RIP - Powered Tonneau ?? (says Rivian engineer)

[Carmelbythesea]

Take it for whatever you want.

My cover worked for almost 5 months and it’s been broken for almost 3. I’d love to having a working cover again. I’m feeling doubtful. Thankfully I attempted and fixed my cover by ripping the back of the truck apart and pulling the broken panel.

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[crashmtb]

Take it for whatever you want.

My cover worked for almost 5 months and it’s been broken for almost 3. I’d love to having a working cover again. I’m felling doubtful. Thankfully I attempted and fixed my cover by ripping the back of the truck apart and pulling the broken panel.

Hopefully they meant not with the current design or something, or not in the current version of the truck. Power tonneau was a headline feature, to me. Opens/closes with the press of a button, doesn’t take up cargo space…

 

[BigE]

I emailed Retrax back in November and asked if they will be making a cover for Rivian’s…here is the response I received.


We are planning on making a cover for the Rivian however we need to test fit the cover to ensure that we can make one for it. Right now we are not able to get one tested fitted with Rivian until late 2023.


Retrax Customer Service
O: 1-800-206-4070
5400 32nd Ave Grand Forks, ND 58201

 

[Zoidz]

I emailed Retrax back in November and asked if they will be making a cover for Rivian’s…here is the response I received.


We are planning on making a cover for the Rivian however we need to test fit the cover to ensure that we can make one for it. Right now we are not able to get one tested fitted with Rivian until late 2023.


Retrax Customer Service
O: 1-800-206-4070
5400 32nd Ave Grand Forks, ND 58201

Sounds like a possible opportunity for a volunteer who lives near them to get a free cover?

 

[Johnsykas]

Continue reading...

Mine is in permanent closed position, so hoping they have a fix soon. I don't need it full of snow when I pick up hay, but need it open to pick up hay. Mechanic removed the gear, so it is truly stuck shut. Meanwhile, I have to keep my diesel truck or buy a trailer to pickup hay. Mechanic told me fix was coming in the next couple of months, that was a month ago.

 

[moosehead]

Love our Retrax in a 2015 Sierra that has been flawless for 7 years even with outdoor parking.

But unfortunately their design storing the rolling tonneau at the cab end in the Rivian short bed will make it that much shorter. It is not nearly so limiting in a larger truck bed.

 

[MaskedRacerX]

Does the manual top use the same sliders/rails as the powered? i.e., I wonder how easy it is to go manual / is it DIY-able[?]

 

[paariv]

Remember when they "started" R1T deliveries in fall 2021, but no actual customers got them, then they silently delayed every real customer delivery by about 6 months, while most review vehicles didn't have a working tonneau?

Lots of us were wondering whether the unannounced delay was due to the tonneau. The fact that they still don't have it right by now - and there's no fix in sight - makes me think the tonneau was behind a lot of the unannounced-but-obvious delays at the beginning of R1T production.

 

[Rivian_Hugh_III]

Was at a World Cup party today and met a Rivian engineer and was told flat out they will never make another truck with powered cover.

I’d be happy if they just sent me a manual cover once that exist.

This makes me very disappointed. I’m still waiting on delivery, but I wanted a truck unlike any other. Now, one by one, the details that delighted me are getting pulled while other EV trucks continue to arise.

Powered tonneau was up there with camp kitchen, gear tunnel, and Max pack as key drivers for me.

Now no tonneau, no camp kitchen, gear tunnel doesn’t open in snow and ice, and no max pack? I don’t need my $1K back at this moment so I’ll let the pre-order ride, but I won’t buy until most of the above is restored. And if the Department of Transportation decides not to honor the $100 intent to buy, which it’s their oerogatove to do, I’ll also ditch out.

Someone at Rivian HQ is wondering why their stock keeps tanking. What is it, $22 right now? I have an idea. Make the trucks you promised and stop cheapening the truck by pulling outlets, wood trim, etc and keeping non-functional phone charging pads for18 months after it was shown that they’re garbage.

 

[mikehmb]

Just give me a manual option (and a partial refund), Rivian: remove the motor, spindle, and gear assemblies, make a cutout at the rear for removal, and give me a storage bag. I will be happy and I will STFU about it.

<rant>
I sold my other truck to make room for this truck. That truck had a functioning shell cap which was lovely for storage and security. Now, I have zero options for securely storing large objects and it p****s me off.

Also, I spent nearly an hour yesterday pulling needles and leaves out of all the crevices in the bed, including in/around the spare well, due to a lack of a cover.

</rant>

 

[madgrey]

The engineer's message can be taken so many different ways that it's essentially meaningless.

Me, I would love to have a trustworthy powered top on my R1T and I think Rivian can make it work. I had an aftermarket one on my RAM of the aluminum manual fold-up type. It's wasn't as convenient as my powered one on the R1T but I could live with that. I'll pass on the additional compensation for pain and suffering.

 

[SoCal Rob]

Just give me a manual option (and a partial refund), Rivian: remove the motor, spindle, and gear assemblies, make a cutout at the rear for removal, and give me a storage bag. I will be happy and I will STFU about it.

<rant>
I sold my other truck to make room for this truck. That truck had a functioning shell cap which was lovely for storage and security. Now, I have zero options for securely storing large objects and it p****s me off.

Also, I spent nearly an hour yesterday pulling needles and leaves out of all the crevices in the bed, including in/around the spare well, due to a lack of a cover.

</rant>

If you removed the gear between the motor and the axle with gears that interfaces with the panels can you use the assembly manually as is? I’m just wondering what would happen if you did that and then manually pulled the end slat towards the tailgate to close the cover. You’d have to be sure to keep it perpendicular to the bed sides and probably go as slowly as when power operated to make sure each panel engages with the one below it fed from the spring-loaded panel storage area. Then do the same thing in reverse when you want to open it. It wouldn’t be locked, but I doubt it would open or close on its own while driving. Maybe?

 

[COdogman]

We have heard lots of things about that powered tonneau fix/ redesign/ replacement and none of them have ever been confirmed (classic Rivian).

1. We heard the vendor was working on a replacement.
2. We heard the "replacement" was actually just a fix designed by the vendor.
3. We heard that Rivian bailed on the vendor and was working on their own solution.
4. We now hear they will not make any more powered tonneaus.
5. *Add your own idea here.....*

It would be nice if Rivian provided some clarity on this, but until they do I think we just have to go off their last publicly stated plan, which is they will repair currently broken covers and have stopped making trucks with the old version. They could obviously break that promise but that does seem more reliable than someone making a comment at a party.

 

[NY_Rob]

Remember when they "started" R1T deliveries in fall 2021, but no actual customers got them, then they silently delayed every real customer delivery by about 6 months, while most review vehicles didn't have a working tonneau?

Lots of us were wondering whether the unannounced delay was due to the tonneau. The fact that they still don't have it right by now - and there's no fix in sight - makes me think the tonneau was behind a lot of the unannounced-but-obvious delays at the beginning of R1T production.

They knew it was problematic during the "Employee Purchase" rollout, and like you mentioned it was disabled during press events. ... they knew very early on it was trouble in the making!

 

[eemri]

I would caution everyone to not hit the panic button. This is anecdotal and there is quite a bit left unsaid with that comment from the engineer. Does that only apply to future orders? Does it mean they will be disabling current powered tonneaus and issuing refunds?

If they do apply this to current trucks, IMHO Rivian owes you nothing more than a refund and removal of your tonneau.

I agree - I was also told by an engineer that they weren't going to be making the Max pack. We still haven't seen it - the Max pack - but there were at least some recent communications that doubled down on it eventually showing up. Hopefully the same is true for the redesigned tonneau cover

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