Why can't Rivian get service center scheduling right?

[djsider2]

After service center drop off for the 1 corner sagging suspension issue + rotation/alignment, the idle time before a car actually starts getting diagnosed or worked on is way too long. I tried to ask the SC for multiple things so I can actually use the car I'm leasing, including for a small weekend road trip, but there's no flexibility at all.

Scenarios I suggested that were shot down:
1. Taking the car out of the SC this weekend and bring it back 3 days later
2. Just get the car back to me by X date and reschedule the items that aren't completed. Only thing thats necessary was alignment and rotation
3. Just let me know when to bring the car in when the SC can actually start working on it
4. Diagnose the issues first and I'll bring the car back when its ready to be fixed, since parts can take a while.

Frustrating. I know they're backed up, but it doesn't have to sit at the SC doing nothing. What's wrong with calling me and telling me to bring it in tmr/2 days from now/etc?

Sponsored

 

[racekarl]

Dealing with this same thing at the moment. My truck has been at the SC a week and the only update has been "we still don't have anyone available to look at it." Mine is only in for similarly minor items, primarily the 15k mile check and tire rotation.

I would be great if they had some sort of virtual queue, where you could sign up for a window of time (say over the course of a week) and commit to being able to bring the truck in within 24 hours of being notified that your slot has opened up.

I understand the scheduling challenges (my truck is at the Boston SC which is the only one that serves all of New England) but they knew (and told me, to be fair) when I dropped if off that they would keep it for 7-10 days to do at most a day's worth of work on it.

 

[NY_Rob]

Even more concerning are the amount of dents, dings, scratches, and other damage vehicles are receiving due to prolonged stays at parking constrained Service Centers. You come in with a clean vehicle, you leave with a dented one, and now it's up to you to prove the damage happened at the SC, not some random parking lot you visited half an hour after you left the SC. It's a bad situation that's not going to resolve until Rivian adds a significant number of new Service Centers around the country.

 

[Gyrosntzatziki]

Not to mention the money they are wasting on Loaners from rental car companies... I had my car sitting at a servcie center for almost 4 weeks and they didnt touch it it seemed for the first 2 weeks while they waited on a part.

 

[djsider2]

More service centers is only 1 part of the fix. They still need to get better at scheduling that any moderate logistics guy should be able to handle.

 

[ndmiller]

Might be SC specific issue, mine in Atlanta has been great in the last year of ownership.

Same Day issues, the majority. Drop off car, get uber credits to work. They call when it's done and I take uber back to SC.

Overnight issues the minority. Drop off car get uber to enterprise. They call when car is done in a day or two and I bring rental to them, not enterprise.

 

[doit82]

Agree, I had to get up at 430 AM and miss a day of work to drive my R1T to Boston for an 830AM appt to just hear after a week a technician has not been assigned to my vehicle yet. What is the point of an appt time if it isn’t even gonna be looked at? At least give me a window to drop it off so I can plan around it and maybe spend a weekend in the city.

 

[MannyMan]

I dropped my truck off Wednesday and they moved it to an over-flow lot(not shaded but they did put my freshly wrapped truck under a tree, so I got a ton of bird poop on it lol, but it's better than being in the AZ sun for a whole week ). the next movement on the truck was the following Tuesday. It just sat there for a week and after a couple days in the bay, I got it back with the same issue(suspension clunk). They said it sounds abnormal but they tested a few other QM R1Ts and found the same issue so they said there's nothing they can do about it....
I was happy with the responsiveness of the SC advisor and they did a great job explaining the issues to me. I didn't have any complaints to them, other than the truck just sat there for a whole week almost, but the service was great. and they left me a nice present in the truck.

 

[Voronbrg]

Waiting for my appointment as well, truck isnt driveable due to suspension air leak. It falls down in 5min of parking. I was really hoping to get more mileage out of the air suspension but I did not. Hopefuly it won't cost several arms and legs since I'm out of warranty. But currently the truck is parked for a month.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Yeah I don't care for this either. I totally get your frustration.

Rivian needs to figure out logistics. When R2 comes they will not be able to hand out loaners for weeks like this.

The flip side to this coin isn't all that great either. If you look at Tesla they get it in/out as fast as possible but that means sometimes you have to take it back 3+ times before it escalated and a tech is authorized to spend more time on it. Also, Tesla doesn't hand out loaners unless the repair takes 3+ days...and guess what...they update you every two days.

Tesla is much more efficient though. I hope Rivian can gain efficiency while also maintaining a good customer experience.

Service will require more patience for some time to come.

 

[beatle]

I just got my truck back after 4 days (including the weekend) for a suspension issue. They said up front that they're averaging 2 weeks, and the stories on this thread are not new, so I was surprised to see such a quick turnaround.

 

[PappaBolt]

Waiting for my appointment as well, truck isnt driveable due to suspension air leak. It falls down in 5min of parking. I was really hoping to get more mileage out of the air suspension but I did not. Hopefuly it won't cost several arms and legs since I'm out of warranty. But currently the truck is parked for a month.

Curious about why you’re no longer under warranty, mileage?

 

[R1Tom]

Waiting for my appointment as well, truck isnt driveable due to suspension air leak. It falls down in 5min of parking. I was really hoping to get more mileage out of the air suspension but I did not. Hopefuly it won't cost several arms and legs since I'm out of warranty. But currently the truck is parked for a month.

Please let us all know what they do end up charging for that repair. Thx!

 

[NY_Rob]

When you're scheduling people three to four months out for service, it's impossible to be so granular that owners bring the vehicle in the day before it can actually go in to the shop and be serviced. Once many more SC are added or as interim relief Rivian partners with a major like VW for instance to use their mechanics/facilities it's not going to change. When you get 50 calls per day for appointments but you can only service 25 vehicles per day, it causes backlogs... and very long ones as we see currently.

Back in 2018 My Bolt needed a minor service dealer service visit. I called the Chevy dealer on a Wed, we scheduled the visit for the following Monday morning. When I got the the dealership my loaner was waiting, they called me Tues to tell me my car was ready for pickup so I stopped by on my way home from work, gave them back the loaner and drove home with my Bolt. Six days from making the appointment to picking up my repaired vehicle. That seems like a long ago dream now

 

[bhendron]

After service center drop off for the 1 corner sagging suspension issue + rotation/alignment, the idle time before a car actually starts getting diagnosed or worked on is way too long. I tried to ask the SC for multiple things so I can actually use the car I'm leasing, including for a small weekend road trip, but there's no flexibility at all.

Scenarios I suggested that were shot down:
1. Taking the car out of the SC this weekend and bring it back 3 days later
2. Just get the car back to me by X date and reschedule the items that aren't completed. Only thing thats necessary was alignment and rotation
3. Just let me know when to bring the car in when the SC can actually start working on it
4. Diagnose the issues first and I'll bring the car back when its ready to be fixed, since parts can take a while.

Frustrating. I know they're backed up, but it doesn't have to sit at the SC doing nothing. What's wrong with calling me and telling me to bring it in tmr/2 days from now/etc?

100% #3. Phoenix service center wanted my truck for FIVE days just to perform the 15k inspection. I said absolutely not. They did a mobile service instead - took 1.5 hrs at my home.

Sponsored