R1S - just one owner's thoughts at the 2 month mark

[carcrazydoc]

Took delivery of a Glacier White / Black Mountain w 22" sport bright wheels in December, approximately 4 years after putting down a deposit/reservation. Due to work and travel, did not have much opportunity to drive it the first month. I have been driving it quite a bit this 2nd month. I've been fortunate to have owned some 35 vehicles thus far. The R1S is one of my favorite.

Pros:
Comfortable ride with flat/neutral handling in corners and sweepers despite it's 7000# weight - usually you get flat/neutral handling in the curves but sacrifice ride comfort or the opposite but not both
Very spacious inside
Nice interior details and quality of materials - yes it's not bovine leather but the mix of materials and design are very appealing
Quick / torque rich nature of the vehicle
Relatively affordable price for all that one gets plus the equivalent of 60 mpg given premium fuel and electricity costs where I live

Cons:
Not as robust of a service network - yet?
Limitations of approximately 280-300 mile range - luckily have other vehicles for longer trips (Cayenne GTS and E63s wagon)
Trying to prevent my wife from permanently borrowing it

Drove it the 3 hours to the Chicago Service Center yesterday to address a few items:
1. misaligned upper rear hatch
2. misaligned black plastic trim to passenger's side front fender
3. steering wheel slightly turned to the left
4. grinding noise when changing the tilt/telescope of the steering wheel between users (I'm just over 6' and my wife is 5') - our Mercedes wagon does the same darn thing
5. gap in the interior trim on the passenger's side A pillar
6. free hub ratcheting sound from the right rear motor - my biggest concern

James, my service contact at the Rivian Service Center, is addressing the above and I am sure she will be 100% when I pick her back up. Given that it is a start up company producing an incredibly complex product, I am very impressed. I actually like my R1S much more than my friend's '23 supercharged RR plus it is $60-70k less expensive.

Now I must admit that my service loaner (an R1T) has a better ride which I suspect is a direct benefit of the longer wheelbase with comparable handling given the type of driving I do (not trail work). The cargo area however is a major plus for the R1S over the R1T given how I use the vehicle. The R1T enjoys a higher towing capability but I'm taking it as a positive in saving us some $ by avoiding the temptation to add a boat to our household. If the power tonneau cover issue was resolved and I had driven both the R1T and R1S back-to-back prior to purchase, I may have purchased the R1T instead but difficult to say.

Overall, the R1S is a great vehicle and I really look forward to getting mine back soon. I enjoy it enough that my fun car (991.2 GTS) has been off the lift only twice over the last two weeks and I have taken one of my wife's vehicles only when she has borrowed the R1S for the day. Combining the R1T or R1S with a sports car can make for a compelling two vehicle only ownership experience depending on the length of your commute.

Just my $0.02 Thanks for reading and have a great day

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[MIG]

Our R1S is my wife's daily vehicle but I've driven it as frequently as possible on the weekends. After reading all the nit-picky posts I scrutinized it on delivery for fit/finish issues and found none. It's also been free of squeaking/grinding/rattling noises. Maybe we're just lucky but it's a very nicely built vehicle. All the more impressive since we had the opportunity to tour the factory in December and take in the vastness of the place and the complexity of assembly. The one glitch we've encountered is that the charger door occasionally fails to open through the touch panel (still opens from inside). It's only happened a couple of times and if it persists we'll take it in, but it's a minor complaint.

 

[Kuro-Rivian]

Nice writeup. E63S AM Wagon is best multi functional "swiss army car" ever! And the V8...OMG it's a beautiful sound coming from a WAGON (or any other car) Be sad to see it go but I'm really really looking forward to see what they've concocted with a plug in hybrid for 2024.

 

[Mygrain]

@carcrazydoc: Isn't Normal just as close as Chicago (from Indy)? Did Rivian give you a choice of where to take your S for service?

Thank you for your thoughtful review!

 

[carcrazydoc]

@Mygrain Both locations are nearly equidistant from me. Greater availability at Chicago when I scheduled. Everyone from Rivian has been very gracious and accommodating and I am sure they would have scheduled at any service center I requested. They also concurrently scheduled my loaner R1T just in case, the flying banana as my family calls it.

 

[evguy]

Our R1S is my wife's daily vehicle but I've driven it as frequently as possible on the weekends. After reading all the nit-picky posts I scrutinized it on delivery for fit/finish issues and found none. It's also been free of squeaking/grinding/rattling noises. Maybe we're just lucky but it's a very nicely built vehicle. All the more impressive since we had the opportunity to tour the factory in December and take in the vastness of the place and the complexity of assembly. The one glitch we've encountered is that the charger door occasionally fails to open through the touch panel (still opens from inside). It's only happened a couple of times and if it persists we'll take it in, but it's a minor complaint.

Same - my wife drives the R1S daily and I'm "stuck" with the "old" Model 3, which my kids say is "boring" by comparison. Our annual mileage on the R1S will approach 20,000 at the rate we're going. Still in one piece after three months.

 

[evguy]

Thanks for the write up! Our R1S is holding up well except for a few minor things that we have an appointment for. Among other things, the front passenger side window stopped rolling all the way up. The gap is miniscule but it's enough that the wind howls at speeds over 20 mph.

 

[WakesUp]

Took delivery of a Glacier White / Black Mountain w 22" sport bright wheels in December, approximately 4 years after putting down a deposit/reservation. Due to work and travel, did not have much opportunity to drive it the first month. I have been driving it quite a bit this 2nd month. I've been fortunate to have owned some 35 vehicles thus far. The R1S is one of my favorite.

Pros:
Comfortable ride with flat/neutral handling in corners and sweepers despite it's 7000# weight - usually you get flat/neutral handling in the curves but sacrifice ride comfort or the opposite but not both
Very spacious inside
Nice interior details and quality of materials - yes it's not bovine leather but the mix of materials and design are very appealing
Quick / torque rich nature of the vehicle
Relatively affordable price for all that one gets plus the equivalent of 60 mpg given premium fuel and electricity costs where I live

Cons:
Not as robust of a service network - yet?
Limitations of approximately 280-300 mile range - luckily have other vehicles for longer trips (Cayenne GTS and E63s wagon)
Trying to prevent my wife from permanently borrowing it

Drove it the 3 hours to the Chicago Service Center yesterday to address a few items:
1. misaligned upper rear hatch
2. misaligned black plastic trim to passenger's side front fender
3. steering wheel slightly turned to the left
4. grinding noise when changing the tilt/telescope of the steering wheel between users (I'm just over 6' and my wife is 5') - our Mercedes wagon does the same darn thing
5. gap in the interior trim on the passenger's side A pillar
6. free hub ratcheting sound from the right rear motor - my biggest concern

James, my service contact at the Rivian Service Center, is addressing the above and I am sure she will be 100% when I pick her back up. Given that it is a start up company producing an incredibly complex product, I am very impressed. I actually like my R1S much more than my friend's '23 supercharged RR plus it is $60-70k less expensive.

Now I must admit that my service loaner (an R1T) has a better ride which I suspect is a direct benefit of the longer wheelbase with comparable handling given the type of driving I do (not trail work). The cargo area however is a major plus for the R1S over the R1T given how I use the vehicle. The R1T enjoys a higher towing capability but I'm taking it as a positive in saving us some $ by avoiding the temptation to add a boat to our household. If the power tonneau cover issue was resolved and I had driven both the R1T and R1S back-to-back prior to purchase, I may have purchased the R1T instead but difficult to say.

Overall, the R1S is a great vehicle and I really look forward to getting mine back soon. I enjoy it enough that my fun car (991.2 GTS) has been off the lift only twice over the last two weeks and I have taken one of my wife's vehicles only when she has borrowed the R1S for the day. Combining the R1T or R1S with a sports car can make for a compelling two vehicle only ownership experience depending on the length of your commute.

Just my $0.02 Thanks for reading and have a great day

Nice follow up! My 2 cents-you can still tow a nice boat with an R1S. Don’t let that hold you back!

 

[Rivdog]

I’ve been surprised at how many people have traditional luxury vehicles like Porches, Mercedes, etc., and now have moved to Rivian - and have been happy with the decision. The Rivian has been incredible for me, but I’m coming from Subarus and Mach E’s, not an AMG or 911.

 

[moosehead]

You should still add a boat to the fleet.

Nice write up. Congrats and enjoy.

 

[SkiDad8]

Same - my wife drives the R1S daily and I'm "stuck" with the "old" Model 3, which my kids say is "boring" by comparison. Our annual mileage on the R1S will approach 20,000 at the rate we're going. Still in one piece after three months.

Ha! Just took delivery of a Launch Green R1S. It’s my wife’s too. I’m “stuck” driving the Taycan! Thank goodness for weekends and family trips!

 

[kross]

I just went from the E63S (coupe) to the R1S. Yes, dramatically different vehicle, but vehicle dynamics can be similar. The think is that R1S seems very soft, even in the lowest ride heights. My old 2008? GL550 had air ride and it felt more sporty when it was in sport mode.

I'm an amateur racer and have a better than average understanding of vehicle dynamics.

I see no reason why, given the tech in the r1s, that it cannot behave in a similar manner to a GLS in sport mode. Generally, I'm happy with it in all-purpose and soft ride mode, but I think it should be better tuned for a sport configuration upon selection. As is, sport mode in low or lowest ride height feels like poor rebound tuning on the shocks and is just bouncy.

I'm hopeful that OTA updates could actually improve this given the tech.

 

[Uncle Stave]

I'm on week two R1S 20" all-terrain tires and just got back from first extended trip including freeway and hard, tight, mountain roads. I was amazed at how great it was to drive!! It was smooth, solid, stable, powerful, and comfortable. (And amazing stereo). Best new car for us yet and we've had a bunch of really good ones! BTW range was 310 miles including the mountains and some 90mph fwy driving.

 

[888tom888]

I've had my R1S since Sept. I'm coming out of BMW M cars and Tesla M3P which i lowered with different springs. Fit and finish wise, I'm very very impressed with my vehicle. Gaps are not present. Paint, after paint correction, ceramic coating and PPF just shines. Got a great detailer and products (Shine products out of Ventura CA) and add a bit of Dawn and super soft towels and the vehicle just glistens. The ride is what surprised me the most. It is harsh and not as tight as I had hoped. Only experience was an extended drive of an R1T. Definitely had a better experience in the T. As one person mentioned, hopefully software updates will offer improvements over time. Usually the software updates are improvements and positive. This last one was a piece of shit. Lost range and that was a huge surprise. The hope is with software updates ( a super cool feature) that things improve and not go backwards. Performance is off the hook. A vehicle that heavy should not move that fast. To that end, would love to see the top speed increased to 130 mph. Most high end BEV's with a performance package top out around that mark in my experience.
In sum, for a launch edition vehicle, Rivian hit a home run. As time goes by, they will increase traction, market share and growth if they continue to improve on the product. Diversifying too fast and forgetting what got you there will be detrimental to their long term success. Look at how Tesla is doing it with Three vehicles. Lastly, either pay Elon up the a__ to gain access to supercharger network or start building those out faster than you currently are. Its one of Rivian's biggest weaknesses.

 

[Count Orlok]

I’ve been surprised at how many people have traditional luxury vehicles like Porches, Mercedes, etc., and now have moved to Rivian - and have been happy with the decision. The Rivian has been incredible for me, but I’m coming from Subarus and Mach E’s, not an AMG or 911.

we still have our 911 and an older GLK and the Rivian is more fun & comfortable for daily driving than either. In fact the 911 is a kidney killer on city streets. You Subaru is probably a lot more comfortable.

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