Unexpected monthly subscriptions for my new Rivian

[BenderSC]

I'm waiting for my order invite on my new R2 coming between September and October this year. This will be my first EV and I'm so excited, but with that some unexpected subscriptions will follow, and I would like to know how others deal with it. I personally try to avoid subscriptions (I do have a few) where I can.
Here are a few subscriptions I might need:

Music
Currently I have USB memory sticks in all our cars with ~1500 songs (alt rock, classic rock, 90s). Looks like I can't use those USB sticks anymore in my new R2. I'm not a radio listener, so this is not an option for me. Are there any other options other than getting a subscription from Spotify, Apple Music, SiriusXM etc.?

Charging Networks
I heard Tesla has subscriptions for their superchargers to get better rates. I'm not sure if this is something to consider. I'm not a frequent driver working from home with a few long-distance trips a year. Not sure if there are other subscriptions from other companies and if any of them are worth to consider.

Rivian
Connect+
I know this is not a must have since some of the features come standard. Still, I would like to hear from others if this is something you should pay for.

Autonomy+
Thankfully the R2 Lauch Edition comes automatically with this service. So, no extra cost for this.

Not sure if I forgot another subscription to plan for. I understand that none of them are required.
Again, I'm new to EVs and the R2 will be my first new car (always bought 12 months old cars). Just want to be prepared for what's coming...

Thank you

Sponsored

 

[SANZC02]

I'm waiting for my order invite on my new R2 coming between September and October this year. This will be my first EV and I'm so excited, but with that some unexpected subscriptions will follow, and I would like to know how others deal with it. I personally try to avoid subscriptions (I do have a few) where I can.
Here are a few subscriptions I might need:

Music
Currently I have USB memory sticks in all our cars with ~1500 songs (alt rock, classic rock, 90s). Looks like I can't use those USB sticks anymore in my new R2. I'm not a radio listener, so this is not an option for me. Are there any other options other than getting a subscription from Spotify, Apple Music, SiriusXM etc.?

Charging Networks
I heard Tesla has subscriptions for their superchargers to get better rates. I'm not sure if this is something to consider. I'm not a frequent driver working from home with a few long-distance trips a year. Not sure if there are other subscriptions from other companies and if any of them are worth to consider.

Rivian
Connect+
I know this is not a must have since some of the features come standard. Still, I would like to hear from others if this is something you should pay for.

Autonomy+
Thankfully the R2 Lauch Edition comes automatically with this service. So, no extra cost for this.

Not sure if I forgot another subscription to plan for. I understand that none of them are required.
Again, I'm new to EVs and the R2 will be my first new car (always bought 12 months old cars). Just want to be prepared for what's coming...

Thank you

If you do not charge at DCFC chargers you will not need the Tesla subscription.

I mostly charge at home but if I take a road trip I will pay the 12.99 for a month of the Tesla membership. It pays for itself in 2 charges, you can cancel after 30 days.

The others are only needed if you want them, for connect+ I pay annually, it is cheaper that way.

If you get the launch edition, autonomy+ comes with it you can also pay 2500 if not a launch edition for lifetime rather than monthly.

 

[VSG]

First, you do not need any subscriptions for your R2. (I don't have any subscriptions for my R1 ...)
However, you might want to pay for extras in some cases.

Music
Correct that you can't play music from a USB stick. However you do not need to subscribe to a music service just to listen to music. You can keep your music on your phone and play it by Bluetooth (not an ideal use of my expensive phone's storage, but it works).

Charging networks
If you're like most people, you will do the vast majority of your charging at home or at work. That said, many charging networks, like Electrify America, EVGo, and yes Tesla, have membership programs where you can pay a monthly membership (which you can turn on or off on a month-by-month basis) in order to get a cheaper membership rate on fast charging. It is not required to be a member - you can still charge (at a higher rate) if you're not a member. With membership, you end up saving money if you charge more than once or twice in a month, so I wouldn't really characterize this as a subscription - just turn it on if you're taking a road trip where you expect to use that network more than a few times, then turn it off immediately when you get home.

Rivian
If you want internet connectivity for data above and beyond what is needed to operate the vehicle, then you will have to pay for an internet connection to your vehicle. That's what Connect+ is. As an alternative, you can turn on your phone's hotspot and use that to give your vehicle access to the internet using your phone's cell plan. There are only a few features, like live streaming security cam, that require an actual Connect+ subscription - all the other's can use your phone's hotspot. You have to pay for the data connection either way. Note that things like navigation and map data and over-the-air software updates and streaming FM radio are all basic features that use Rivian's built-in data connection and that you don't have to pay extra for.

 

[FlightDoc]

Exactly what VSG and SANZ said. Now how often or how important are these features?, your call.
After 3.5 yrs of R1T ownership, my opinions:
Music streaming - I use all the time (Sirius XM), but a data drive of your own works.
Charging - used Tesla subscription once, now just use occasionally @ higher price.
Connect+ fancy features - never use.

You will get a couple free months Connect+, decide what you need after that

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

If you want the subscription features, and can’t live without them, then you subscribe. If you can make do without, then none are mandatory. You can still drive and navigate from A to B just as any car. Pay to play. Or don’t. It’s that simple. Don’t fear monger yourself with sentiments shared online. Get the car, experience it and let yourself be the judge. Newly delivered cars should come with free trial subscription. And rivian.com has information on what each subscription entails. You can also google search the domain by including “rivian.com” in your search string. And Spotify’s free ad-supported account will still work (just know sound quality is lower than paid Spotify plans).

 

[JacobAZ]

I do the following:
Charging subscription: I only purchase for a month when doing long trips. Discount is significant. I either do Tesla or Electrify America, then plan most charge stops accordingly. Pays for itself with about 100kw of charging. Daily charging is at home.
Rivian Connect + (music): I do the full year, well worth it. It costs because we are paying for the ATT cell service data. Music can be done with phone and bluetooth, but Connect+ is more convenient.
Autonomy+: I only pay for a month when doing long trips (1 or 2 per year). It's nice, but for me only when on long boring trips.

 

[emroch]

If you're interested in tracking your historical drive data, you may also consider subscribing to Rivian Roamer, TezLab, ElectraFi, etc. If you're not a data nerd then this is probably entirely unnecessary though.

 

[Rivian Roamer]

If you're interested in tracking your historical drive data, you may also consider subscribing to Rivian Roamer, TezLab, ElectraFi, etc. If you're not a data nerd then this is probably entirely unnecessary though.

Hey thanks. It's definitely for the data nerds but there are also a lot of features that are useful even on the free version. The one thing I always tell people is that you can't retroactively go back and track data. So even if you never use the site but just want to have your data available it's a good option.

"Well duh, you're trying to sell more". Of course but I also don't do any advertising and everyone gets 2 weeks to try it out, self cancel and get an automatic refund if it's not for you. Free tier will also always be available.

 

[superfly_snook]

For music I just stream from my phone via Bluetooth, mostly Spotify. The amount of data used is inconsequential and this has not resulted in exceeding the monthly data limits on my basic plan but I don’t commute long distances or anything so YMMV.

 

[Wefty]

I find Plugshare worth it.

A quick search shows a bunch of bluetooth MP3 players. You can replace your USB drives with those.

 

[SteveInBend]

if you're worried about your phone's storage capacity in order to play music, just load your music onto an old unused phone dedicated as a music, pair via bluetooth, and then play your music collection from that device.

 

[BenderSC]

Thank you for all tips.
Good to know that I can sign up for the Tesla chargers only when I need them doing a long-distance trip and then cancel until I need the service again.

I was hoping to use my phone via Bluetooth to listen to my music collection. I have more than ~1200 songs on it. That leads me to an off-topic question, is there any benefit having a music streaming service? I don't listen to any new song that hits the market. I have my music collection on my and my wife's phone and other devices. So, I always have "Offline" access to all my songs.

Coming back to the data usage. I have a basic plan "Essentials" from T-Mobile on both of our phones. In case I would choose a music streaming service, I guess I might run into a problem. Would Rivian Connect+ cover that?

Thanks for the info about Rivian Roamer. Something to think about it.

 

[VandalSibs]

I was hoping to use my phone via Bluetooth to listen to my music collection. I have more than ~1200 songs on it. That leads me to an off-topic question, is there any benefit having a music streaming service? I don't listen to any new song that hits the market. I have my music collection on my and my wife's phone and other devices. So, I always have "Offline" access to all my songs.

I have my entire music library (mix of MP3, wav & FLAC files) on my phone, about 15.3k files. Play them via Bluetooth from a media player app on my phone. No music streaming subscriptions required.

 

[biker1284]

Just use Ionna or a maybe a good RAN and it's probably cheaper than a subscription discount anyways.

 

[Redmond Chad]

One thing to note about Connect+ is if you pay for a full year but sell your vehicle during the year, Rivian will automatically give you a pro-rated refund. I sold my R1S last week and already have the refund; I didn't even have to ask for it. They start the process as soon as you remove the vehicle from your account.

Tesla would not refund the unused portion of their annual connectivity plan, at least they didn't when I traded in my Model Y for the R1S 3 years ago.

Rivian's method makes me feel much better about signing up for the annual plan. (Note that they won't give you a refund if you decide to stop Connect+ for a different reason).

Sponsored