Initial Winter Driving on Snow -- Experience in R1T on 20" AT

[bjcleaver]

We had our first storm of the season over the weekend, which dropped a foot of snow or more up in the mountains but not a lot of it stuck to the roads. A second storm blew through yesterday, and with the colder temps the last few days it finally stuck and gave me a chance to try the RiT in some snow. It came down pretty hard and sideways at around 7pm as I was heading out to pick up my daughter. Temperature was in the upper 20's. There was probably just an inch or two on the road but it was snowing fast. Travel was about 30mph on the interstate and one car had spun out into the median, so it was pretty slippery. PSI on the tires was around 44 (I need to add a little air.) I was able to drive both street and highway and here are some thoughts after driving. My plan is to use the OEM Pirelli's all winter if I can.

• Overall it handles really, really well. Most of these comments are nitpicks, but I just wanted to point some things out. But it is a confidence inspiring ride.
• I kept it in All Purpose since I wasn't sure what else would be appropriate without a snow mode (more on that in a bit)
• It can be a little slippery out of the chute at a stop sign or traffic light, but recovers quickly. I assume this is due to all the torque, so I imagine I'll get used to that and manage it better over time.
• Braking is good but the regen is likely too strong which can cause it to lock up just a bit and skid. Again, I'll get used to it and a quick touch of the throttle clears it up. But it would be great to have a Low and/or Off setting for the regen, or just a dedicated snow mode that truly optimizes for the conditions. My wife got a Model Y a few weeks before my R1T arrived and I saw that you can dial down the regen on that.
• I probably took one turn faster than I should have and my tail did spin out a little. This one road had some gravel on it FWIW. But mostly it was just poor driving on my part. I have a hard time going slow on turns.
• As you would expect, the sensors get covered up with snow pretty quickly and warning lights get activated. The headlights don't put out much heat and it seemed they got covered up a bit. Nothing that impacted light output to the point where I had to pull over and clean them off, but on a longer drive I wonder how they'd hold up.
• None of the door handles or buttons froze. Prior to my journey I was parked outside all day while at work. Fun trying to find the gear tunnel button under a few inches of snow.
• After driving, the gear tunnel doors wouldn't open. I had to clean off all the snow/ice that had accumulated from the throw from the front tires. I'd never put mud flaps on this truck but that will be an ongoing issue. See photo of where it gathered:

• 

• I was curious about how colder weather would impact range/battery, since a performance hit is to be expected. I park in my garage (heated to 55°) and I charge to 70%. When I get to work I'm typically at 64-65% remaining. Yesterday it was at 63% and today it was 62%. I park outside during the day so we'll see how this goes over the winter.
  • Anyone know if/when Rivian will have things like Scheduled Departure or other items to improve cold weather performance? I'm going to have to set an alarm to remind my to use the app to warm up the truck before I leave work. No where for me to charge or plug in at work.
  • Range is rarely an issue for me day to day so it doesn't really matter...until the day I need it. I'll probably do more Conserve mode driving during the winter.
• Too early to tell on the Pirelli tires. I think they'll be fine but need to try them on some steeper roads in the snow.
• One quirk I noticed with the HVAC screen - I have it set to 68° and it shows snowflake icons over the vents even when it's blowing hot air. If I bump it up to 72° the icons change to heat. Are the icons based on temperature and not on what the system is actually outputting?

Anyway, I hope this helps those of you who may be curious about how it performs in the snow. I'll try to update this as I get more snow driving in and see if anything changes. Meanwhile, winter is here but I at least get to enjoy some good views during the day.

Sponsored

 

[Phrogz]

Great write-up, thanks! I'm above Boulder (looks like you're on the other side of the divide [edit: Oh, Utah? Well, technically that's FAR on the other side ]) where we got less snow. I also have 20" ATs, and also slid my tail out a little in one paved downhill icy turn. Otherwise behaved well, but I didn't have enough snow/ice to really evaluate yet.

I opened the hood this morning for the kids to put backpacks in, but had not wiped off the 3/4" of heavy, wet snow. The hood opened all the way, but then immediately closed due to thinking someone was pulling on it. Wiped off half of it (kids in the way), opened it again, and it slowly started sinking closed under the weight. So, that was funny; would be nice if I could beef up the support just a little.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Anyone know if/when Rivian will have things like Scheduled Departure or other items to improve cold weather performance? I'm going to have to set an alarm to remind my to use the app to warm up the truck before I leave work. No where for me to charge or plug in at work.

I think it's only a matter of time before they implement it and make more improvements for cold weather use. With all of the employees that are working on the software stack, I have a feeling at least a few of them have their own ideas of features that need to get implemented, they just need permission to do it. Rivian has been amazing at listening to their customer base about feedback for software changes.

 

[bjcleaver]

Great write-up, thanks! I'm above Boulder (looks like you're on the other side of the divide), where we got less snow. I also have 20" ATs, and also slid my tail out a little in one paved downhill icy turn. Otherwise behaved well, but I didn't have enough snow/ice to really evaluate yet.

I opened the hood this morning for the kids to put backpacks in, but had not wiped off the 3/4" of heavy, wet snow. The hood opened all the way, but then immediately closed due to thinking someone was pulling on it. Wiped off half of it (kids in the way), opened it again, and it slowly started sinking closed under the weight. So, that was funny; would be nice if I could beef up the support just a little.

Good note on the hood, I didn't even try to open it yesterday,

We're supposed to get another storm in about a week, so there will be more chances to test it out. I definitely need to play around with turns and see what's my fault vs. the truck's fault. ;-)

 

[bjcleaver]

I think it's only a matter of time before they implement it and make more improvements for cold weather use. With all of the employees that are working on the software stack, I have a feeling at least a few of them have their own ideas of features that need to get implemented, they just need permission to do it. Rivian has been amazing at listening to their customer base about feedback for software changes.

Well said and I agree. This is the benefit of the software platform and being able to react quickly.

 

[Lil'O Annie]

Went up to Mt. Hood Oregon for the first-snow meetup with 13 Rivians. A few in the PNW group played in the snow. No problem!!

 

[BigSkies]

Great report! I’m hoping someone with 21” tires can share a similar report. Relative performance in weather like this is what has me going back and forth between the two.

 

[DirtyJester]

Went up to Mt. Hood Oregon for the first-snow meetup with 13 Rivians. A few in the PNW group played in the snow. No problem!!

Sooo…. Can’t….. wait….. for mine.

 

[Leonbmx]

Noob question here - Does tire pressure have a big impact on snow handling? Would airing down net more traction, or is it the opposite with snow?

 

[domoplaytime]

The headlights don't put out much heat and it seemed they got covered up a bit.

Did you have any product on the headlights like RainX? I won't put that on my windshield but I'm considering something like it for the headlights and the roof.

 

[moosehead]

Did you have any product on the headlights like RainX? I won't put that on my windshield but I'm considering something like it for the headlights and the roof.

Domo, have had decent luck with Adam’s Graphene Ceramic on glass including windshield. Not sure it will help much for snow on headlamps but it does cause water to bead off rapidly.

Have had poor response from other products so was pleasantly surprised.

 

[RivianNowPlz]

I’m thinking I just won’t drive my R1S without winter tires or at a minimum the Michelin CrossClimate2. My Tesla was a death trap without the Cross Climates. First winter with heavy heavy snow and it was sliding and had hard times turning.. it was lame because my Ascent, Bronco and Raptor handle the snow so well no matter the conditions. I put the CrossClimate2s on the Tesla Model S and it’s been a tank on any snowy drive. I’m just not gonna trust Rivian quite yet with this regard.. but if a snow mode changes things.. we’ll see.. would rather not risk it. Tires make the difference and with all this power and torque, I’d rather have the right shoes for the conditions whereas in my Ascent I could have bald tires with no tread left and still make it through 3 feet of snow.. but I’m not able to go to 60 in 3 seconds with it either.

 

[Gshenderson]

Took mine on a hunting trip in MT the past 5 days. General observations:

• Performed well from a handling standpoint on snow covered roads - both highways and dirt roads.
• Sensor get blocked with crud really easily to where highway assist and even adaptive cruise won’t work.
• Range seemed to hold up well in 20-30 degree temps.
• Windshield washer is a bit flaky as it spray only on the bottom portion of the windshield
• I was out in a rain to sleet to snow transition and door handles got iced up quickly and would not retract. Didn’t affect whether I could drive it, but cleaning out the ice inside the door handles so they would close was not easy.
• I was supper concerned with the tonneau, so cleared all ice/snow before opening it. Took few attempts, but it eventually opened all the way.
• Frunk opened OK, but I can see this being an issue if the button is iced over.
• Gear tunnel functioned OK, but again the buttons are prone to ice snow buildup and doors are sluggish to open.
• Similar concerns with charge port door. Again, it functioned for me in marginal conditions, but I can see situations where it would not function

So bottom line for me is the truck performed quite well, but I have concerns with whether some of the gimmicky electronic gadgetry is really well adapted to severe environmental and off-road conditions.

Apologies in advance if anyone takes offense to the pic.

 

[bjcleaver]

Did you have any product on the headlights like RainX? I won't put that on my windshield but I'm considering something like it for the headlights and the roof.

I don’t have anything like that on the headlights or roof but might try it. Why don’t you like it on the windshield if I may ask?

 

[MikeySea]

Did you have any product on the headlights like RainX? I won't put that on my windshield but I'm considering something like it for the headlights and the roof.

I've been using Griot's Foaming Poly Gloss. Seems to work pretty well.

Sponsored