then look into a foam gun that attaches to your normal garden hose, buy some soap and start spraying away. You use less water, then a normal hand wash.

I was actually cross shopping this between an X7 and a Volvo EX90. The twin turbo V8 sounds nice, but then I remembered the reason I wanted to go electric. I don't ever want to go back to the gas station.

 

[rivian22jax]

Great choice on the Rivian purchase. Just experienced some rattling that you described on my rear driver side door panel. Turned out that it was the underskirting on the bottom of the truck and not inside at all. Service tech explained that screws and/or glue on the underbody panels come loose and cause rattling. Just FYI if you want to feel under the door and see if you can move the panel up and down to create the noise. Good luck.

Sponsored