Official: RIVIAN MEMBERSHIP Announced [1 year free trial beginning at day of delivery]

[electrictaco]

I also agree that is should not take features away, you get the keep the features and not lose them if you do not continue the membership, basically a perpetual license.

• Some exception I would suggest are:
  • If it is safety related, it should be free
  • If it is mileage improvement, that should be free as well--especially under the mantra of saving the planet.

I think that it still stands that any feature that makes it out of the Rivian Beta Program will be available to all customers eventually as a free OTA update. The Beta Program just gets them to you earlier.

Customer Service has also stated that all Driver+ features are standard.

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[Scott]

These are the reasons I REALLY wish car companies all supported CarPlay and Android Auto. Paying for a cellular data plan for my car when I always have my cellphone on me is just a waste. I much prefer navigation / music to come from my phone.

The lack of carplay and the possible need to pay a monthly fee so that in car navigation and music will work is annoying. That and the lack of real buttons for some common things (climate controls / volume) are what I am looking about least on my pre-ordered R1S

 

[kneebuster]

We have a chance to be proactive on this rather than griping about speculation. How about a new, clean, and clutter-free (good luck with that one) of what features should be included for life with purchase vs. what could be in the subscription? Suggest tiers. Suggest free 1st year for everybody and 3 years free (or 1/2 price for life) for pre-order holders.

 

[tx_rivian]

This is also a bit concerning.

Sounds like our $80k trucks may only get partial functionality, unless you pay even more in perpetuity. Literally HATE that kind of business model on vehicles.

This is my big fear from that phrasing. I hope they are not planning for updates and new features to only be provided to "members". Could be a big deal breaker for me.

 

[skyote]

You need to work on your sales technique. "Honey, the Rivian needs charging ... do you mind going and spending an hour at Target? We'll go to the one by Hooters, as I need to go check the beer temperature for my podcast channel."

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"The Rivian Beta Membership is designed to make Rivian Beta Products available to you on a public collaborative beta basis."

I'm fine with this as long as you accept my Beta payment from my Beta Bank with a collaborative Beta currency.

I'm more of an Alpha

 

[electrictaco]

This is my big fear from that phrasing. I hope they are not planning for updates and new features to only be provided to "members". Could be a big deal breaker for me.

If you read the terms and conditions it seems like there are two things:
1. Rivian Beta Members may get early access to some features
2. Even if you are a Beta Member, you may still need to pay for a feature when it is available to everyone

I read this as Rivian would like to roll out some testing and they may charge to add functionality in the future. There's no indication whether this would be a subscription or a one time upgrade payment, but I'm sure it depends on the nature of the feature. For example, if Rivian added integrated maps from Gaia or OnX into their system, they might charge a monthly fee for access to detailed off road maps (pretty standard, something I would pay for). Or if they rolled out a performance upgrade that unlocks more power, they could charge for this with a one time fee (this is shittier, in my opinion... cough cough Tesla, ahem). I don't think Rivian even knows what kinds of features might roll out of a Beta Program, so they probably want to keep their options open to new streams of revenue.

 

[CarterGee]

What year do some of y'all think it is? Why is it a surprise to you that a luxury EV in 2021 would have an optional subscription with additional features? BMW, Tesla, and soooo many more have been doing this for years. The good news is you get to enjoy it for a year for free! And then you can decide. They aren't taking drive modes away from you lol. And yes, we're ravaging fanatics for this truck. We want allllll the info, but jeeebus y'all... this is a lot of info. Relaxxxxxxx and enjoy your year of free charging

 

[brianmartin]

I already have a cell phone with a data plan, why would I pay for two data plans. I hate when vehicle manufacturers try to force you to not use your cell phone and data plan you already pay for. like, wtf? I gave you $80 grand for the vehicle. it had better include android auto and a way for me to use my phone to play my music and use my navigation and data plan.

and, come on rivian, you should push features and updates to all trucks for free. if the truck is capable of having a "dog mode" and you are intentionally waiting until later to unlock it, hoping to cash in on additional revenues by doing microtransactions...all i can say is...tread carefully. the blowback will be strong.

overall, i just hate the idea of Rivian trying to find ways to bill my credit card every month of my life. just build the best car with the most features you possibly can, and sell it. that's literally all you have to do.

it's sad but as much as I love the R1T and R1S, i actually don't like the overall vibe and direction of the company so far. Its starting to sound way too "eco-system-y".

 

[Lmirafuente]

These are the reasons I REALLY wish car companies all supported CarPlay and Android Auto. Paying for a cellular data plan for my car when I always have my cellphone on me is just a waste. I much prefer navigation / music to come from my phone.

The lack of carplay and the possible need to pay a monthly fee so that in car navigation and music will work is annoying. That and the lack of real buttons for some common things (climate controls / volume) are what I am looking about least on my pre-ordered R1S

I am in your camp for this in the traditional ICE way we have all been in, however, when I talked with RJ...there is a concept of the Rivian "Digital Trail" where you can go to your favorite fishing spot and map that on the Rivian. You can then share that digital trail to your friends or Rivian community, so that your friends or Rivian owners can get to that spot on their own too. That is where the community starts to come into play. Granted you may not want to share your favorite fishing spot, but you may want to share trails that are breathtaking. (and btw, that could be autonomous driving to your spot so you can enjoy the journey)

Another scenario...what if you lost something on your adventure or hunting trip, and wanted to trace back where you have been to try and locate that missing item....the Rivian Navigation/Map would be able to do that pretty well.

Just another way to look at it, and to see, what could come.... OTA and apps/features are endless.

 

[CommodoreAmiga]

I am in your camp for this in the traditional ICE way we have all been in, however, when I talked with RJ...there is a concept of the Rivian "Digital Trail" where you can go to your favorite fishing spot and map that on the Rivian. You can then share that digital trail to your friends or Rivian community, so that your friends or Rivian owners can get to that spot on their own too. That is where the community starts to come into play. Granted you may not want to share your favorite fishing spot, but you may want to share trails that are breathtaking. (and btw, that could be autonomous driving to your spot so you can enjoy the journey)

Another scenario...what if you lost something on your adventure or hunting trip, and wanted to trace back where you have been to try and locate that missing item....the Rivian Navigation/Map would be able to do that pretty well.

Just another way to look at it, and to see, what could come.... OTA and apps/features are endless.

To play devils advocate, that functionality could be accomplished with an app vis CarPlay or Android Auto, as well.

 

[Rousie13]

If it’s anything like Tesla’s premium connectivity, then it’s like $10/month. If you own the truck for 10 years then it’s $1200. I’m not going to lose sleep over that small amount on an $80k vehicle. It all depends on what it includes and the cost though if I’d choose to opt in or not. If you have owned Tesla’s then you’re used to this strategy. If you’re coming from ICE, then it seems kind of messed up.

 

[Timothykf]

"We’re excited to introduce Rivian Membership as a way for owners to engage with us and with each other, to encourage appreciation and protection of the natural world and share values and experiences."

And ... what's the point. This is a bunch of gabidilgook. Really?


" Benefits like complimentary charging, off-Roadside Assistance, member gatherings and more will help bring you closer to nature and to others with similar values."

Comp charging will be nice, even though there are a ton of free charging stations already. Do I really need someone else to bring me closer to nature? Again ... marketing huuey. I've had an EV for three years and don't need Chevrolet to link me with "others with similar values". I don't live in California!

"And this is just the beginning. As our program grows, we’ll continue adding benefits. Learn more about Rivian Membership on our website."

the web site should give more about the Rivian ....

 

[GIJoe]

Very active and lively discussion.

A few things:

• If there is a membership fee, it is still well under the cost of gas & maintenance for and ICE vehicle
• It should be free for the first year as there are hardly any RAN stations at this time, it should be free until they hit 3500 stations
• I also agree that is should not take features away, you get the keep the features and not lose them if you do not continue the membership, basically a perpetual license.
  • Some exception I would suggest are:
    • If it is safety related, it should be free
    • If it is mileage improvement, that should be free as well--especially under the mantra of saving the planet.
• - this is a first world problem (wink)

Let's enjoy this great company, the vehicle, and the owners of our new Rivian's!

Looking forward to seeing you on the road!

I agree with point 2. Since there are very few RAN chargers early adopters are at a disadvantage for their “free” year. LE holders should get a longer free period. Overall super excited about the idea. Rivian is really thinking outside the box.

 

[RivianXpress]

If I can import .GPX tracks I'll subscribe.

 

[Rhidan]

Not sure why people are expecting the subscription price at this point. They are offering everyone a free year. Rivian will have a year to look at data on how people are using the features and their various costs before announcing the subscription price.

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