Beginning to get frustrated...

[smashweights]

So I need a little vent and maybe reassurance (or forewarning to bail?). I've owned Truckdor the Drivenator (a 2022 Launch Edition R1T) since October 2025 (around 40k miles) and it's definitely been the most enjoyable vehicle i've owned and when all is well, I'm a huge Rivian fanboy to everyone around me. Lately, I'm starting to get tired of visits to the Service Center. Up until the last two weeks I've been pretty nonchalant about it as the service center folks are fantastic and have always had me set up with a rental, loaner, or rideshare credits based on my preference. My last visit with them 2 weeks ago, I didn't need a loaner since we were going out of town and they had issues with their rideshare credits website so one of the staff just drove me home (I live about 7 miles away).

That being said, the issues, though often minor, have been mounting and they recently sent me all the prior owner service records. With about 10 months and 10k miles left on the basic warranty, I'm starting to get second thoughts about keeping the truck beyond the warranty period. Especially now that the last 2 visits i've had it in there's been 3 issues where they fixed the wrong parts, the replaced part also failed immediately, and the fix did not solve the problem. On top of that, my loaner today, a 2023 R1S quad for which I got only a keyfob, failed to recognize the keyfob and unlock as I was leaving to get my kid from school and required over 30 minutes on the phone with service to remote unlock and was quite past pick up time getting my kid.

I guess the rose-colored glasses are fading a bit. I absolutely love the vehicle if there aren't any issues and everything listed here has been covered by warranty, but that part will end over the next year... I'm mostly concerned the front air suspension, which is original, continues to sag. It was nearly bottomed out after sitting for 4 days at the service center this last visit and I had the tech look at it and he said they have specific parameters using the position sensors and twice it's passed this evaluation.

Here's the 9 service visits I am aware of:

So like I said, I don't know what I'm really looking for here other than to vent a little, maybe have someone say they had a similar experience and the truck was magnificent the next 50k miles so just stay the course?

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[Dave Cundiff]

That's more work than either of ours has needed.

Unusual phenomena tend to become more usual as time passes.

I can't give advice, though. Best of luck, @smashweights!

 

[NY_Rob]

See if you can purchase an extended warranty in your state. You pay one upfront cost for the warranty and you don't really have to worry about surprise repair costs after that.

 

[Holler Wanderer]

See if you can purchase an extended warranty in your state. You pay one upfront cost for the warranty and you don't really have to worry about surprise repair costs after that.

Definitely what I'm going to do, although I still have two years left on my Gen1 Quad warranty.

 

[srkz]

Consensus seems to be that first gen R1 is a ticking time bomb, and in my personal experience I’ve noticed the more things need service the more service it needs. There are a lot of parts, clips, fasteners, etc that they changed over the first couple years so when you go in to have work done they break some clips and replace them with new ones that don’t quite fit anymore and rattle now, or they put a compatible gen 2 part in but the firmware on that part doesn’t work with gen 1 unless they do some kind of manual one-off override, or they lose the spring clips that hold the aero covers on in the middle but no one makes that clip anymore and so on and so on.

Gen 1 has an incredible number of features for the price but I would not say it was an incredible value - mine has definitely felt like a prototype built in a shed. Using top of the line parts off the shelf, but still lacking decades of institutional knowledge on packaging, reliability and serviceability.

It’s been a fun ride but I would absolutely not own a gen 1 out of warranty.

Though fwiw despite endless service visits it has never fully stranded me.

 

[smashweights]

That's more work than either of ours has needed.

Unusual phenomena tend to become more usual as time passes.

I can't give advice, though. Best of luck, @smashweights!

Unfortunately that's what I worry... Although my last vehicle was a 2019 Ram 1500, which was also a first year design, and it needed about 5 service visits and about 8 or so warranty repairs in the first 2 years I had it then was flawless the last 3 so

See if you can purchase an extended warranty in your state. You pay one upfront cost for the warranty and you don't really have to worry about surprise repair costs after that.

Looks like they finally added my state when I looked just now. Thing is, it's not necessarily the cost that's frustrating it's the cumulative dropping offs, time without it, dropping it off for a week, picking it up, and immediately noticing the same problem. I left it last week while we were out of town for the clicking while steering and the rear door seal coming off and when I got home with it... Still clicking and the new door seal was coming off worse than before. Clearly didn't verify the fix. I only live 15 minutes away from the SC but I'd be infuriated if I was an hour+

Consensus seems to be that first gen R1 is a ticking time bomb, and in my personal experience I’ve noticed the more things need service the more service it needs. There are a lot of parts, clips, fasteners, etc that they changed over the first couple years so when you go in to have work done they break some clips and replace them with new ones that don’t quite fit anymore and rattle now, or they put a compatible gen 2 part in but the firmware on that part doesn’t work with gen 1 unless they do some kind of manual one-off override, or they lose the spring clips that hold the aero covers on in the middle but no one makes that clip anymore and so on and so on.

Gen 1 has an incredible number of features for the price but I would not say it was an incredible value - mine has definitely felt like a prototype built in a shed. Using top of the line parts off the shelf, but still lacking decades of institutional knowledge on packaging, reliability and serviceability.

It’s been a fun ride but I would absolutely not own a gen 1 out of warranty.

Though fwiw despite endless service visits it has never fully stranded me.

That last line is honestly part of why it's frustrating. None of my issues have been major things or even fancy stuff: rattling panels, poor window seals, door seals coming off, panels not clocking, interior light not working. It's mostly the "basics" of a car that just reminds me Rivian is a company that hadn't made cars before. As transportation it's been flawless, software has never given me a hiccup. I joke that I just keep a list of all the things that need fixed and when it gets too long I book an appointment since nothing really impairs my use.

 

[Great Gatsby]

Felt the same way. Absolutely loved my R1 and Rivian as a company. Sold it as I got closer to warranty end.

Not worth the headaches, IMO. I see it as a “fun while it lasted” thing. Still love the brand and am getting an R2, somewhat hoping the long term durability is better.

 

[defcon888]

So I need a little vent and maybe reassurance (or forewarning to bail?). I've owned Truckdor the Drivenator (a 2022 Launch Edition R1T) since October 2025 (around 40k miles) and it's definitely been the most enjoyable vehicle i've owned and when all is well, I'm a huge Rivian fanboy to everyone around me. Lately, I'm starting to get tired of visits to the Service Center. Up until the last two weeks I've been pretty nonchalant about it as the service center folks are fantastic and have always had me set up with a rental, loaner, or rideshare credits based on my preference. My last visit with them 2 weeks ago, I didn't need a loaner since we were going out of town and they had issues with their rideshare credits website so one of the staff just drove me home (I live about 7 miles away).

That being said, the issues, though often minor, have been mounting and they recently sent me all the prior owner service records. With about 10 months and 10k miles left on the basic warranty, I'm starting to get second thoughts about keeping the truck beyond the warranty period. Especially now that the last 2 visits i've had it in there's been 3 issues where they fixed the wrong parts, the replaced part also failed immediately, and the fix did not solve the problem. On top of that, my loaner today, a 2023 R1S quad for which I got only a keyfob, failed to recognize the keyfob and unlock as I was leaving to get my kid from school and required over 30 minutes on the phone with service to remote unlock and was quite past pick up time getting my kid.

I guess the rose-colored glasses are fading a bit. I absolutely love the vehicle if there aren't any issues and everything listed here has been covered by warranty, but that part will end over the next year... I'm mostly concerned the front air suspension, which is original, continues to sag. It was nearly bottomed out after sitting for 4 days at the service center this last visit and I had the tech look at it and he said they have specific parameters using the position sensors and twice it's passed this evaluation.

Here's the 9 service visits I am aware of:

So like I said, I don't know what I'm really looking for here other than to vent a little, maybe have someone say they had a similar experience and the truck was magnificent the next 50k miles so just stay the course?

You latest one (8/4), I had the same issue with the seal flopping down on the drivers side. Instead of taking it to the service center for repair (and probably couple hundred dollars, I grabbed a bottle of Gorilla Glue (the clear kind), put some on it and pushed it back in. Shut the door and waited a few hours.......voila.....fixed it!

 

[defcon888]

Consensus seems to be that first gen R1 is a ticking time bomb, and in my personal experience I’ve noticed the more things need service the more service it needs. There are a lot of parts, clips, fasteners, etc that they changed over the first couple years so when you go in to have work done they break some clips and replace them with new ones that don’t quite fit anymore and rattle now, or they put a compatible gen 2 part in but the firmware on that part doesn’t work with gen 1 unless they do some kind of manual one-off override, or they lose the spring clips that hold the aero covers on in the middle but no one makes that clip anymore and so on and so on.

Gen 1 has an incredible number of features for the price but I would not say it was an incredible value - mine has definitely felt like a prototype built in a shed. Using top of the line parts off the shelf, but still lacking decades of institutional knowledge on packaging, reliability and serviceability.

It’s been a fun ride but I would absolutely not own a gen 1 out of warranty.

Though fwiw despite endless service visits it has never fully stranded me.

I thnk it depends on when you got the Gen 1.

We got our in May of 2023 and within 2 months it was back at the service center because we had a "headlight system" issue....meaning that the headlights wouldn't turn on which is ok during the day, but rednered our truck useless at night. So, we took it in and htey had to for 4 days and supposedly fixed it. We were no more than 15 miles away and that message popped up again. So we called and they came to our house, picked it up and left us a R1T loaner. They had it for 3 weeks trying to figure it out. They had to fly in a tech from Normal and they scoped/snaked the wiring runs and found that there was a short in a connector. Since then, the only thing we had serivce on was the 12v battery and that was a mobile appointment and we had a windshield replacement. Other than those 2 things, it has been an amazing vehicle....almost 60k on it and it is my daily driver.

 

[DaveA]

So I need a little vent and maybe reassurance (or forewarning to bail?). I've owned Truckdor the Drivenator (a 2022 Launch Edition R1T) since October 2025 (around 40k miles) and it's definitely been the most enjoyable vehicle i've owned and when all is well, I'm a huge Rivian fanboy to everyone around me. Lately, I'm starting to get tired of visits to the Service Center. Up until the last two weeks I've been pretty nonchalant about it as the service center folks are fantastic and have always had me set up with a rental, loaner, or rideshare credits based on my preference. My last visit with them 2 weeks ago, I didn't need a loaner since we were going out of town and they had issues with their rideshare credits website so one of the staff just drove me home (I live about 7 miles away).

That being said, the issues, though often minor, have been mounting and they recently sent me all the prior owner service records. With about 10 months and 10k miles left on the basic warranty, I'm starting to get second thoughts about keeping the truck beyond the warranty period. Especially now that the last 2 visits i've had it in there's been 3 issues where they fixed the wrong parts, the replaced part also failed immediately, and the fix did not solve the problem. On top of that, my loaner today, a 2023 R1S quad for which I got only a keyfob, failed to recognize the keyfob and unlock as I was leaving to get my kid from school and required over 30 minutes on the phone with service to remote unlock and was quite past pick up time getting my kid.

I guess the rose-colored glasses are fading a bit. I absolutely love the vehicle if there aren't any issues and everything listed here has been covered by warranty, but that part will end over the next year... I'm mostly concerned the front air suspension, which is original, continues to sag. It was nearly bottomed out after sitting for 4 days at the service center this last visit and I had the tech look at it and he said they have specific parameters using the position sensors and twice it's passed this evaluation.

Here's the 9 service visits I am aware of:

So like I said, I don't know what I'm really looking for here other than to vent a little, maybe have someone say they had a similar experience and the truck was magnificent the next 50k miles so just stay the course?

Love the R1T, but even with extended warranty, the vehicle suspension and half-shafts are just too problematic and even if covered by the warranty, I don't want to spend time getting things fixed in the future. Moving to R2 for simpler build, but the same Rivian experience with (hopefully) fewer service visits.

 

[ENVErider]

So I need a little vent and maybe reassurance (or forewarning to bail?). I've owned Truckdor the Drivenator (a 2022 Launch Edition R1T) since October 2025 (around 40k miles) and it's definitely been the most enjoyable vehicle i've owned and when all is well, I'm a huge Rivian fanboy to everyone around me. Lately, I'm starting to get tired of visits to the Service Center. Up until the last two weeks I've been pretty nonchalant about it as the service center folks are fantastic and have always had me set up with a rental, loaner, or rideshare credits based on my preference. My last visit with them 2 weeks ago, I didn't need a loaner since we were going out of town and they had issues with their rideshare credits website so one of the staff just drove me home (I live about 7 miles away).

That being said, the issues, though often minor, have been mounting and they recently sent me all the prior owner service records. With about 10 months and 10k miles left on the basic warranty, I'm starting to get second thoughts about keeping the truck beyond the warranty period. Especially now that the last 2 visits i've had it in there's been 3 issues where they fixed the wrong parts, the replaced part also failed immediately, and the fix did not solve the problem. On top of that, my loaner today, a 2023 R1S quad for which I got only a keyfob, failed to recognize the keyfob and unlock as I was leaving to get my kid from school and required over 30 minutes on the phone with service to remote unlock and was quite past pick up time getting my kid.

I guess the rose-colored glasses are fading a bit. I absolutely love the vehicle if there aren't any issues and everything listed here has been covered by warranty, but that part will end over the next year... I'm mostly concerned the front air suspension, which is original, continues to sag. It was nearly bottomed out after sitting for 4 days at the service center this last visit and I had the tech look at it and he said they have specific parameters using the position sensors and twice it's passed this evaluation.

Here's the 9 service visits I am aware of:

So like I said, I don't know what I'm really looking for here other than to vent a little, maybe have someone say they had a similar experience and the truck was magnificent the next 50k miles so just stay the course?

That's much more than what my 74K '22 has seen, but she's been in the shop more than I'd like. All in, it's still the best vehicle experience I've ever had; unfortunately, there's no equivalent vehicle for sale that offers the same upsides. Maybe someday Tesla will take the "cyber" out of their CT.

As for the halfshaft washers clicking, that seems to go hand in hand with the Bosch motors on the early builds; I just live with the clicks at this point. I don't see the tanneau cover on the list; if you have one, this is a common failure point too. Mine was replaced under warranty at 59K mi.

Rivian could do better, but we all knew this was a first model from a new company, and I'm honestly surprised that a first-ever vehicle this technically complex doesn't have more issues. I doubt that Audi, BMW, or Mercedes could have done much better rolling out a truck this capable and complex, even with their decades of experience. Whatever you decide to drive, I hope it brings you happiness and peace of mind. In the end, this truck and every other vehicle you purchase is just a vehicle that will wear out with time.

 

[Mathme]

Keep a a close watch on the wet front floorboards. The Gen 1's have been known to get a plugged AC condensate line and they will then start condensing inside the cabin. I just had mine in for the second repair on that two weeks ago. The fix is about 11.5 hours of labor as they need to remove the dash and replace the insulation on the firewall, as well as the front carpets. Apparently on the first fix, the SC managed to leave a 10mm bolt in the drain area and that's what caused the second issue. Now I need to ask them about the scratched window tint as a result of that second repair.

 

[dleepnw]

There's lots of folks who have had little or no problems. My neighbor has an R1T which has had basically 0 issues (though he only drives it like 3-4k miles a year). However, I was not one of those. In the time I owned mine I had over $35k in repairs, of course covered under warranty. As I approached the end of my warranty period, I made the decision to sell because of concerns over the cost to own. I miss my R1T but I think I made the right decision.

 

[Lysdexic]

I am right there with you. Trading in my Gen 1 R1T for the R2. I am just waiting for the lighter interior. Still, I have parked my R1T and driving my 2004 Tundra until the transaction is complete.

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