renderpaz
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Kevin
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2024
- Threads
- 5
- Messages
- 76
- Reaction score
- 249
- Location
- Los Angeles
- Vehicles
- Gen1 R1T Quad, Gen2 R1S Quad
- Occupation
- Engineer
- Thread starter
- #1
As the thread title suggests, I've been driving Rivians for a while now, and while many updates have been great, 2025.46 represents the greatest value add I have experienced in my 4 years of driving Rivians. It's not perfect (as I'll touch on) but considering the other things Rivian has on its plate (R2, RAP1), this release is incredible. A certain other EV maker didn't/doesn't seem to be able to focus on more than 1 thing at a time in the same way.
#1 - Digital Keys!
I'm not going to lie, I feel pretty cool walking up to my quad motor Rivian(s). Problem is, that feeling transforms to shame as I stand there awkwardly waiting for the door to unlock - often having to resort to taking out the fob and hitting that unlock button. "How is this possible after 4 years?!" We now have our answer. The Digital Key (CCC standard) implementation is perfection. Lock and unlock is near telepathic and I am so relieved.
I know iOS people didn't suffer as much on this one, but if you had two Rivians, even the iPhone users had to deal with the "cold shoulder". The wife was telling me she had to manually change to the car she wants to use in the Rivian app before it will unlock. No longer (she just leaves it on the Gen1). I'm curious if anyone out there has two Gen2s can report if it works well?
Clarification: Both iOS and Android devices we are using support Digital Key w/ Ultra Wide Band.
#2 - Universal Hands Free
A huge step forward. The switch to using the scroll wheel for speed is a huge win for making quick or significant speed changes. Adding the ability to adjust the aggression separately from the top speed leads to far less intervention on my part. Follow distance served as a poor proxy for this. Overall driving style is much improved as well, especially in traffic. I haven't had enough time to test it extensively, but the hard acceleration and late breaking issues have been improved to the point where I don't need to manually manage speed in traffic to avoid overly-optimistic acceleration. It feels much more natural.
Lane changes also feel more confident.
I love that it works "everywhere", even though auto lane change does not. Thankfully, Rivian has one of the most underrated "cooperative" ADAS systems. It is so easy to "take over" temporarily and seamlessly hand off back to UHF - or just nudge it in the lane. I don't see this talked about enough, it's a major benefit of the experience. Does any other auto manufacturer handle this so well?
There is still room for improvement: Cut in detection still feels too late. Also, I'd like to see bumper-to-bumper traffic handled even better. The system is still too optimistic in this scenario. I also had one instance where the speed differential between lanes was significant and it didn't seem to care, requiring me to manage the top speed. I know we all need to be "Adventurous Forever", but we also need to sit in traffic from time to time!
#3 - New Map View
So nice to be able to turn on the left blinker cam and not obscure the map! This was a huge UX change I don't think anyone saw coming and it feels like having an extra screen. Being able to see the birds-eye view, the map, and the blinker cam at the same time is fantastic.
I also love how they tried to include the blind spot, and lane departure warnings in a compact form in this view. Well done!
#4 - Rad Tuner & Kick Turn
I'll be honest, I haven't even played with these yet. Some will say they are overdue. To me it's just incredible that I have a street car more tunable than a GT3 RS. Incredible that this was just part of an update!
Conclusion
While I enjoyed my Gen 2 before, it wasn't enough to compel an upgrade from the Gen 1 (especially since I love the mechanical door handles and lighter keyfob). This update is so significant in my view, I'm back on Rivian.com figuring out the ideal two (Gen 2) Rivian garage.
Happy Holidays!
#1 - Digital Keys!
I'm not going to lie, I feel pretty cool walking up to my quad motor Rivian(s). Problem is, that feeling transforms to shame as I stand there awkwardly waiting for the door to unlock - often having to resort to taking out the fob and hitting that unlock button. "How is this possible after 4 years?!" We now have our answer. The Digital Key (CCC standard) implementation is perfection. Lock and unlock is near telepathic and I am so relieved.
I know iOS people didn't suffer as much on this one, but if you had two Rivians, even the iPhone users had to deal with the "cold shoulder". The wife was telling me she had to manually change to the car she wants to use in the Rivian app before it will unlock. No longer (she just leaves it on the Gen1). I'm curious if anyone out there has two Gen2s can report if it works well?
Clarification: Both iOS and Android devices we are using support Digital Key w/ Ultra Wide Band.
#2 - Universal Hands Free
A huge step forward. The switch to using the scroll wheel for speed is a huge win for making quick or significant speed changes. Adding the ability to adjust the aggression separately from the top speed leads to far less intervention on my part. Follow distance served as a poor proxy for this. Overall driving style is much improved as well, especially in traffic. I haven't had enough time to test it extensively, but the hard acceleration and late breaking issues have been improved to the point where I don't need to manually manage speed in traffic to avoid overly-optimistic acceleration. It feels much more natural.
Lane changes also feel more confident.
I love that it works "everywhere", even though auto lane change does not. Thankfully, Rivian has one of the most underrated "cooperative" ADAS systems. It is so easy to "take over" temporarily and seamlessly hand off back to UHF - or just nudge it in the lane. I don't see this talked about enough, it's a major benefit of the experience. Does any other auto manufacturer handle this so well?
There is still room for improvement: Cut in detection still feels too late. Also, I'd like to see bumper-to-bumper traffic handled even better. The system is still too optimistic in this scenario. I also had one instance where the speed differential between lanes was significant and it didn't seem to care, requiring me to manage the top speed. I know we all need to be "Adventurous Forever", but we also need to sit in traffic from time to time!
#3 - New Map View
So nice to be able to turn on the left blinker cam and not obscure the map! This was a huge UX change I don't think anyone saw coming and it feels like having an extra screen. Being able to see the birds-eye view, the map, and the blinker cam at the same time is fantastic.
I also love how they tried to include the blind spot, and lane departure warnings in a compact form in this view. Well done!
#4 - Rad Tuner & Kick Turn
I'll be honest, I haven't even played with these yet. Some will say they are overdue. To me it's just incredible that I have a street car more tunable than a GT3 RS. Incredible that this was just part of an update!
Conclusion
While I enjoyed my Gen 2 before, it wasn't enough to compel an upgrade from the Gen 1 (especially since I love the mechanical door handles and lighter keyfob). This update is so significant in my view, I'm back on Rivian.com figuring out the ideal two (Gen 2) Rivian garage.
Happy Holidays!
Sponsored
