Why are we paying for Connect +?

[mmbmca]

In the backyard!

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[beyond]

I kinda wish the admins of this site would just delete crap like this where someone comes in and craps all over and is never seen again. Doesn't do anything for this site nor the community.

 

[Dustyshades]

Yeah I had a couple of Mach E’s that had certain connectivity features, but not the to the degree of Rivian. No free hotspot, for example. But I sold them almost 2 years ago, so maybe something changed. I know that their hands free driver system is $600 per year though, and that would be a hard, hard pass for me. Rivian’s works really well IMO and it’s free for life.

Can confirm that the Mach E does not offer the same level of connectivity that Rivian does (ex hot spot not included).

however, the Mach e does offer the hands on driver assistance feature for free and it does function better than Rivian’s currently (and it can function on any road - mapped or unmapped). The subscription fee is for the hands free version which can only be used on mapped roads

 

[RivianRunner]

OP is obviously trolling, but I’m not aware of any vehicles that offer free connectivity. On the other hand, I know of some who indeed charge for the basic smartphone functions we have and who charge for the driver assist features we get for free.

Are there really companies that offer free connectivity?

Yes, three out of four of our current Tesla offer free Premium Connectivity for life. Two Model 3s and one Cybertruck. The other one we pay $10/month last time I checked.

 

[Rivdog]

Can confirm that the Mach E does not offer the same level of connectivity that Rivian does (ex hot spot not included).

however, the Mach e does offer the hands on driver assistance feature for free and it does function better than Rivian’s currently (and it can function on any road - mapped or unmapped). The subscription fee is for the hands free version which can only be used on mapped roads

Rivian’s Driver+ also functions on all roads, but only the highway assist can be used on mapped roads. Same as BlueCruise. I know it’s personal preference, but I think Driver+ is far, far superior to Ford’s basic offerings and BlueCruise as well. BC drove me crazy with the eye nanny having constant false alerts that made it virtually unusable for me. And without BC, the basic lane keep assist had severe ping-pong and probably would have gotten the cops called because it would look like I was driving drunk. Again, I know some people think BC and Ford’s offering was great, but I absolutely hated it.

 

[Dustyshades]

Rivian’s Driver+ also functions on all roads, but only the highway assist can be used on mapped roads. Same as BlueCruise. I know it’s personal preference, but I think Driver+ is far, far superior to Ford’s basic offerings and BlueCruise as well. BC drove me crazy with the eye nanny having constant false alerts that made it virtually unusable for me. And without BC, the basic lane keep assist had severe ping-pong and probably would have gotten the cops called because it would look like I was driving drunk. Again, I know some people think BC and Ford’s offering was great, but I absolutely hated it.

Sure, let me rephrase. The highway assist experience is the same as the BlueCruise hands on experience. You can use BlueCruise hands on anywhere and it will function the same as highway assist functions on mapped highways. I think it functions really well, but it does monitor your eyes which I guess could get annoying if you are actively not watching the road.

Anyway, the main point is that Ford does give you the same driver assistance functionality as Rivian without any kind of subscription cost. There’s some differences but they are basically the same (ford’s equivalent is not limited to mapped highways. Rivian does not have an eye tracker)

 

[narmstrong79]

Every vehicle I've owned or rented in last 10 years has had free connection with music, and Rivian wants to add a $15/mo nuisance charge for this? I've owned my R1T for 2 months now and am seriously disappointed in how they do business, they will not build Tesla like loyalty with this kind of BS

I wont be paying for as I see no value.
Tesla like loyalty ? What is the Tesla adoption rate for premium connectivity (which brings the same features) FSD, etc.. ?

Every other car you had used carplay or Andorid auto as a way to mirror you phone. Life is moving to everything as a service , you own nothing business model.

Speak with your wallet - 1) don't sign up, 2) Buy a 3rd part Carplay/Android auto screen or 1) Sell the R1S and buy a competitor model. Bitching about on a forum does nothing.

 

[George Kaplan]

Is there a more tiresome topic than Connect +? It was a relatively late starter, but quickly vaulted into becoming the lead offering in the Whine of the Month Club, surpassing lack of CarPlay and FSD.

Want it? Pay for it. Rivian makes it super easy (huge surprise).
Don’t want it? Don’t pay for it. There are workarounds and compromises. You have freedom and choice.

Otherwise: STFU. Let’s focus instead on the real important matters, like why Rivian doesn’t allow me to get an upgrade of my ADAS hardware so I have parity with Gen 2 (even though the processing and wiring are also different in Gen 2). They owe me, right?

 

[dekeen]

Is there a more tiresome topic than Connect +? It was a relatively late starter, but quickly vaulted into becoming the lead offering in the Whine of the Month Club, surpassing lack of CarPlay and FSD.

Want it? Pay for it. Rivian makes it super easy (huge surprise).
Don’t want it? Don’t pay for it. There are workarounds and compromises. You have freedom and choice.

Otherwise: STFU. Let’s focus instead on the real important matters, like why Rivian doesn’t allow me to get an upgrade of my ADAS hardware so I have parity with Gen 2 (even though the processing and wiring are also different in Gen 2). They owe me, right?

Exactly

 

[24R1TLimestone]

Every vehicle I've owned or rented in last 10 years has had free connection with music, and Rivian wants to add a $15/mo nuisance charge for this? I've owned my R1T for 2 months now and am seriously disappointed in how they do business, they will not build Tesla like loyalty with this kind of BS

I doubt that. I get a new car every two years. They all charge after the free trial is up. Tesla charges. You don’t get traffic data if you don’t pay.
And if you could add your vehicle to your phone plan it wouldn’t be free. I did that once to a Volvo and it was 10
My brother didn’t get free data in his $70k Tahoe last year. I didn’t get it in any of my Tesla’s, Volvo, or BMW’s. My friend pays to remote start his Lexus. Everyone Pays.

 

[kozak79]

Subscriptions for connected services are not new or unique to Rivian. I was paying for Volvo's connected services 7 years ago.

 

[SDEVOwner]

OP is obviously trolling, but I’m not aware of any vehicles that offer free connectivity. On the other hand, I know of some who indeed charge for the basic smartphone functions we have and who charge for the driver assist features we get for free.

Are there really companies that offer free connectivity?

I have several Teslas and a Rivian. I signed up for our Model S and X Teslas before they were available. As an early purchaser, we have free premium connectivity for life on those two cars. I had hoped that Rivian would do the same for its early purchasers and just charge for cars purchased after a certain date.


I drive the Rivian about 2000 miles a year. While I can easily afford a $15/monthly fee for premium connectivity, it’s just not worth it for the amount of time I’d use it.

Instead, I’ll probably tether my phone for Spotify - which is what I would mostly want premium connectivity for anyways (although traffic info would be nice).

 

[Sempervirens]

Ooof we don't get traffic info without the subscription?

I guess it is never reliable anyway over Google maps. Pity RJ didn't see the value in Android Auto projection.

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