Liquid spill inside trunk disables R1S (wire harness damaged)

[keri]

Something spilled in the trunk area of my R1 S. I have a WeatherTech mat, but the Unknown liquid leaked down underneath the tire well . It followed the wire harness and leaked into the connectors . All the connectors within the wire harness system are not sealed . To replace the whole wire harness system the estimate is $8000. Rivian’s warranty will not cover the repair work nor will my GEICO insurance under the comprehensive policy. I am quite frustrated with Rivian. To create an outdoor adventure vehicle and have the whole system disabled because of some “spilt milk” in the trunk sounds unacceptable. Why wouldn’t the connectors for the wiring system be sealed? I feel like I should be covered under the warranty or my insurance company should cover me. Disappointed that this has happened and no longer trust the vehicle.

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[COdogman]

I'm sorry about your situation, but did we really need a separate thread about it?

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/drive-system-disabled-while-driving.47931/#post-831467

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

It can happen to any car. Any wiring that has potential to short out. Crazy to blame Rivian for a spill they had no part in. Warranty is against manufacturing defect. Was vehicle operating normally prior to spill? Bingo. You don’t have proof it was defective. Your spill is the cause. Not Rivian. Your accusation holds water only if you can prove that other R1s’ harnesses are sealed and Rivian neglected to do the same in yours. The car was designed and built to ford 3.5 ft of water. Not designed to be a rolling bath tub.

 

[Great Gatsby]

I'd push back on Geico, not Rivian. This is more of a claim scenario than a warranty one. Threaten to sue and watch how quickly they'll cover this. $8k is nothing compared to a bad faith lawsuit, so get them to do the one thing that you are paying them to do.

 

[beatle]

Which harness was harmed by the spill? A lot of the wiring connectors are sealed. If they were sealed and liquid made its way into the connector anyway, I'd say Rivian has some more 'splaining to do as there is a reasonable expectation of durability for a sealed harness. If it's an unsealed interior harness that was damaged, this sounds like what comprehensive insurance is for.

What was this unknown liquid? Is it corrosive, sticky, conductive, mercury? This would also help establish whether a sealed harness should be expected to stand up to it.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

I'd push back on Geico, not Rivian. This is more of a claim scenario than a warranty one. Threaten to sue and watch how quickly they'll cover this. $8k is nothing compared to a bad faith lawsuit, so get them to do the one thing that you are paying them to do.

But read and understand insurance policy fully. If it's indeed not covered, it'd be an empty threat and they would know it.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Interior connectors are almost never sealed, they aren't expected to be exposed to the elements.

 

[keri]

Which harness was harmed by the spill? A lot of the wiring connectors are sealed. If they were sealed and liquid made its way into the connector anyway, I'd say Rivian has some more 'splaining to do as there is a reasonable expectation of durability for a sealed harness. If it's an unsealed interior harness that was damaged, this sounds like what comprehensive insurance is for.

What was this unknown liquid? Is it corrosive, sticky, conductive, mercury? This would also help establish whether a sealed harness should be expected to stand up to it.

 

[Stan Evans]

Sorry to hear this happened but thanks for the heads up.
I use the frunk to transport take out food. I’ll be way more careful with the egg drop soup!

 

[Nixapatfan]

Ouch, feel your pain here, not really Rivian's fault as this could happen with any vehicle. This is where an independent shop(if they had access/knowhow) would show their worth by actually trying to clean up the harness or splice in new connectors but would obviously impact future warranty claims whereas the dealer/manufacturer usually just does full component swaps. Not really unique to Rivian as most new cars are designed for lower build cost versus serviceability.

 

[Osyras]

Sorry to hear this happened but thanks for the heads up.
I use the frunk to transport take out food. I’ll be way more careful with the egg drop soup!

His damage was the trunk, not the frunk. The frunk is water tight and has a drain plug.

 

[KBabione]

Ouch! For $8K it's got to be worth pushing Geico further. I had a friend who had squirrels nesting in his Nissan Pathfinder and they chewed through one of the wiring harnesses. He found it when he took it in because one of his headlights wasn't working consistently. It was over $5K to fix, but his insurance covered it because it was outside his control. I would hope that a liquid spill inside would be similar.

I have a 5-gallon water jug that I take (full) when camping and tailgating. I'll be VERY careful with it in the back of our R1S...

 

[beatle]

Where in the harness was the liquid? Just seeing the harness laid out doesn't tell you anything as there are both sealed and unsealed connections on it.

 

[ozziegt]

I'm really surprised the connectors couldn't just be cleaned out with some electronics cleaner. What the hell was it?

 

[Smeek]

that's totally insane. some adventure vehicle! i always have my dog in the back there with a bowl of water. crazy to think a small spill could result in $8k of damage.

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