Good Forbes Article on Rivian - production number estimates and vehicle servicing mentioned

[JerseyGreens]

1.4Bn / 20,000 vehicles = roughly 70k per vehicle.

We have the pricing debate often but I believe Rivian would quickly gain market share if the base (smallest battery) model came in ~60k, and their highest end SUV at 80k. With the average price...at 70k.

Lets see what happens!

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[Nuclearn8]

Let's see these 3 smaller more affordable models you speak of RJ!... I want an EV Rally car or Wrangler/Bronco slayer. Give me an EV smaller, dare I say samurai sized, adventure vehicle with 300 mile range for <45k and I am in! if it had T-tops all the better.

 

[Electronaut]

Let's see these 3 smaller more affordable models you speak of RJ!... I want an EV Rally car or Wrangler/Bronco slayer. Give me an EV smaller, dare I say samurai sized, adventure vehicle with 300 mile range for <45k and I am in! if it had T-tops all the better.

We know a hatchback crossover rally-style vehicle is one of them: https://www.rivianforums.com/threads/possible-first-peek-at-rivians-future-rally-model.40/

I'm definitely looking forward to that one. The Model Y and Mach-E are both too soft and traditional for me. A more rally-raid type crossover from Rivian would shake up that segment.

As for the other 2 possible new models, we know it won't be a sports car since the company scrapped one before pivoting to developing R1T/R1S. So that leaves sedan, city car, adventure vehicle, Jeep competitor as possible models?

 

[DucRider]

Amazon vans will literally be a fleet. Wouldn't surprise me if a variant of the van is sold beyond Amazon too... Not to mention that all the Rivian skateboards will be very similar, making one giant "fleet".

I wonder where Rivian's second factory will be. I could help bring it to TX.

Rivian will not even be allowed to sell in Texas if they stick with a direct sales model and don't utilize franchised dealerships. They may set up some sort of a partnership with Ford dealers taking the orders to work around the issue in States that restrict or ban automobile sales outside of the dealership model.

 

[skyote]

Rivian will not even be allowed to sell in Texas if they stick with a direct sales model and don't utilize franchised dealerships. They may set up some sort of a partnership with Ford dealers taking the orders to work around the issue in States that restrict or ban automobile sales outside of the dealership model.

Tesla can't officially sell direct here, but there are showrooms. And there sure are a lot of Teslas here.

Plus, manufacturing is a completely separate matter & could help facilitate support for change on the sales side.

 

[electruck]

Rivian will not even be allowed to sell in Texas if they stick with a direct sales model and don't utilize franchised dealerships.

Times are changing, albeit slowly.... Thank you Tesla.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30615855/tesla-sell-cars-michigan/

Until TX abandons it protectionist measures for a waning business model and fully acknowledges the Internet Age, I am more than happy to take delivery of my Rivian in Normal and drive it back home to TX.

 

[thrill]

...I am more than happy to take delivery of my Rivian in Normal and drive it back home to TX.

It'd be nice if Rivian could offer something similar to BMW in allowing one to attend the build of their own vehicle, picking it up at the end of the process, charging for 30 minutes, and drive home.

 

[skyote]

It'd be nice if Rivian could offer something similar to BMW in allowing one to attend the build of their own vehicle, picking it up at the end of the process, charging for 30 minutes, and drive home.

Rivian Owner Xperience

Rivian ROX!

 

[Kickaha]

I only pre-ordered an R1T as a Christmas present to myself in Dec 2019 so I am guessing mid to late 2021 for me.

On the plus side, my wife want to pre-order an R1S now that Rivian is "real". Things like the live events and Forbes articles really help that perception. I am sick of all the companies releasing the latest "concept" - you can do that all day long but at some point to be "real" you have to show a physical thing. At least for my wife, Rivian has made it over that hump!

 

[Kickaha]

Times are changing, albeit slowly.... Thank you Tesla.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30615855/tesla-sell-cars-michigan/

Until TX abandons it protectionist measures for a waning business model and fully acknowledges the Internet Age, I am more than happy to take delivery of my Rivian in Normal and drive it back home to TX.

I think Corvette has a program where the owner is the first one to start the car and drive it off the assembly line and drive it home. I would totally be down with a similar program for my Rivian!

 

[RefugeEV]

Things like the live events and Forbes articles really help that perception. I am sick of all the companies releasing the latest "concept" - you can do that all day long but at some point to be "real" you have to show a physical thing. At least for my wife, Rivian has made it over that hump!

+1

Rivian is by far the closest to becoming reality of all the EV pickups announced by startups in the past couple of years. Bollinger is the only other one to actually have shown a vehicle, while Karma, Lordstown and Nikola pickups have been nothing but renderings on a screen.

 

[electruck]

Bollinger is the only other one to actually have shown a vehicle

The thing about Bollinger is that they aren't building a light duty passenger vehicle. They are building a class 3 truck without air bags and without performing crash testing. Not something I would ever plan to take a family road trip in. It has its market but it's not the same as Rivian.

 

[GreenMonster]

One of the Rivian employees that we talked with at the Mills Creek event said that Cox managed a lot of high end service centers and they would be leaning on those to gain experience. I wasn't really sure what they were talking about, but the article mentions Pivet( https://www.coxautoinc.com/brands/pivet/), which from the Cox automotive website looks like they primarily service fleet vehicles.

Given Tesla's experience in servicing EVs and having used their ranger service for the last few years, I am really happy that they seem to be focusing on mobile service. It is so much nicer than having to go and sit in a dealership drinking bad coffee...

I think focusing on mobile service and repairs is the way to go for Rivian. I know Tesla owners view it as a sort of concierge service and so handling most service/repairs via at-home/office visits will actually add to the Rivian ownership experience as something premium, which is the segment that the R1T and R1S are priced at.

 

[James]

Clickbait title, but a good article on Rivian.

My two key takeaways are:
1) Production estimates - 20K in 2021, & 40K in 2022
2) Cox partnership providing a much larger service capability than Tesla

https://www.forbes.com/sites/chuckt...illion-war-chest-and-tesla-in-his-headlights/

Great info. Thanks. I wonder what the preorders look like. 20k would be a lot of serious buyers.

 

[Kickaha]

Great info. Thanks. I wonder what the preorders look like. 20k would be a lot of serious buyers.

To me, the key stat will be conversion - at what rate are pre-orders converted to purchase. Does anyone know what the conversion rates were for the various Tesla models? That also needs to be tempered with the deposit amount, even if its fully refundable.

I know my Model X required a $2,500 deposit but the Cybertruck is only $100 - Tesla likes to boast 250,000 pre-orders or some other silly number but does anyone really believe they will sell that many CyberUglyTrucks?

And another question - lets just say the 60K unit production for 2021 and 2022 are a valid forecast. Can Rivian really ramp from 0 units per year to 20K units per year - in a single year? What was the annual production in the Normal plant at its peak when Mitsubishi trucks were rolling off of it?

I am hoping thats where the Ford partnership will pay off for Rivian - is Ford's help enough to keep up with demand and at a good quality.

It will be interesting!

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