BRAND NEW 2024 R1S AC DOESN’T WORK

[RLG84]

Oof. So sorry. We have an R1S that we picked up in April. A few tips on AC with kids in case you have not tried/discovered this yet; you probably have but these helped my family a ton.

-make sure middle row and rear vents are on (wavy blue lines) and turned on full blast.
***you have to click on the vents manually and also adjust the fan speed.
This part I find annoying because I need to reset the mid and rear vents often. Hopefully that will come in an update soon. So far, I do not think there’s an AC memory setting.
-Make sure drivers temp is set to LOW.
-The AC is loud on high but the car usually cools down within 5 mins this way. Then I turn the fan down a notch or two and sound goes away. Once the car is cool enough, you will adjust the temp back up (we like 68-70ish).
-also, double check that the middle screen is locked. It is super fun for kids to “help” adjust the wrong way and then we all sweat. Even with teens, I had to check this on a hot day when we were learning the R1S interface. My kids had turned it to 80 degree in the back the night before because it was cold. it stayed there & was making the whole car hot even though the front ac was set to low and blasting. Lol
-I also try to remember to set my AC to start running a few mins before we will be driving when it’s hot out!

I know I had to play around with settings for awhile before I dialed it in. I didn’t realize that I needed to manually turn on middle and rear vents!

I drove to Utah, Arizona, & Nevada with 6 teenage girls a few weeks ago for an 8th grade trip. Let me tell you that I learned really quick to use the precool setting. Hahaha! It was 100+ in Nevada. Rivian AC worked like a champ with a precool! We do live in San Diego and it’s been warm here too!

i hope that helps. If not, keep calling the service center. Or just show up to ask if it’s close enough. They will fit you in and get it taken care of. We had a very small alignment service after delivery and after repeated inquiries, they got us in quick.

Hope you get it sorted asap! It the most fun car my husband and I have ever driven!

Thank you so much for the tips!! I went through as I initially suspected a lot of these to be the cause and I was really hoping it was something I could fix on the spot but unfortunately it does appear engine / coolant related. Even with the fan set on low it makes a loud humming sound from the front as if the vehicle is really struggling and then in the back there is a ‘hissing’ sound like air is escaping (not from the same spot where you can add air to tires I thought this might be on at first) I wish I noticed before I drove off the lot! Hopefully they can get it fixed quickly at the service center. Such a bummer!

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[Hereforthesnacks]

Why does it matter if the car is $90k? This stuff happens all the time. 99% of the time the manufacturer fixes it asap and says sorry. Nothing is going to be perfect. I get upset when the manufacturer plays games or makes things difficult.

Also, where did you go last weekend? It was pretty mild in LA and in the Inland empire…

 

[ForestNSea]

bummer!

Oh wow. That definitely does not sound good, especially in the rear vents. My front AC is a surprisingly loud hum. Only when turned on the highest setting though.. Thankfully, I can adjust down after a few mins and it stops.

Hope they get you in to fix it ASAP!

 

[SoCal Rob]

Thank you so much for the tips!! I went through as I initially suspected a lot of these to be the cause and I was really hoping it was something I could fix on the spot but unfortunately it does appear engine / coolant related. Even with the fan set on low it makes a loud humming sound from the front as if the vehicle is really struggling and then in the back there is a ‘hissing’ sound like air is escaping (not from the same spot where you can add air to tires I thought this might be on at first) I wish I noticed before I drove off the lot! Hopefully they can get it fixed quickly at the service center. Such a bummer!

The hissing makes me think there could be a refrigerant leak. Does the hissing stop if you have the climate control set to auto and then tap the blue snowflake / red heat (compressor and heat available) icon?

When speaking/chatting with customer service be polite but firm that you need to get the vehicle in for service immediately so that you can at least drive a loaner with working air conditioning. The glass roof with no air conditioning is not a good combo in anything other than cool to cold temps.

 

[RLG84]

The hissing makes me think there could be a refrigerant leak. Does the hissing stop if you have the climate control set to auto and then tap the blue snowflake / red heat (compressor and heat available) icon?

When speaking/chatting with customer service be polite but firm that you need to get the vehicle in for service immediately so that you can at least drive a loaner with working air conditioning. The glass roof with no air conditioning is not a good combo in anything other than cool to cold temps.

Thank you! When I set it to auto the fan is so loud that it drowns out any other noise like the hissing. The hissing lasts a little while after the climate and the car is turned off. When I open the back trunk it’s on the left hand side slightly above where the air Psi system is. I switched that on and off to make sure it’s not related and that is workong fine and I suspect not related because that’s more of a pumping sound. I’ve been in touch with customer service a lot, they are going to take it into the service center but have given me a whole run around which hasn’t helped!

 

[SoCal Rob]

Thank you! When I set it to auto the fan is so loud that it drowns out any other noise like the hissing. The hissing lasts a little while after the climate and the car is turned off. When I open the back trunk it’s on the left hand side slightly above where the air Psi system is. I switched that on and off to make sure it’s not related and that is workong fine and I suspect not related because that’s more of a pumping sound. I’ve been in touch with customer service a lot, they are going to take it into the service center but have given me a whole run around which hasn’t helped!

I seem to recall there is a heat exchanger / refrigerant coil there for the 3rd row face vents. I think it’s likely that there is a leak there, all the refrigerant escaped, and the hissing you’re hearing is plain air leaking out after being pressurized by the air conditioning compressor. It probably lasts a while after the system or car are turned off and the pressurized air slowly leaks out. It wouldn’t surprise me if there is a problem where the refrigerant lines meet the heat exchanger. It may be as easy as the service person pulling off the panel on the inside, tightening a connection, and then putting new refrigerant in (maybe with lubricant?) to get the system working right.

 

[s0ysauce]

It happened to me, car threw up a thermal fault. Contacted support and the AC was not working for 2 days no matter which restart they had me try. Car was still drivable, but on the third day it magically started working again. I still kept my appointment and the SC found that the Electric Air Conditioner compressor (EAC) had an issue. Got the car back in 3 days instead of the week they estimated. It's my daily driver and I've taken it to SoCal and Yosemite (111 in Mariposa) without any issues. Good luck and hopefully you don't let such a minor thing ruin your experience with the vehicle.

 

[runwithscissors]

You missed the boat, they're moving on to Gen 2 now!

 

[Redline]

I’m still amazed people buy/lease a $90k car and can’t even get the model name correct.

 

[RLG84]

I seem to recall there is a heat exchanger / refrigerant coil there for the 3rd row face vents. I think it’s likely that there is a leak there, all the refrigerant escaped, and the hissing you’re hearing is plain air leaking out after being pressurized by the air conditioning compressor. It probably lasts a while after the system or car are turned off and the pressurized air slowly leaks out. It wouldn’t surprise me if there is a problem where the refrigerant lines meet the heat exchanger. It may be as easy as the service person pulling off the panel on the inside, tightening a connection, and then putting new refrigerant in (maybe with lubricant?) to get the system working right.

Thanks for your help I appreciate it! Is that something that should cause a sensor to go on? I’ve done a reset with customer service and nothing changed but there is also no sensors or warning symbols showing. The service center I’m driving to is about 1.5 hrs away (different to where I picked up the car) so I’m hoping there’s no safety hazard that goes unnoticed by a sensor for that drive!

 

[RLG84]

It happened to me, car threw up a thermal fault. Contacted support and the AC was not working for 2 days no matter which restart they had me try. Car was still drivable, but on the third day it magically started working again. I still kept my appointment and the SC found that the Electric Air Conditioner compressor (EAC) had an issue. Got the car back in 3 days instead of the week they estimated. It's my daily driver and I've taken it to SoCal and Yosemite (111 in Mariposa) without any issues. Good luck and hopefully you don't let such a minor thing ruin your experience with the vehicle.

Thanks I’ve tried the resets too with customer service. Did you have any hazard or warning symbols come on? Mine is showing as good to go. Im hoping it’s a simple quick fix like yours!

 

[SoCal Rob]

Thanks for your help I appreciate it! Is that something that should cause a sensor to go on? I’ve done a reset with customer service and nothing changed but there is also no sensors or warning symbols showing. The service center I’m driving to is about 1.5 hrs away (different to where I picked up the car) so I’m hoping there’s no safety hazard that goes unnoticed by a sensor for that drive!

It shouldn’t be a safety issue. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a vehicle which provides a warning light or message when the AC refrigerant is low. If the compressor is running with a leak I assume there isn’t a sensor to monitor the refrigerant.

 

[RLG84]

You missed the boat, they're moving on to Gen 2 now!

This too is a bummer

It shouldn’t be a safety issue. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a vehicle which provides a warning light or message when the AC refrigerant is low. If the compressor is running with a leak I assume there isn’t a sensor to monitor the refrigerant.

Thanks for all your advice I appreciate it!

 

[shap]

I'd contact Audi for help with a faulty RS1.

Now if you mean a Rivian R1S, then contact Rivian support.

P.S. Los Angeles is the desert.

Yes, it sucks, yes, Rivian will make it right. But people survived in cars without AC for decades. *EVERY* car brand has the occasional lemon that makes it all the way to delivery unnoticed. Even Rolls Royce, McLaren, and Bugatti.

Have you actually contacted Rivian support? Have they given you a time estimate? Or are you just guessing? Because for a brand new delivery, they might just swap you to another brand-new vehicle rather than send yours in for repair.

You can not DCFC without AC properly working.

 

[shap]

The hissing makes me think there could be a refrigerant leak. Does the hissing stop if you have the climate control set to auto and then tap the blue snowflake / red heat (compressor and heat available) icon?

When speaking/chatting with customer service be polite but firm that you need to get the vehicle in for service immediately so that you can at least drive a loaner with working air conditioning. The glass roof with no air conditioning is not a good combo in anything other than cool to cold temps.

Had same issue on R1T. Btw, call SC and they will find a slot for you, this is considered a high priority issue.

They refilled gas but it went away after few weeks. Then they replaced o-ring and problem fixed. Few people on this forum had a similar issue with faulty o-ring

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