Seeking advice - 12V battery likely dying as I write this

[jimk]

Longish story, but please bear with me ...

So I've got an 1st Gen R1T. Drove it from my home in Southern Vermont to Trudeau Airport in Montreal, QC on Saturday, parking it in the main parking garage at the airport. The garage has dozens of level 2 charging stations and normally I plug in there and leave it plugged in until I fly home (which the airport encourages). But there were no charging stations when I arrived, which is the first time that's happened to me there. I figured the 21% charge my car had when I parked on Saturday late afternoon would be sufficient for the one week when I would be away, even if it lost 1% per day. Lots of other chargers in the vicinity. I leave gear guard switched off but don't put it into shipping mode, which I should have done.

Anyway, Sunday morning I flew out of Montreal to Western Canada (which is where I am now). I checked the Rivian app Sunday evening and it had gone from 21% to 20% in 24 hours which seemed normal to me. But then yesterday I get a push alert from the app telling me my battery is low and I should plug in soon. I check the app and the charge level has gone from 20% to 14% in less than 24 hours.

I call Rivian support and get a bit of tsk-tsking from them for thinking I could leave the car for a week at 21%, which, ok, fair enough. But they agree that a 6% drop in 24 hours is abnormal. After confirming I have my fob with me, they urge me to delete the app from my phone, which I do. They say they can't remotely put it into shipping mode and that there's nothing they can do for me. They agreed that it is likely the truck will be bricked by the time I get back to Montreal on Saturday night. Assuming that's what happens, they said I will need to get it towed to Rivian Service Center in Montreal for replacement of the 12V battery, which will be at my expense. It also sounds like even if the abnormal draining is due to a 12v battery failure I'lll still be on the hook for the expense because the 12v battery is only under warranty for 36k mikes and my car has over 40k. Rivian rep also said that if the 12V died because i left it unplugged for an extended period, that's also considered customer responsibility. I did have the 12V replaced once already at around 25k at Rivian's initiative as part of a service campaign but I assume the 3k warranty date is from the day I bought the car, not the date of the most revent 12V replacement.

So I'm assuming my plan when I get back to Montreal will be - and this is where I'd love for you folks to tell me if I'm misunderstanding something or if there's something I haven't thought of ...

1. Try to unlock and start the truck with the fob and if it has any range at all, get it to the closest charging station I can as quickly as I can. If any of the charging stations in the garage are open, they are literally on the same level of the garage, so we are talking a couple hundred meters at most. Other closest options are within a mile away.
2. If I can't start or unlock with the fob, I'll get roadside assistance to try to jump the 12V. My understanding is that there is a chance that after a jump I will have enough range to get to a nearby charger. But it may just be that all the jump accomplishes is that the doors can be opened and the truck put in neutral for a tow.
3. If I can't put it into drive after the jump, I'll presumably need to have it to have it towed to the Montreal service center and they will have to replace both of the 12v batteries at a cost to me of US$700-1000. Does that sound correct?

Am I missing anything or getting anything wrong here? If you really need to tell me I'm an idiot and I should have parked it at a higher state of charge, get it out of your system if you must, but I am already aware and feeling plenty foolish as it is. Do I have any reason to hope the car will be drivable for a mile or so to a charger when I get back to Montreal?

Many thanks in advance for your advice ...

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[DeanB1452]

Other forum members have helped in situations like this. If someone is close to that airport and speaks up here, you can assign a key to them and they can move your vehicle to a charger. Best of luck to you.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

Longish story, but please bear with me ...

So I've got an 1st Gen R1T. Drove it from my home in Southern Vermont to Trudeau Airport in Montreal, QC on Saturday, parking it in the main parking garage at the airport. The garage has dozens of level 2 charging stations and normally I plug in there and leave it plugged in until I fly home (which the airport encourages). But there were no charging stations when I arrived, which is the first time that's happened to me there. I figured the 21% charge my car had when I parked on Saturday late afternoon would be sufficient for the one week when I would be away, even if it lost 1% per day. Lots of other chargers in the vicinity. I leave gear guard switched off but don't put it into shipping mode, which I should have done.

Anyway, Sunday morning I flew out of Montreal to Western Canada (which is where I am now). I checked the Rivian app Sunday evening and it had gone from 21% to 20% in 24 hours which seemed normal to me. But then yesterday I get a push alert from the app telling me my battery is low and I should plug in soon. I check the app and the charge level has gone from 20% to 14% in less than 24 hours.

I call Rivian support and get a bit of tsk-tsking from them for thinking I could leave the car for a week at 21%, which, ok, fair enough. But they agree that a 6% drop in 24 hours is abnormal. After confirming I have my fob with me, they urge me to delete the app from my phone, which I do. They say they can't remotely put it into shipping mode and that there's nothing they can do for me. They agreed that it is likely the truck will be bricked by the time I get back to Montreal on Saturday night. Assuming that's what happens, they said I will need to get it towed to Rivian Service Center in Montreal for replacement of the 12V battery, which will be at my expense. It also sounds like even if the abnormal draining is due to a 12v battery failure I'lll still be on the hook for the expense because the 12v battery is only under warranty for 36k mikes and my car has over 40k. Rivian rep also said that if the 12V died because i left it unplugged for an extended period, that's also considered customer responsibility. I did have the 12V replaced once already at around 25k at Rivian's initiative as part of a service campaign but I assume the 3k warranty date is from the day I bought the car, not the date of the most revent 12V replacement.

So I'm assuming my plan when I get back to Montreal will be - and this is where I'd love for you folks to tell me if I'm misunderstanding something or if there's something I haven't thought of ...

1. Try to unlock and start the truck with the fob and if it has any range at all, get it to the closest charging station I can as quickly as I can. If any of the charging stations in the garage are open, they are literally on the same level of the garage, so we are talking a couple hundred meters at most. Other closest options are within a mile away.
2. If I can't start or unlock with the fob, I'll get roadside assistance to try to jump the 12V. My understanding is that there is a chance that after a jump I will have enough range to get to a nearby charger. But it may just be that all the jump accomplishes is that the doors can be opened and the truck put in neutral for a tow.
3. If I can't put it into drive after the jump, I'll presumably need to have it to have it towed to the Montreal service center and they will have to replace both of the 12v batteries at a cost to me of US$700-1000. Does that sound correct?

Am I missing anything or getting anything wrong here? If you really need to tell me I'm an idiot and I should have parked it at a higher state of charge, get it out of your system if you must, but I am already aware and feeling plenty foolish as it is. Do I have any reason to hope the car will be drivable for a mile or so to a charger when I get back to Montreal?

Many thanks in advance for your advice ...

Reach out to Rivian Owners Canada Facebook group, someone there might be in the area.

 

[Nixapatfan]

Chances are it will be completely bricked and a jump will not make it driveable. The HV battery is used to charge the 12v and will be in a death spiral trying to charge the failing 12v until both are drained.

Best to find someone trustworthy to go move it to a charger as soon as possible though there is still a chance the 12v completely fails and it still bricks with a full HV battery since all the computers run on 12v.

 

[jimk]

Chances are it will be completely bricked and a jump will not make it driveable. The HV battery is used to charge the 12v and will be in a death spiral trying to charge the failing 12v until both are drained.

Best to find someone trustworthy to go move it to a charger as soon as possible though there is still a chance the 12v completely fails and it still bricks with a full HV battery since all the computers run on 12v.

Thanks. If I'm not able to find someone, or if I do find someone and it's already bricked when they get to it, am I basically correct about what happens next? It gets towed to the SC and they replace both of the 12V batteries for $700-1000, and then I'm good to go? And there's no way this is going to be covered by warranty, right?

 

[Nixapatfan]

Thanks. If I'm not able to find someone, or if I do find someone and it's already bricked when they get to it, am I basically correct about what happens next? It gets towed to the SC and they replace both of the 12V batteries for $700-1000, and then I'm good to go? And there's no way this is going to be covered by warranty, right?

Yeah you are pretty much correct, the warranty part is upto the service advisor but most likely not covered. You may be able to revive the batteries with a cbarger/desulfator but will take hours to run on both batteries or swap them out yourself but resetting 12v warnings might require a service visit.

 

[Anna Kelly]

Can someone explain to me why the 12 Volt battery dies at just 25,000 miles, and then the replacement battery dies 15,000 miles later, when most ICE cars' batteries last for 10 years or more?

 

[AlanP]

Can someone explain to me why the 12 Volt battery dies at just 25,000 miles, and then the replacement battery dies 15,000 miles later, when most ICE cars' batteries last for 10 years or more?

Great to hear you’re getting such good life, mine died at 7800 miles.

 

[hammick]

Can someone explain to me why the 12 Volt battery dies at just 25,000 miles, and then the replacement battery dies 15,000 miles later, when most ICE cars' batteries last for 10 years or more?

I don't have an answer but it seems to be common with EVs. Our Lightning needed a new battery within two years and it was probably 4x the capacity of the battery on our '25 R1S.

If a lead acid battery (AGM is a form of lead acid) is kept at 100% it will last a very long time. Had a battery in our John Deere tractor that was similar in size to the Rivian last 12 years before replacement. I kept it on a BatteryMinder tender that had active desulphation pulsing when it wasn't being used.

Not sure why Rivian can't incorporate something like this with their charging algorithm. It seems they are getting cycled constantly below 50% which kills them quickly.

When we first got our G2 I used a battery tender on the OBD2 port and discovered it wasn't doing anything as the vehicle had a constant charge higher than float voltage going to the 12v. I'm going to try it again and see if anything has changed with all the updates. From what I have read the battery tender through the OBD2 port is still beneficial on G1 vehicles.

 

[GJPoss]

I think getting someone to go there and charge it is your best bet. Do you belong to any Rivian Facebook groups in Montreal? Post on there and ask if someone can retrieve it and get it charged up for you...or maybe just move it to a charging station there at the airport. I can help locate someone if you'd like.

 

[ENVErider]

Can someone explain to me why the 12 Volt battery dies at just 25,000 miles, and then the replacement battery dies 15,000 miles later, when most ICE cars' batteries last for 10 years or more?

They are doing different things, but it appears there are some engineering shortcomings in the Gen1 that are compounding factors. This guy did a deep dive, and I tend to buy his explanation.

 

[Anna Kelly]

Great info, although all the electrical jargon was above and beyond me. I didn't even realize that Gear Guard was on 100% of the time (must be a preset), even while my car is sitting in my garage - maybe that's to catch my husband purposefully ramming into my tailgate with the garbage can??! I've turned that off and will maybe use just when parked in a busy parking lot, or on a road trip. Not sure what else I can do unless there's an easy way to use a battery tender overnight to reduce that sleep-wake cycling.

 

[electruck]

Can someone explain to me why the 12 Volt battery dies at just 25,000 miles, and then the replacement battery dies 15,000 miles later, when most ICE cars' batteries last for 10 years or more?

I have never, ever had a 12V battery for an ICE vehicle last anywhere close to 10 years. 2-3 years tops. But as to your question, aside from the fact that they are both installed in automobiles, they really are not the same. The loads and duty cycles are very very different.

 

[godfodder0901]

I have never, ever had a 12V battery for an ICE vehicle last anywhere close to 10 years. 2-3 years tops. But as to your question, aside from the fact that they are both installed in automobiles, they really are not the same. The loads and duty cycles are very very different.

What do you do to your batteries? I have a 2015 Toyota that I just changed the battery for the first time, a 2010 Chevy that never had a battery changed in the decade I had it, and a 2004 Honda that I've only changed the battery in twice. A ~10 year estimate seems realistic in my experience.

 

[emoore]

What do you do to your batteries? I have a 2015 Toyota that I just changed the battery for the first time, a 2010 Chevy that never had a battery changed in the decade I had it, and a 2004 Honda that I've only changed the battery in twice. A ~10 year estimate seems realistic in my experience.

I've never gotten 10 years out of a 12V battery, ICE or EV. 5 year tops and I don't have any accessories, everything is stock. My 4Runner used to eat batteries if it wasn't driven enough.

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