Poll For new kind of automotive warranty service.

[Jdcorbitt3]

In aviation, if an aircraft needs service, you can fly to a service center and have them do warranty work. They also give you the option of having the parts shipped to you and you having a certified mechanic install the replacement parts. The defective parts are sent back. The manufacturer covers the cost of the parts, and you pay for the labor to install them.

I wou like to see Rivian do the same. The service centers are overwhelmed. My truck will be in service for 3 to 5 weeks for 4 to 5 hours worth of labor. If those mechanically inclined did simple repairs on their own, I suspect we could get that service time down.

I got tired of waiting for service and repaired the frunk release switch on my R1T myself. I then ordered a new part on eBay for when it fails again. this is just one service visit that mobile service, or a service center would not have to do. Swapping out 12V batteries, and simple items like this could come with instruction. We could send the old part back in the box it came in and submit photos of the new part installed.

I understand Rivian wanting the service center doing safety related items like replacing the spindle hub bolt that came out on my truck.

I suspect Rivian buyers are more mechanically inclined and comfortable doing their own work.

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[Jdcorbitt3]

This has the potential to dramatically reduce the downtime. It could be a positive marketing tool, save Rivian money in this critical time for the company, and help with the ramp up to the R2. They, like Tesla are going to need to build more service centers, but this could help while they are transitioning to a high volume manufacturer.

 

[SparkyR1t]

Would appreciate having free access to vehicle parts exploded diagrams and then being able to order needed parts online.

 

[R1Thor]

Would appreciate having free access to vehicle parts exploded diagrams and then being able to order needed parts online.

Kind of like an interactive Haynes manual for Rivian!
I believe Heuberger/Subaru Parts does this (at least that's how I recall it). You could get through every diagram and find the correct part number you needed and order it direct.

 

[ads75]

This has the potential to dramatically reduce the downtime. It could be a positive marketing tool, save Rivian money in this critical time for the company, and help with the ramp up to the R2. They, like Tesla are going to need to build more service centers, but this could help while they are transitioning to a high volume manufacturer.

Needing outside mechanics or shops to complete warranty work would be a massive blow to the brand. It would admit Rivian is overwhelmed and has no plan to catch up, they can't keep up with deffeciencies, poor workmanship, poor quality control, immediately calls into why they would need to take the drastic step of needing outsiders to finish Rivians work.

Using outsiders could also prevent Rivian from learning about their own problems, where and why things break. Using outside mechanics could also open Rivian up to fraud from those outside shops, unless you are suggesting the customers pay for the warranty work.

And in your initial post you are using another industry (although somewhat similar), and not another auto brand to draw comparisons. No other brand takes those steps, or needs to take those steps.

 

[SwampNut]

My experience is that Rivian is fast at simple things. It's the much deeper problems that they are slow at. The two slow repairs for me are the powered bed cover and an AC noise issue, neither of which I could possibly take on by myself. The 12v battery was done fast, as was another easy one.

 

[Jdcorbitt3]

Needing outside mechanics or shops to complete warranty work would be a massive blow to the brand. It would admit Rivian is overwhelmed and has no plan to catch up, they can't keep up with deffeciencies, poor workmanship, poor quality control, immediately calls into why they would need to take the drastic step of needing outsiders to finish Rivians work.

Using outsiders could also prevent Rivian from learning about their own problems, where and why things break. Using outside mechanics could also open Rivian up to fraud from those outside shops, unless you are suggesting the customers pay for the warranty work.

And in your initial post you are using another industry (although somewhat similar), and not another auto brand to draw comparisons. No other brand takes those steps, or needs to take those steps.

I am suggesting a change in the way warranty work can be done in the automotive industry. This is not a bandaid. This would be a permanent option. I would like to see Rivian be the first in the automotive industry to do this.
The reality is Rivian does not have the resources to put a service center in every town. Legacy manufacturers do this via the franchise method. We are cutting new paths with the EV industry. Much like Tesla, Rivian is a different kind of car company. I suspect, if one does it, the others will also. I am referring to Rivian, Tesla, Scout, and Lucid in particular. The big difference is the Rivian customers tend to be more ”Hands on” than Tesla and Lucid. I suspect Scout customers will be more like Rivian customers.

 

[R1Thor]

I am suggesting a change in the way warranty work can be done in the automotive industry. This is not a bandaid. This would be a permanent option. I would like to see Rivian be the first in the automotive industry to do this.
The reality is Rivian does not have the resources to put a service center in every town. Legacy manufacturers do this via the franchise method. We are cutting new paths with the EV industry. Much like Tesla, Rivian is a different kind of car company. I suspect, if one does it, the others will also. I am referring to Rivian, Tesla, Scout, and Lucid in particular. The big difference is the Rivian customers tend to be more ”Hands on” than Tesla and Lucid. I suspect Scout customers will be more like Rivian customers.

To be clear: I'm FOR more right to repair and putting control in owners' hands.

THAT SAID: what happens when a customer strips threads (who has no experience re-tapping, or even owning a tap and die set?)? What happens if they break a tab on an electrical connector? There are 100 things that can go wrong that they'd be ill equipped to handle on their own. It's NOT insurmountable with the right instruction and the right tools and replacement parts.
HOWEVER, this would verily have required that Rivian Engineer their vehicles with this express intent.

So, this is a good idea maybe for the R2 or Gen 3 R1, or moving forward even beyond that (as the majority of the core Engineering is probably already done for those efforts). But except in very specific cases, this is unlikely to be practical at this stage for this product.

 

[Jdcorbitt3]

To be clear: I'm FOR more right to repair and putting control in owners' hands.

THAT SAID: what happens when a customer strips threads (who has no experience re-tapping, or even owning a tap and die set?)? What happens if they break a tab on an electrical connector? There are 100 things that can go wrong that they'd be ill equipped to handle on their own. It's NOT insurmountable with the right instruction and the right tools and replacement parts.
HOWEVER, this would verily have required that Rivian Engineer their vehicles with this express intent.

So, this is a good idea maybe for the R2 or Gen 3 R1, or moving forward even beyond that (as the majority of the core Engineering is probably already done for those efforts). But except in very specific cases, this is unlikely to be practical at this stage for this product.

Ironically, the service center cross threaded a bolt on my seatback on my first visit. I discovered this as I developed a rattle driving home. I had to retap the threads myself. This program would be for those that are mechanically inclined.
I also do not let anyone rotate my tires as I have had too many wheel lugs cross threaded in the past.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

I've rebuilt a couple of salvage cars myself in my garage, including welding subframes. I'm pretty handy, but fortunate enough in my current career to afford to keep cars in the warranty period and get rid of them before they are out of warranty. With that said I would still like the OPTION of doing these repairs myself.

My rule on repairing stuff these days is if I can pay someone to do a better job than I can do, I will pay for it. If I will do a good or better job myself, then I will do it. That means I'm still stuck doing my own plumbing, unfortunately.

 

[R1Thor]

Ironically, the service center cross threaded a bolt on my seatback on my first visit. I discovered this as I developed a rattle driving home. I had to retap the threads myself. This program would be for those that are mechanically inclined.
I also do not let anyone rotate my tires as I have had too many wheel lugs cross threaded in the past.

I want to be clear insofar as: I don't disagree with the premise you're after, and I'm not arguing against you to argue against you.

However, in practice, there are a lot of people who think they know better than they actually do... and for that reason alone, if I were Rivian, I wouldn't be pursuing this program. (Risk aversion). Just playing devils' advocate

 

[Donald Stanfield]

I want to be clear insofar as: I don't disagree with the premise you're after, and I'm not arguing against you to argue against you.

However, in practice, there are a lot of people who think they know better than they actually do... and for that reason alone, if I were Rivian, I wouldn't be pursuing this program. (Risk aversion). Just playing devils' advocate

I don't buy that for cars that are out of warranty. Rivian is NOT obligated to make those cars run and is not liable if someone torches themselves while trying to repair a battery or high-voltage line. There is no risk to be averse to because all Rivian has to do is say they recommend professional service. Just like Rivian isn't liable if I get drunk and crash my car into a wall they aren't liable if I decide to put the orange wires on my tongue to see what happens.

 

[R1Thor]

I don't buy that for cars that are out of warranty. Rivian is NOT obligated to make those cars run and is not liable if someone torches themselves while trying to repair a battery or high-voltage line. There is no risk to be averse to because all Rivian has to do is say they recommend professional service. Just like Rivian isn't liable if I get drunk and crash my car into a wall they aren't liable if I decide to put the orange wires on my tongue to see what happens.

The initial posit for this thread was 'new kind of automotive warranty,' so I'm not ...quite following how you think I was arguing for 'out of warranty' repairs to not be doable by users/owners/shadetree mechanics?

I want to be clear: I WANT MORE autonomy and ability to work on my own vehicle (and everything else I own), bar none. I am not happy with the current state and availability of Rivian service. And I'll likely be even LESS happy when I need some sort of service that isn't covered under warranty or could easily be performed by myself with the right access (such as brakes--since we likely** need software access to release the parking brake).

 

[Jdcorbitt3]

Update.
Rivian decided my truck was not safe to drive. They towed it in last Thursday. They said they are waiting for parts, so the would not even look at it until the parts are in.
If I could get $65,000 for it while it was at the shop and change ownership before coming out, it would be sold.

 

[SparkyR1t]

The initial posit for this thread was 'new kind of automotive warranty,' so I'm not ...quite following how you think I was arguing for 'out of warranty' repairs to not be doable by users/owners/shadetree mechanics?

I want to be clear: I WANT MORE autonomy and ability to work on my own vehicle (and everything else I own), bar none. I am not happy with the current state and availability of Rivian service. And I'll likely be even LESS happy when I need some sort of service that isn't covered under warranty or could easily be performed by myself with the right access (such as brakes--since we likely** need software access to release the parking brake).

Fully agree with this statement I want to make my own repairs as I see fit. I can tell from posts many of us are qualified to make the mechanical repairs and some of us qualified to work on the electrical system if the data and speciality tools were made available. Cost will probably be substantial but I personally have a few thousand invested in my bi-directional OBD scanner and would be interested in the software to at least interrogate my Rivian. This would also allow me to help others. One final comment I am not sure my purchase agreement with Rivian stated I would need to have out of warranty repairs only through Rivian. Just something to think about.

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