Rivian Customer Service: SiriusXM Radio will not be native part of the entertainment system

[MountainBikeDude]

In the instances of no cell etc that are being mentioned frequently as a pain point and a reason for keeping satellite radio, you download several playlists to your phone from Spotify or a similar service, and in those situations, problem solved.

I would like to see a future update that allows you to store music to a thumb drive plugged into the rivian, allowing the same thing, but natively.

edit.
Don't get me wrong, I've had xm for a decade now, and while there are things I like about it, I also hate how it loops 2ish hour segments all day long. If you're out of service for a while and relying on it as your entertainment choice, you quickly notice it after repeatedly listening to the same BBC articles, or xm chill music etc over and over again.

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[electruck]

In the instances of no cell etc that are being mentioned frequently as a pain point and a reason for keeping satellite radio, you download several playlists to your phone from Spotify or a similar service, and in those situations, problem solved.

Problem there is now I have to start managing playlists, something which I have zero interest in doing (and the whole reason I listen to "radio" in the first place). For my casual listening, I currently have one playlist on Spotify with over 2500 songs that I keep on shuffle. Now, if I could cache that playlist to the Rivian, I'd be good to go (especially if I could do that in hi-fi).

 

[MountainBikeDude]

Problem there is now I have to start managing playlists, something which I have zero interest in doing (and the whole reason I listen to "radio" in the first place). For my casual listening, I currently have one playlist on Spotify with over 2500 songs that I keep on shuffle. Now, if I could cache that playlist to the Rivian, I'd be good to go (especially if I could do that in hi-fi).

You can download to your phone and stream via bluetooth.

What I really want to see is a native Tidal app and the ability to save playlists offline directly to the vehicle. Even Spotify at best quality and the ability to save would be enough.

 

[electruck]

You can download to your phone and stream via bluetooth.

What I really want to see is a native Tidal app and the ability to save playlists offline directly to the vehicle. Even Spotify at best quality and the ability to save would be enough.

Thanks, yes, aware of what I can do with the phone but don't really want to be coupled to my phone or its battery or storage to do something the Rivian should handle natively (even if I have to provide expanded storage capacity). It gets to be a nuisance if media is streaming from my phone and I have to run into a store taking my phone with me which leaves my passengers in the car with nothing to listen to (or at best shifting back and forth between different sources as I come and go). And don't even get me started on bluetooth.

I see from the second part of your post that you get what I'm looking for and, yes, I agree that support for other services such as Tidal is also needed.

 

[pc500]

I am considering a Siriusxm FM direct adapter to get rid of static. I reached out to Rivian CS regarding use of the SXM app on my phone through Bluetooth but they indicated the Rivian radio could not receive two bluetooth signals at the same time so the choice was cell phone use or SXM music but not both. Not the best solution but since Rivian will not offer SXM and the Rivian radio does not have an AUX in it is probably the only solution.

Some cars allow this if you edit the Bluetooth connection to be headset only (and remove headphones).

Granted a karaoke mode would be nice.

 

[pc500]

Problem there is now I have to start managing playlists, something which I have zero interest in doing (and the whole reason I listen to "radio" in the first place). For my casual listening, I currently have one playlist on Spotify with over 2500 songs that I keep on shuffle. Now, if I could cache that playlist to the Rivian, I'd be good to go (especially if I could do that in hi-fi).

My streaming service let's you cache any of the premade playlists or even the radio stations. It's really the same stuff I'd normally listen to.

 

[electruck]

My streaming service let's you cache any of the premade playlists or even the radio stations. It's really the same stuff I'd normally listen to.

Does your streaming service run on the Rivian? See my response above to MountainBikeDude.

 

[Mysta]

very disappointed in their decision. I have my R1T already and we have come across areas with no Network connections (which is most of the areas you will go on adventures in and guess what the back country has no cell service who would have thought) so you are truly traveling and camping in silence. This was a poor choice IMO. Had XM in my Wrangler solely for that reason.

If only there was a way to download songs in spotify to listen to offline

 

[Max]

It is an adventure vehicle. Be adventurous and listen to HD radio.

 

[the long way downunder]

Chatted will a CS rep today and asked if XM radio would be included. They confirmed to me that XM will not be a part of the entertainment system but an app could be used with Bluetooth. Rather disappointing.

What is an XM?

 

[Chewy734]

Don’t forget, Sirius/XM also has talk radio, news and sports (which doesn’t make sense to download to your phone).

 

[Taco Corp]

Lack of satellite radio was a massive oversight IMO. Downloading playlists to a phone works but it's also illegal in many states to be using a mobile phone when driving and Rivian hasn't seen fit to provide anything close to a decent phone integration at this point.

 

[jskyler]

This is a great example of where Rivian is trying to copy Tesla - no XM, no AA, no Car Play. The head unit is expected to be better than one that has these features. Perhaps also an example of where their lack of experience in the Automotive manufacturing sector comes into play. Head units that have XM+AA+CP are more expensive to source so add to vehicle costs pretty significantly. The counter balance to that is XM will pay you for each activated unit (one time) and then ongoing (assuming subscription continues - if canceled and then reactivated, they get nothing).

All in all, this is why almost every automobile OEM includes these features in their cars today. Rivian could have, and should have, done better.

 

[Deleted member 7086]

Rivian could have simply made the infotainment unit SiriusXM “ready” but did not. They have also blocked attempts to add an aftermarket receiver and FM Direct Adapter by refusing to disclose how you access the infotainment center and the FM antenna lead. With cell phones one can see why states are enacting right to repair laws. Perhaps EV’s will be next.

 

[WalnutFarmer]

Just took my "Adventure Vehicle" on an adventure, mostly no more than 10 miles from a major highway. Many places with limited or no cell phone service. Disappointing that my buddies 2014 Chevy with XM radio was my only source of music and talk radio during our trip. Ironic that an adventure vehicle wouldn't have services that work on an adventure...
4 days with intermittent music and unreliable service was less than ideal...

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