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Power vents

wizard467

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By the way, it's a special type of "electric motor" used for absolute positioning. It's called a servo, and complex compared to a simple spinning electric motor. Rivian didn't design or assemble that.
I wouldn’t worry about a servo. As long it is properly specced for the weight to move the vent they will last plenty long enough. For comparison think about a good 3d printer (or rc car steering) which can easily run without maintenance and “non-stop” for years.
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Zoidz

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I wouldn’t worry about a servo. As long it is properly specced for the weight to move the vent they will last plenty long enough. For comparison think about a good 3d printer (or rc car steering) which can easily run without maintenance and “non-stop” for years.
Does that servo and attached mechanism in the printer or RC car get exposed to temperatures ranging from 0F to 120F and work perfectly in all those conditions? Nope.

I've had AC/heat mechanical control mechanisms fail in 2 of the last 5 vehicles I've owned.
 

r1t_kev

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Google "broken car vent" - 6.7 MILLION results. Yeah, it's not a common probem, is it? Now add bleeding edge power control to something that history shows breaks frequently, but has never been done in automobile mass production before. Rivian has already had this problem with the Tonneau cover.

By the way, it's a special type of "electric motor" used for absolute positioning. It's called a servo, and complex compared to a simple spinning electric motor. Rivian didn't design or assemble that.

FWIW, Google "K1200RS ABS Faiure" - 25,000 results. BMW built 37,000 K1200RS. Yeah, that's not a common problem, is it? K1200RS was one of the first bikes to have ABS. First time is a bitch.

Yeah, I'll trust RIvian to develop the power train, no problem, because they did the R&D internally themselves. From my knowledge of the auto industry (having done contract work for a Tier 1 instrument panel supplier to Toyota) it's 99% certain Rivian DIDN'T design the vent's mechanical/operational design. They most likely issued specs to a Tier 1 supplier who designed it, and who bought the servos from a Tier 2 supplier.
I mean, I just Googled “how to make a ham sandwich” and got 208 million results, so now what?

Fair play on an outside supplier providing the part/design. Excuse me, servo. Makes sense.

I’m not sure that the advent of ABS on an obscure motorcycle from 20 years ago is comparable, but I guess I see where you’re going. Innovation can be hard and fraught with uncertainty. I’m willing to tolerate that and have a bit of faith in the people building these things. Call me crazy.

I guess this is the kind of stuff we have to bicker about when no one actually has their toys to play with. ?
 

Zoidz

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I mean, I just Googled “how to make a ham sandwich” and got 208 million results, so now what?

Fair play on an outside supplier providing the part/design. Excuse me, servo. Makes sense.

I’m not sure that the advent of ABS on an obscure motorcycle from 20 years ago is comparable, but I guess I see where you’re going. Innovation can be hard and fraught with uncertainty. I’m willing to tolerate that and have a bit of faith in the people building these things. Call me crazy.

I guess this is the kind of stuff we have to bicker about when no one actually has their toys to play with. ?
I'm willing to tolerate it, I know exactly what I'm getting into as an early adopter. I'm also realistic about the high probability failure items. I learn from history - what were high failure rate items in early Teslas - the fancy power retracting door handles. It's just a simple motor, right? What could go wrong?
 

r1t_kev

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I'm willing to tolerate it, I know exactly what I'm getting into as an early adopter. I'm also realistic about the high probability failure items. I learn from history - what were high failure rate items in early Teslas - the fancy power retracting door handles. It's just a simple motor, right? What could go wrong?
I hear you and I’m sorry 40% off your cars' HVAC systems have broken. But past experience is not a guarantee of future performance. It’s going to be ok. It’s going to be ok.
 
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crashmtb

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@Zoidz have you found any clues as to which company is supplying the HVAC stuff?
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