Chicago Block Party a Total Cluster, But R2 Was Beautiful

[millergraphics]

Unfortunately, not a good look for Rivian. We had a reservation for 11-12 and got there at 11:35. Line was out the door where Chicago was living up to its Windy City rep and it was quite chilly. Had to wait in line outside for over 30 minutes and then another 2 hours inside in a ‘Disney’ line that snaked around. They only had one R2 there and were only giving two minutes per group to sit in the drivers seat. Having had an R1T and being as excited as we are for the R2 we still thought it was worthwhile but could have been so much better.

That said, it’s a beautiful vehicle. Just as comfortable as the R1 and I really like the new ‘wheels’ on the steering wheel. Can’t wait to find out when we will get ours when the window opens in June.

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[captainjp]

Unfortunately, not a good look for Rivian

I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a bad look for Rivian. I’d say it’s indicative of the reception of the R2, which I interpret as positive

 

[R2dreamer]

Unfortunately, not a good look for Rivian. We had a reservation for 11-12 and got there at 11:35. Line was out the door where Chicago was living up to its Windy City rep and it was quite chilly. Had to wait in line outside for over 30 minutes and then another 2 hours inside in a ‘Disney’ line that snaked around. They only had one R2 there and were only giving two minutes per group to sit in the drivers seat. Having had an R1T and being as excited as we are for the R2 we still thought it was worthwhile but could have been so much better.

That said, it’s a beautiful vehicle. Just as comfortable as the R1 and I really like the new ‘wheels’ on the steering wheel. Can’t wait to find out when we will get ours when the window opens in June.

Hope they do a better job in Miami. Really looking forward to seeing R2 in person. Hopefully they will bring the Catalina Cove color!

 

[Luxus]

This is an interesting problem for them. On one hand they could have used that reservation system to limit the number of people. Then the problem would be that they were denying a view for people who are interested in the R2. Not ideal. The other hand is what happened, people upset they had to wait for a good bit of time. Dammed if you do, dammed if you don't situation.

In hindsight they probably should have made each 'party' like a week long. But as mentioned this is a good sign. That so many people showed up and caused these waits.

 

[sparked]

People need to look on Reddit for all the threads. The Chicago event was practically a disaster with having only 1 car available while the Old Orchard event with 2 cars went VERY smoothly with a many many happy people. Rivian definitely needs to do better when two events happening at the same time have wildly different experiences.

It could definitely be a one-off, but a little better communication to customers about the Chicago event having only 1 vehicle might have given people a heads up to go to Old Orchard instead.

Some people had downright hostile experiences with Rivian Employees at the Chicago event. Linking here for one thread example:

https://www.reddit.com/r/RivianR2/comments/1svo8pr/chicago_block_party_refused_entry/

 

[Zorg]

The interest in the R2 is off the charts

 

[millergraphics]

The interest in the R2 is off the charts

The fact that almost no one left the line with that two hour wait is a good sign for sure.

 

[loqueid]

Better than the events that they had in (checks) ... 43 other states.

 

[Nadus]

We were there at the same time.

On one hand, the downtown event did generate some buzz in the city, where it may have piqued the interest of people unfamiliar with Rivian. On the other hand, for those of us who RSVP'd to attend the event, I would've preferred all three of the Chicago-area R2s in one larger location where we could've wandered around and discussed the vehicles without Rivian employees (literally) setting a 2-minute timer to funnel us through the vehicle.

I also went to the Skokie viewing, though that added hours to my trip.

 

[Morevs]

I went to the Chicago event on Friday around 11am. Short line, friendly staff-except for being a little pushy on how much time to check the vehicle out from the inside.

I also went to the Old Orchard event on Saturday around 330pm as I wanted to check out the other colors. That, to me was a total cluster. Long line, which actually moved fairly quick with two vehicles. The number of kids at Old Orchard was nauseating to me. It made me want to leave as quickly as it made the small showroom feel jammed in. It would have been a lot better if it were an adult only event. At least most of the staff were friendly as well.

Looking forward to getting my R2 after seeing them up close!

 

[sparked]

I went to the Chicago event on Friday around 11am. Short line, friendly staff-except for being a little pushy on how much time to check the vehicle out from the inside.

I also went to the Old Orchard event on Saturday around 330pm as I wanted to check out the other colors. That, to me was a total cluster. Long line, which actually moved fairly quick with two vehicles. The number of kids at Old Orchard was nauseating to me. It made me want to leave as quickly as it made the small showroom feel jammed in. It would have been a lot better if it were an adult only event. At least most of the staff were friendly as well.

Looking forward to getting my R2 after seeing them up close!

Your Saturday experience was more busy at Old Orchard because people started figuring that was the only working Rivian Space that was doing this event smoothly on both days. Plus easier parking. Chicago on the other hand was to some degree broken on both days due to 1 car and got way way worse on Saturday.

 

[wnealisr226]

People need to look on Reddit for all the threads. The Chicago event was practically a disaster with having only 1 car available while the Old Orchard event with 2 cars went VERY smoothly with a many many happy people. Rivian definitely needs to do better when two events happening at the same time have wildly different experiences.

It could definitely be a one-off, but a little better communication to customers about the Chicago event having only 1 vehicle might have given people a heads up to go to Old Orchard instead.

Some people had downright hostile experiences with Rivian Employees at the Chicago event. Linking here for one thread example:

https://www.reddit.com/r/RivianR2/comments/1svo8pr/chicago_block_party_refused_entry/

I'm definitely glad I went to Old Orchard over Chicago.

 

[strykerwsu]

I went to the Chicago event on Friday around 11am. Short line, friendly staff-except for being a little pushy on how much time to check the vehicle out from the inside.

I also went to the Old Orchard event on Saturday around 330pm as I wanted to check out the other colors. That, to me was a total cluster. Long line, which actually moved fairly quick with two vehicles. The number of kids at Old Orchard was nauseating to me. It made me want to leave as quickly as it made the small showroom feel jammed in. It would have been a lot better if it were an adult only event. At least most of the staff were friendly as well.

Looking forward to getting my R2 after seeing them up close!

What’s wrong with kids lol. They are the main reason such SUV’s exist. Now if they weren’t behaving that is an adult issue .

 

[VSG]

The number of kids at Old Orchard was nauseating to me.

Well on the upside, all the R2 interiors are black, so you couldn't see all the dirt, food residue, and diaper leakage left behind by those rugrats.

 

[rfkxyz]

Chicago event was practically a disaster with having only 1 car available while the Old Orchard event with 2 cars went VERY smoothly with a many many happy people. Rivian definitely needs to do better when two events happening at the same time have wildly different experiences.

I would've preferred all three of the Chicago-area R2s in one larger location where we could've wandered around and discussed the vehicles without Rivian employees (literally) setting a 2-minute timer to funnel us through the vehicle.

Perhaps Rivian needs to redirect some engineers towards career broadening?

"Queueing theory is the mathematical study of waiting lines (queues), analyzing processes such as customer arrivals, service times, and the number of servers to optimize system performance and reduce waiting times. It balances service efficiency with operating costs, utilizing models to predict metrics such as average wait time and queue length."

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