20k miles and 9 months in. Quick takes on my R1T.

[loudOrange]

Quick takes on my R1T.

1. Service has been great. Excellent. Terrific. Responsive, timely, and done well. Here in the wilds of northern New England there's a local tech who has handed both recalls with ease. Good guy, great communicator.
2. As awful as pre-sale communications were, post-sale experience has been excellent.
3. Truck itself is best vehicle I've ever owned...although i LOVED my 2019 BMW i3S REX...have had 911, F250 Superduty, multiple Audi A4 avants, VWs, even a 1969 Plymouth GTX Hemi convertible.
4. Range is better than advertised w road tires and still pretty good with the mud-and-snows.
5. Tonneau has never been a problem.
6. The gear tunnel doors are dangerous - sharp points can really get your attention.
7. Owners manual is really lacking - nowhere near comprehensive enough, for example it doesn't identify all the warning lights.
8. Charging pad is marginally useful at best.
9. The over the air service works pretty well, and I'm sure wil get better as we owners run into more issues. One somewhat distressing item - when a whole set of warning lights popped on, the service person could not identify them or if I needed to stop or whatever...
10. The bike racks Rivian offers didn't work for me...not enough room between the bike's front tire and the rear of the cab. Got the Yakima ones where you take off the front wheel.
11. Had one charging issue w Electrify America - evidently it screwed up the R1T software so i had to reboot as it wouldn't charge from any source.
12. Range in the cold is actually minimally affected...although it only got really cold - as in 15 below 0 - for a day or so.
13. That said, do NOT park your R1T in the cold for a couple weeks without making sure it is plugged in. The battery maintenance system and gear guard soak up electrons. If you have to leave it parked in the cold for a while (7+ days), make sure it is fully charged, turn off gear guard and cabin heating, and continually monitor charge status. And make sure you have a friend who can come drive it to a charger in an emergency.
14. With the mud-and-snows and snow configuration it is a beast. Haven't gotten close to stuck, braking is really good, and no issues. And we've had a lot of wet icy conditions here.
15. Things to have with you.
    1. Good tow rope - someone will need your help.
    2. a tailgate cargo net...the bed is small, so you may well need to transport stuff w tailgate down. this works well. That is, if you are one of the few who actually hauls stuff in your R1T...
       https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08WTDC8RV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
    3. Tie down ratchet straps
    4. Patience as you'll get lots of "what kind of truck is that...who makes it...yeah, but who makes Rivian...how far does it go...i'll never buy an electric vehicle because (insert mostly uninformed comment here).

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[COdogman]

Very good and succinct rundown!

Glad you still love it.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Very good and succinct rundown!

Glad you still love it.

But this post doesn't jive with what @Tahoe Man said about owners losing their enthusiasm!

 

[Belem]

Haven't gotten mine yet, but regarding the tailgate cargo net: what do you use for the upper attachment point?

 

[moosetags]

That was good. We appreciate the insight.

Brian

 

[Hellfire]

Very good to hear. Have only put 800 miles on mine but so far everything has been great.

 

[Gavinmcc]

I've been wondering how to transport with the tailgate down. Thanks. A photo of attachment points would be nice

I've been hoping Rivian made one like this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08T6WWZQ...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

 

[Rivianation]

Great write up.
I had a "yeah, but who makes it?" conversation just yesterday, and I don't even have mine yet.

 

[Redmond Chad]

Thanks OP - I appreciate perspective from owners that have had one for a while far more than internet reviewers that drive one for an hour or day or so.

1. Patience as you'll get lots of "what kind of truck is that...who makes it...yeah, but who makes Rivian...how far does it go...i'll never buy an electric vehicle because (insert mostly uninformed comment here).

That's funny. So much has changed over the years, and yet so much has stayed the same.

I started driving electric in 2008, but initially got no questions at all, as they were converted ICE cars and nobody (at least outside of CA) had any idea what I was driving, or even that EVs existed. I took my 2003 RAV4-EV with 18" tall "EV" stickers on the side to an Earth Day fair in 2009, got permission to park it in the middle of a closed street with the other displays, and nobody even looked at it. I put the hood up to see if people would stop and look...and two people did: to ask if I needed a jump start.

Later in 2009, with a Tesla Roadster, I started getting the above questions. They were exactly the same (well, substitute "Tesla" for "Rivian"), except in 2009 nobody asked about range. They instead asked if it had enough power for the freeway. (I gave rides whenever I could to put that question to rest). I also got a lot of "No gas?" questions when I said it was all electric - and after confirming, most of the time I'd get a skeptical follow-up of "No gas at all?" Now that people know EVs exist, we at least get to skip that part.

The "how far does it go" question didn't start until late 2010, when the "range anxiety" media storm began. For 3 or 4 years I don't recall seeing any article about EVs that did not mention it prominently. About 99% of conversations started with range for about 6 years. Now there are fewer, but it's still fairly common.

I hope we can all keep our patience and keep answering those questions. Most people have far more trust in an EV owner they just met than in automakers (especially unfamiliar ones!), dealers, and government sources. If we keep at it, the questions will get better and we'll see a lot more EVs on the roads.

 

[Riv I Am]

Haven't gotten mine yet, but regarding the tailgate cargo net: what do you use for the upper attachment point?

Same question from me as well. And thank you, great post!

 

[harkco]

I just had another service appt today, and I feel they are really starting to hit their stride. Was in and out in an hour. Very efficient and the service manager was really on top of his game. Now we just need more of them!

 

[ImAI]

Quick takes on my R1T.

Truck itself is best vehicle I've ever owned...although i LOVED my 2019 BMW i3S REX...have had 911, F250 Superduty, multiple Audi A4 avants, VWs, even a 1969 Plymouth GTX Hemi convertible.

I concur that BMW i3s is great but without the REX is really great.

 

[loudOrange]

Haven't gotten mine yet, but regarding the tailgate cargo net: what do you use for the upper attachment point?

I use the rack attachment points on the side rails

 

[loudOrange]

Same question from me as well. And thank you, great post!

Glad it was useful...here are photos of the cargo net installed.

The net itself, straps and hardware are pretty burly - I have no hesitation about its strength or design.

 

[Riv I Am]

Glad it was useful...here are photos of the cargo net installed.

The net itself, straps and hardware are pretty burly - I have no hesitation about its strength or design.

Thank you! Will be ordering soon

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