Battery Upgrade?

[JeremyMKE]

Anybody think that Rivian could offer a battery upgrade?
Get a 135 kwh now and upgrade to 180 later?
The battery packs are modular I think???? Why couldn't they add the extra later on?

Anybody got an opinion

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[electruck]

In the past they have explicitly stated that would not be offered. But they also stated the 180 would be available at launch. We can only wait and see at this point.

 

[thrill]

Anybody think that Rivian could offer a battery upgrade?
Get a 135 kwh now and upgrade to 180 later?
The battery packs are modular I think???? Why couldn't they add the extra later on?

Anybody got an opinion

Some time ago they talked about the 180 requiring batteries under the seats in the interior, and loss of that storage space, along with the cabling, cooling, waterproofing and other engineering required. I supposed they could design it to be upgraded as an addon, but IMHO it wouldn't be worth the design effort to have as an option.

 

[DucRider]

The 400 mi battery will be available at launch. You'll very likely be able to configure your R1T/S with the 400 mi pack. It just won't be the first to ship. Neither will the base level "Explore" or the standard "Adventure" trim levels. Neither will at least some options like the removable roof. Adding or changing other options will also push your delivery time frame back.

There was an unwarranted assumption that higher spec/option vehicles shipping first meant the larger pack. The Launch Edition vehicles are higher spec/optioned - just not the exact configuration that many are whining about wanting. Many will not choose the Launch Edition for a variety of reason. Wanting the larger pack may be the most common, but still only one of the options that will push vehicle delivery times back.

The first run of vehicles off the line will be very similar for lots of reasons. Electing to build the more affordable 300+ mile models first was a business decision and it is extremely unlikely that we will ever have access to all the information that led to that decision.

I have zero interest in the Hummer, particularly at $112K+, and if your "must have" is 400+ mile range, you won't find it there.
The Cybertruck design and specs are not finalized, and what is actually offered and when is a crapshoot. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I see no beauty in Cybertruck and have zero interest as well.

If your primary criteria is 400+ mile range, you can order a Model S LR+ today and have it as soon as today (they have some inventory). If you also must have off road/SUV/truck or other features not in the Model S, you'll have to wait.

 

[JeremyMKE]

The 400 mi battery will be available at launch.

All your points are valid, I think everyone including me is impatient.

 

[electruck]

The 400 mi battery will be available at launch.

Guess it really depends on how you define launch. By their own words, if every Rivian "at launch" comes with the 300+ mile pack then it is only logical that there will be zero Rivian's "at launch" with the 400+ mile pack. But this is why the world has lawyers to haggle over the intent of words. We most certainly don't need lawyers for this but hopefully we will be somewhat better informed come Monday when the configurator "launches".

 

[DucRider]

It's also possible the 180 kWh pack wasn't getting the targeted 400+ miles and they have work to do.
Bigger battery is heavier and the increase in range will be less than the increase in battery size. Battery is 33% bigger. Promised range is 33% more.

Looking at some other "guestimates" they made (ignoring the "+" portion of the range estimates):
Adding 30 kWh increased range by 50 miles (105 kWh vs 135 kWh). This is 1.67 mi/kWh
Adding another 45 kWh increased range by 100 miles (135 kWh vs 180 kWh). This is 2.22 mi/kWh.

The "+" is going to make a big difference, but using the base levels shows a potential issue.

 

[electruck]

It's also possible the 180 kWh pack wasn't getting the targeted 400+ miles and they have work to do.
Bigger battery is heavier and the increase in range will be less than the increase in battery size. Battery is 33% bigger. Promised range is 33% more.

Looking at some other "guestimates" they made (ignoring the "+" portion of the range estimates):
Adding 30 kWh increased range by 50 miles (105 kWh vs 135 kWh). This is 1.67 mi/kWh
Adding another 45 kWh increased range by 100 miles (135 kWh vs 180 kWh). This is 2.22 mi/kWh.

The "+" is going to make a big difference, but using the base levels shows a potential issue.

Honestly it's these unknowns that are most problematic because it makes it hard to evaluate whether or not to wait for the 180 or just get the 135. As such I will configure the 135 for now and hope for more clarity before I have to actually commit (which I believe is still quite a ways away).

 

[Dark-Fx]

The 400 mi battery will be available at launch. You'll very likely be able to configure your R1T/S with the 400 mi pack. It just won't be the first to ship.

Well, the original press release disagrees with your assessment. They haven't released the configurator yet so we can't know for sure, it's possible they may still make the 180kWh pack available at launch with an additional increase in cost versus waiting 6 more months.

Fully-equipped vehicles with the highest performance level and largest battery pack will enter production first. The 180 kWh pack (400+ miles range) and 135 kWh pack will be available at launch, with the base variant (250+ miles range) to follow within 12 months of the start of production.

 

[Vern Bybee]

The 400 mi battery will be available at launch. You'll very likely be able to configure your R1T/S with the 400 mi pack. It just won't be the first to ship. Neither will the base level "Explore" or the standard "Adventure" trim levels. Neither will at least some options like the removable roof. Adding or changing other options will also push your delivery time frame back.

There was an unwarranted assumption that higher spec/option vehicles shipping first meant the larger pack. The Launch Edition vehicles are higher spec/optioned - just not the exact configuration that many are whining about wanting. Many will not choose the Launch Edition for a variety of reason. Wanting the larger pack may be the most common, but still only one of the options that will push vehicle delivery times back.

The first run of vehicles off the line will be very similar for lots of reasons. Electing to build the more affordable 300+ mile models first was a business decision and it is extremely unlikely that we will ever have access to all the information that led to that decision.

I have zero interest in the Hummer, particularly at $112K+, and if your "must have" is 400+ mile range, you won't find it there.
The Cybertruck design and specs are not finalized, and what is actually offered and when is a crapshoot. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I see no beauty in Cybertruck and have zero interest as well.

If your primary criteria is 400+ mile range, you can order a Model S LR+ today and have it as soon as today (they have some inventory). If you also must have off road/SUV/truck or other features not in the Model S, you'll have to wait.

Not true I had a conversation with RJ and remember him saying fully loaded 180s would ship first

But now am extremely happy that is not the case

After researching don't need it

 

[ajdelange]

But now am extremely happy that is not the case

After researching don't need it

Came up with a much better analogy than the guns and IR cameras analogies of another thread. Range is like computer memory. It doesn't matter how much you install when you buy the computer. You will always eventually find that you need more.

 

[Babbuino]

Came up with a much better analogy than the guns and IR cameras analogies of another thread. Range is like computer memory. It doesn't matter how much you install when you buy the computer. You will always eventually find that you need more.

Maybe a cellphone analogy would work better, so it relates to more people nowadays

 

[MReda]

The answer to this question is now a part of the support articles on the website:
Can I change my battery pack after I take delivery?
No, the battery pack can’t be changed to a different size after installation. If you want to change your options before you take delivery, you can update your configuration from the bottom of your preorder detail page in the Rivian Account.

 

[LevelHeaded]

Came up with a much better analogy than the guns and IR cameras analogies of another thread. Range is like computer memory. It doesn't matter how much you install when you buy the computer. You will always eventually find that you need more.

“I wish this car got more on a tank of gas/charge” is never a thought that’s run through my mind in my ICE vehicles or 2 Tesla’s. Speak for yourself!

 

[RivianXpress]

“I wish this car got more on a tank of gas/charge” is never a thought that’s run through my mind in my ICE vehicles or 2 Tesla’s. Speak for yourself!

But Tesla has a great Supercharger network.