'23 R1S with 59,954 Miles - Let the Sleepless Nights Begin

[KBabione]

We're about to cross the "it's covered by warranty" threshold into "sorry buddy, you're SOL" and I'm a little nervous. Not yet nervous enough to buy an extended warranty, but we'll see how that goes in the next month or so. Like many early adopters, we've had our share of issues, including:

• Wet carpet - A/C system replaced
• 12V Battery - Replaced once proactively by mobile service and then twice more at the SC
• "Coming to an emergency stop" issues that seem now to be resolved after about 4 weeks in the SC
• Replaced front dampers and half-shafts when I took it in for a 59K complete inspection

We love the R1S and take it everywhere. When we get our R2 (we can order in 4-6 weeks and will take delivery 4-8 weeks after) it will probably become our primary vehicle, but there are still enough times when we want to have the capacity of the R1S that it will continue to see a lot of use.

Stay adventurous...

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[VC_Rivian]

I crossed over the 60k mile point and was going to buy an extended warranty. Xcare no longer sells in California. So I am now looking at other options.

 

[justinkitswa]

There are vehicles I would own outside warranty, like our Jeep Gladiator. I can fix most things on it myself, parts are fairly cheap.

I would never personally own a Rivian outside factory warranty without an extended low-deductible warranty of some kind.

No one makes parts for it but Rivian, and they know they can charge whatever they want for them. No one on the planet can service them but Rivian service techs at close to $300 an hour.

These are not vehicles meant for a 100k+ mile lifespan without a tether to the service center, unfortunately.

Eventually "right to repair" laws might change this, but if you plan on keeping your R1S past the end of the warranty, it may be worth looking at the cost of a warranty plan.

 

[novar1sguy]

I am also in same boat. right now 52k miles just did check service at SC, only issue they found is peeling in steering wheel and they replaced. i did mention about possible suspension issue /half shafts , they mentioned if i didnt hit by now its highly unlikely it can happen . they said that is issue in mostly 22 launch editions. mine is 23 . Want to keep this vehicle for long time (CY is not longer available). Hoping Rivian extended care will be available soon in VA.

 

[KBabione]

I've never never purchased an extended warranty, but the cost of Rivian maintenance I've seen posted here is scary! Since we're planning on keeping this for another four (or more) years, I should probably just pull the trigger. I looked at the XCare pricing and they make it pretty easy to just increase the term because after the initial two years the pricing doesn't go up that much to 5 years (this is with an optimistic $500 deductible):

If we're really keeping it for another 5 years this may make sense for us. We'll see...Maybe I'll do it after we buy the R2.

 

[drivetorun]

If we're really keeping it for another 5 years this may make sense for us. We'll see...Maybe I'll do it after we buy the R2.

You're likely aware of this, but just to make sure, you can get a prorated refund on most of these warranties, so if you only end up keeping your R1S for a year or two, but bought the five year warranty, you'll likely get a good chunk of your warranty purchase price back.

 

[Mellowyellow]

It is cheaper to buy extended warranty when the car is still currently under original warranty, correct?

 

[jrmbadger]

i did mention about possible suspension issue /half shafts , they mentioned if i didnt hit by now its highly unlikely it can happen . they said that is issue in mostly 22 launch editions. mine is 23 .

Eh, mine is a 2023 and I've had it a year. I'm about to make my second appointment to replace the half shafts AGAIN.

 

[KBabione]

It is cheaper to buy extended warranty when the car is still currently under original warranty, correct?

Didn't seem to affect my quote, but the extended warranty doesn't begin for 30 days after you bought it. I am still under warranty for the battery - just not everything else.

 

[jshaff]

It is cheaper to buy extended warranty when the car is still currently under original warranty, correct?

xcare increments every 10k miles on cost

 

[mkg3]

• Wet carpet - A/C system replaced
• 12V Battery - Replaced once proactively by mobile service and then twice more at the SC
• "Coming to an emergency stop" issues that seem now to be resolved after about 4 weeks in the SC
• Replaced front dampers and half-shafts when I took it in for a 59K complete inspection

Sounds like you've had most issues fixed so the way I think about this is that the real warrantee cliff is the battery, which is much higher. You probably will have a different vehicle before you reach the battery coverage ends.

 

[DaveA]

My extended warranty is gonna cost me $18k. (Trading R1 in for R2.)

 

[KBabione]

Sounds like you've had most issues fixed so the way I think about this is that the real warrantee cliff is the battery, which is much higher. You probably will have a different vehicle before you reach the battery coverage ends.

I'm REALLY hoping that's the case - but if I really am planning to keep it another 4 years the XCare warranty is probably worth it. The other piece I've read is that they won't cover any repairs that exceed the insurance value of the vehicle. So, in four years let's say I'm at 130K so the Rivian coverage of the battery is expired and the vehicle is only worth $15K, I'd still be out the $10K difference between the cost of the battery replacement (say $25K). I guess at that point it will be time for a new one.

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