Update! New Gen 2 R1S owner in San Diego! - purchase experience and service log

[Tikiman71]

Greetings, my pre-March/voucher Gen 2 Max Dual R1S has come in and I will hopefully picking it up at the San Diego SC next week. I had previously demo driven a Gen 1 Dual Performance R1S earlier in the summer, and demo'd a Gen 2 at the new downtown waterfront San Diego space just this morning. I was able to park in front (10:45 on a Tuesday morning), and the validated underground parking was still under construction FYI.

Fantastic test drive and generally no complaints, but the wireless chargers would not work on any of the showroom vehicles with my iPhone 12 Pro, and the demo S would open my Apple Wallet every time I put the phone on it and also failed to charge. I know the 2024.23 update was supposed to address this, but curious if anyone has continued to experience this issue? The release notes for 2024.23 included:

• "Fixed an occasional issue that opened Apple Wallet when an iPhone was placed on the wireless charger."

It would be strange for the demo vehicles to not have the most recent updates. Or maybe the update did not do the trick. Also, the main service center in Miramar is still only demo'ing Gen 1 vehicles.

So back to the purchase...I have been obsessing for a very long time on everything. My hopes are high and expectations low. Currently, without the 7-day return window in effect anymore, if something was terribly wrong with the vehicle the options would be:

• Have Rivian fix any reasonable issues and maybe wait a nice long time, or:
• If more serious issues drag on or are repetitive, try to negotiate a buy back or start calling it nasty yellow citrus names.

Is that correct? I own some IPO stock in the company, and I truly want Rivian to succeed. On the other hand, I need to be realistic with such a large purchase. I'm planning to use Plaid to make the payment at the time of delivery instead of in advance if possible. Also getting 2.99% financing. Hopefully...

I look forward to updating this thread with my purchase experience, and can't wait to pick up the new R1S. Thank you for sharing so much information over the years, it's great to finally be here!

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[dradam]

I wish you the best of luck. I have a GEN one 2023 November. I have been thrilled with it. I’ve had only one issue, and it was taken care of very promptly and easily by the service center. New company, new vehicle there will be ups and downs. But overall, the trajectory has been positive for me and I hope it will be for you.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Congratulations! The best suggestion I can give is to check out my delivery checklist. The best solution to prevent getting a problem vehicle is to thoroughly inspect it and also ask to test drive it before you swipe to accept delivery.

If you do find issues during the inspection or test drive, you have two options. From there. You can either delay delivery until service fixes the issues identified, or if the issues are more severe than you could simply reject it outright and ask to be matched with a new VIN.

I do need to update the delivery checklist to include test drive. Previously. Rivian did not allow that and it was okay because you had the 7-day return window. But now that that's gone, one really needs to test drive it and thoroughly inspect it.

https://www.electrifiedoutdoors.com/rivian/rivian-delivery-checklist

 

[krb1183]

I just recently moved from San Diego to Huntsville so delayed my order to take delivery out here (i too was a voucher holder). Picked up my R1S last weekend. So far I love it and in such a short time even driving my ICE vehicles feel antiquated. The wireless charging pad still sucks, even after the S/W update which I just got today. I just set my phone there, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't but honestly I don't really care that much because I'm loving the car so much. I also brought electrified outdoors checklist, super detailed, and did a lot of looking/walking around the vehicle. I asked to do a test drive before 'swiping up' to accept delivery. They road with while I asked questions and tested features. It was a good experience for me.
I knew my interest rate right away, did a lot of that documentation right away after I picked a vehicle from the shop, in fact they ran credit check and gave me my financing options right away. Mine was rolling off the line and had to go through QC in Normal, but only took 2 weeks and I was able to pick it up.
Seamless process overall from my perspective.

 

[CA262]

I took delivery of a Gen 2 R1S Dual Motor with Max battery in San Diego on 8/10. VIN is 47XXX, no complaints, no issues whatsoever. I think it's important that owners having a positive experience share that as well to add some balance.

I am also a voucher holder with a signed purchase agreement which translated into $76,120 before taxes and delivery. The 2.99% finacing is available to voucher holders buying a dual max from the shop, and the binding order agreement for the $7500 tax rebate is icing on the cake. Some pleasant surprises:

• Dynamic roof, standard radio - both exceeded expectations
• A2Z adapters - no issues, plug and play (the home adapter fits nicely into the pull out drawer where the camp speaker used to be)
• UI - pretty intuitive after a day or two, easy to navigate already
• Tow hooks - some mention of them being eliminated on Gen 2 but mine has them

I'm taking an inaugural road trip this weekend of about 1,000 miles and can't wait. Have only been able to commute this week with a quick trip up Double Peak.

 

[Tikiman71]

@dradam - Great name! I'm an Adam too, and also with a LA Silver incoming. I'm a biologist, not a doctor though, but what a coincidence!
@Electrified Outdoors - Yes, thanks! I'm definitely using the checklist! I'm not sure if they will let me test drive the actual vehicle before I accept delivery. I'll ask my mysterious unnamed sales person non-guide tomorrow.
@krb1183 - We have good friends in Huntsville and family east of Nashville. Great places to explore! Good to know about the test drive experience before accepting.
@CA262 - Looks good! I also have a signed binding agreement and will try to amend my 2022 return. Unfortunately I only have about $3700 of tax liability remaining, but that is way better than nothing. Looking forward to pulling the trigger on my A2Z adapters soon. Look for me in Encinitas near the Pannikin coffee shop (LA Silver R1S, dark 20").

I've got some questions to my sales person regarding the test drive, what my price for accessories will ultimately be, and some other things. I'll post anything interesting.

Cheers!

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

I took delivery of a Gen 2 R1S Dual Motor with Max battery in San Diego on 8/10. VIN is 47XXX, no complaints, no issues whatsoever. I think it's important that owners having a positive experience share that as well to add some balance.

I am also a voucher holder with a signed purchase agreement which translated into $76,120 before taxes and delivery. The 2.99% finacing is available to voucher holders buying a dual max from the shop, and the binding order agreement for the $7500 tax rebate is icing on the cake. Some pleasant surprises:

• Dynamic roof, standard radio - both exceeded expectations
• A2Z adapters - no issues, plug and play (the home adapter fits nicely into the pull out drawer where the camp speaker used to be)
• UI - pretty intuitive after a day or two, easy to navigate already
• Tow hooks - some mention of them being eliminated on Gen 2 but mine has them

I'm taking an inaugural road trip this weekend of about 1,000 miles and can't wait. Have only been able to commute this week with a quick trip up Double Peak.

Welcome! Great to hear a positive response (as you noted). Enjoy the adventure!

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

Greetings, my pre-March/voucher Gen 2 Max Dual R1S has come in and I will hopefully picking it up at the San Diego SC next week. I had previously demo driven a Gen 1 Dual Performance R1S earlier in the summer, and demo'd a Gen 2 at the new downtown waterfront San Diego space just this morning. I was able to park in front (10:45 on a Tuesday morning), and the validated underground parking was still under construction FYI.

Fantastic test drive and generally no complaints, but the wireless chargers would not work on any of the showroom vehicles with my iPhone 12 Pro, and the demo S would open my Apple Wallet every time I put the phone on it and also failed to charge. I know the 2024.23 update was supposed to address this, but curious if anyone has continued to experience this issue? The release notes for 2024.23 included:

• "Fixed an occasional issue that opened Apple Wallet when an iPhone was placed on the wireless charger."

It would be strange for the demo vehicles to not have the most recent updates. Or maybe the update did not do the trick. Also, the main service center in Miramar is still only demo'ing Gen 1 vehicles.

So back to the purchase...I have been obsessing for a very long time on everything. My hopes are high and expectations low. Currently, without the 7-day return window in effect anymore, if something was terribly wrong with the vehicle the options would be:

• Have Rivian fix any reasonable issues and maybe wait a nice long time, or:
• If more serious issues drag on or are repetitive, try to negotiate a buy back or start calling it nasty yellow citrus names.

Is that correct? I own some IPO stock in the company, and I truly want Rivian to succeed. On the other hand, I need to be realistic with such a large purchase. I'm planning to use Plaid to make the payment at the time of delivery instead of in advance if possible. Also getting 2.99% financing. Hopefully...

I look forward to updating this thread with my purchase experience, and can't wait to pick up the new R1S. Thank you for sharing so much information over the years, it's great to finally be here!

Congratulations on the upcoming delivery! We love our Gen 1 R1T and R1S. 49,000 miles on the R1T and far less on the R1S. Rivian will make things right if you have any challenges. My truck had very few and the R1S, zero in the first year of ownership.

Sounds like you have an excellent perspective...although, who wants a low bar

 

[yipster]

Congratulations! The best suggestion I can give is to check out my delivery checklist. The best solution to prevent getting a problem vehicle is to thoroughly inspect it and also ask to test drive it before you swipe to accept delivery.

Love the checklist approach, thanks for sharing!

Do you have any specific suggestions for the test drive? As someone who will be taking delivery without previously driving one (except a very brief demo drive), I don’t really know how to approach the test drive other than flagging obvious odd sounds or performance issues.

 

[krb1183]

@dradam - Great name! I'm an Adam too, and also with a LA Silver incoming. I'm a biologist, not a doctor though, but what a coincidence!
@Electrified Outdoors - Yes, thanks! I'm definitely using the checklist! I'm not sure if they will let me test drive the actual vehicle before I accept delivery. I'll ask my mysterious unnamed sales person non-guide tomorrow.
@krb1183 - We have good friends in Huntsville and family east of Nashville. Great places to explore! Good to know about the test drive experience before accepting.
@CA262 - Looks good! I also have a signed binding agreement and will try to amend my 2022 return. Unfortunately I only have about $3700 of tax liability remaining, but that is way better than nothing. Looking forward to pulling the trigger on my A2Z adapters soon. Look for me in Encinitas near the Pannikin coffee shop (LA Silver R1S, dark 20").

I've got some questions to my sales person regarding the test drive, what my price for accessories will ultimately be, and some other things. I'll post anything interesting.

Cheers!

Awesome!
Just to let you know about the test drive, I don't think it's "standard protocol". I just said I wasn't very comfortable paying for a vehicle I didn't get to drive and as part of the walk through I want to take it on a quick loop. They said they knew a good loop and would ride with me.
I tested the radio but mostly left it off so I could listen for motor whine, and abnormal noises or chunks, etc. I think I was paranoid from years of reading this forum, haha. As much as I love everyone's perspective and appreciate reading people's experience I was a little anxious.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Love the checklist approach, thanks for sharing!

Do you have any specific suggestions for the test drive? As someone who will be taking delivery without previously driving one (except a very brief demo drive), I don’t really know how to approach the test drive other than flagging obvious odd sounds or performance issues.

Great question. I think just a normal stuff like noises. Rattles steering wheel alignment? Any possible warning lights that kind of thing.

Rivian should definitely let folks test drive them now that they don't have the ability to return it within the 7-Day. There's no worse experience than getting a vehicle and before you get off the lot having an error or some kind of problem. It's a good opportunity for rivian to differentiate itself from the competition.

Please let us know if they give you any pushback on the test drive request.

 

[Ksarat9]

Greetings, my pre-March/voucher Gen 2 Max Dual R1S has come in and I will hopefully picking it up at the San Diego SC next week. I had previously demo driven a Gen 1 Dual Performance R1S earlier in the summer, and demo'd a Gen 2 at the new downtown waterfront San Diego space just this morning. I was able to park in front (10:45 on a Tuesday morning), and the validated underground parking was still under construction FYI.

Fantastic test drive and generally no complaints, but the wireless chargers would not work on any of the showroom vehicles with my iPhone 12 Pro, and the demo S would open my Apple Wallet every time I put the phone on it and also failed to charge. I know the 2024.23 update was supposed to address this, but curious if anyone has continued to experience this issue? The release notes for 2024.23 included:

• "Fixed an occasional issue that opened Apple Wallet when an iPhone was placed on the wireless charger."

It would be strange for the demo vehicles to not have the most recent updates. Or maybe the update did not do the trick. Also, the main service center in Miramar is still only demo'ing Gen 1 vehicles.

So back to the purchase...I have been obsessing for a very long time on everything. My hopes are high and expectations low. Currently, without the 7-day return window in effect anymore, if something was terribly wrong with the vehicle the options would be:

• Have Rivian fix any reasonable issues and maybe wait a nice long time, or:
• If more serious issues drag on or are repetitive, try to negotiate a buy back or start calling it nasty yellow citrus names.

Is that correct? I own some IPO stock in the company, and I truly want Rivian to succeed. On the other hand, I need to be realistic with such a large purchase. I'm planning to use Plaid to make the payment at the time of delivery instead of in advance if possible. Also getting 2.99% financing. Hopefully...

I look forward to updating this thread with my purchase experience, and can't wait to pick up the new R1S. Thank you for sharing so much information over the years, it's great to finally be here!

I picked up my Gen 2 R1S Dual Max Performance with premium sound last weekend. It drives well and I have no complaints about the purchase experience. My one complaint is the sound system which is complete trash (yes with the latest update installed). If you are switching from a top-notch sound system (for me it's Tesla), and you truly value sound quality, then be prepared to be profoundly disappointed.

 

[Tikiman71]

Some minor updates from my mysterious guide salesperson service center delivery contact:

• Rivian will not offer me the ability to test drive the actual vehicle on order before accepting ownership. While this may be the new policy, I am going to ask anyway.
• They will not honor the pre-march pricing on any accessories, even though they enthusiastically confirmed I would get pre-March pricing in text messages as recent as June. Their final reply was "Apologies for the miscommunication.". I sent them a screen shot of the text, but they have not replied.
• They confirmed that I could indeed bring a cashier's check for the down payment on delivery, and I did end up with the 2.99% promo financing.

It's great to get the voucher and 2.99%, but it's irritating that they changed policy on the accessory prices. I never begged for it, but they absolutely offered it. The road to profitability can be bumpy...

Tonight I am trading in my Bronco to the Ford dealer. Rivian had offered $2-$4K more than Carmax/Carvana/etc, then Ford offered another $2.5K on top of that. Basically broke even and drove a cool truck for free for over a year. I really enjoyed it for what it was in its new/old school glory, a 2-door manual Badlands, but just not very practical in the current stage of my life. I can always get another Bronco, but I will never get another Rivian voucher opportunity. Rivian pickup scheduled for next Thursday.

 

[Spamthechan]

Took delivery of my Gen 2 Standard R1S in San Diego on 8/17. I was prepared to pick over the car and find every and any fault but when the day came.. the car just looked so good that the “check” got done… really quickly. Enjoy the delivery. Any faults you find can not be fixed day of- I have since found two trim pieces that are a little loose that I’ll have them come fix. Sound system (premium) sucks but the rest of the car is fantastic.

BTW My iPhone 12 Pro did pull up wallet the first time I put it on the charger but since then me and my wife’s phones (regular 12) have worked perfectly on the charger.

Enjoy it! My experience with the Miramar service center has been nothing but stellar so far.

 

[Kylechoffman]

@dradam - Great name! I'm an Adam too, and also with a LA Silver incoming. I'm a biologist, not a doctor though, but what a coincidence!
@Electrified Outdoors - Yes, thanks! I'm definitely using the checklist! I'm not sure if they will let me test drive the actual vehicle before I accept delivery. I'll ask my mysterious unnamed sales person non-guide tomorrow.
@krb1183 - We have good friends in Huntsville and family east of Nashville. Great places to explore! Good to know about the test drive experience before accepting.
@CA262 - Looks good! I also have a signed binding agreement and will try to amend my 2022 return. Unfortunately I only have about $3700 of tax liability remaining, but that is way better than nothing. Looking forward to pulling the trigger on my A2Z adapters soon. Look for me in Encinitas near the Pannikin coffee shop (LA Silver R1S, dark 20").

I've got some questions to my sales person regarding the test drive, what my price for accessories will ultimately be, and some other things. I'll post anything interesting.

Cheers!

I am also in San Diego and took delivery of my 2025 R1S Dual Max yesterday after a brief delay. To address your concerns on the vehicle, my R1S had something off with the battery so they delayed my delivery and provided me with a loaner until delivery yesterday. I checked the rest of my vehicle out when that issue arose and they corrected a few things I pointed out during the delay so my delivery experience was pretty seamless. We did take the vehicle for a quick drive before signing because we had not been in a Gen 2 before our vehicle arrived. My alignment is pulling left so we have already been in contact with the SC. The loaner they provided me was a 2023 R1S and didnt have the latest update but did have the apple wallet issue so we just plugged in some cords to charge. I think I saw SpamtheChan's at the SC a few weeks ago.

I will say the SD SC bent over backwards with regards to communication throughout the entire process when this issue arose, especially Jesus who is the delivery manager. I was an earlier adopter on the Model 3 (which had its issues but Tesla corrected) so knowing Tesla was far further along as a company vs Rivian, I know you must have patience and trust they will do everyone right.

For Tikiman, my daughter has been a barista at Pannikin for the past year so I may see you there.

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