R1T 12v batteries dead

[DuoRivians]

I mean, worst case you could buy the set of Lithium batteries from ohmmu, and if they did go down, would be the perfect time to do the 30 minute swap

I heard it is not recommended to get these batteries. It can throw a lot of system faults

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[DaveA]

The warranty states the 12v batteries are covered for 3 yr, 36k miles....this courtesy replacement is horsesheet.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

I heard it is not recommended to get these batteries. It can throw a lot of system faults

Anything to back that up? In the installation video there is a specific process to doing the swap. That throws errors after being completed, which is resolved by a soft reboot. Then should be trouble free from there.

 

[emoore]

Warranty claims aside, given this is a known issue - would it be possible to just go out and buy a pair of replacement batteries yourself and swap them out at home? I'd rather proactively replace a known bad part than wait for it to fail.

Am thinking a pair of Battle Born batteries would make a solid investment (assuming they make the correct group size), or would doing this yourself void some kind of warranty?

sounds like it might be more of a software issue and not the actual batteries. If so then putting in new batteries probably won't help.

 

[DuoRivians]

Anything to back that up? In the installation video there is a specific process to doing the swap. That throws errors after being completed, which is resolved by a soft reboot. Then should be trouble free from there.

A lot of people who had this battery for Teslas had to swap out to oem.

 

[Kuro-Rivian]

Mobile service? Either way, do me a favor and ask the service people if there's a specific process to get the vehicle going again after the battery replacement, and what might go wrong that might require additional replacements or work.

Yeah, mobile. Our mobile Rivian tech is really good. 2nd EV company and was a master Mercedes Tech for a long time. When I owned my shop we'd threaten people for 2x shop rate if they wanted to watch! But I'll be looking over his shoulder the whole time...while trying not to be a nuisance.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Has it been confirmed it's the batteries themselves and not software? If not, then won't the same happen with replacement batteries?

In other EVs, when the batteries start going bad you get really wonky behavior that doesn't completely go away until the batteries are replaced. Jumping them will get you going but once it's sat again for a bit, you will get other wonky things happening again. Electronics really don't like running with less voltage than they expect or were designed for.

Stuff like the HV contactors usually have a lower design limit voltage that's actually quite a bit higher than when other electronic things start to fail. (Speculation follows) A software failsafe might prevent just topping off/recharging the 12V system from even being able to activate the contactors afterwards because there could be a more serious problem with them or with another system. I know specifically in the Chevy Bolt there can be codes thrown that can only be reset by the dealer. If those codes are thrown it prevents the vehicle from re-activating the HV battery. I know this because I inadvertently triggered one of them one day and it was a brick in my garage until I acquired the dealer tools and proper subscription to GM's service to be able to reset them.

 

[Brewbud]

When I do take delivery, I'm getting these first day. I also confirmed with the sales rep that the Rivian batteries have bluetooth integration so you can view battery status etc through their app. That alone makes it worthwhile from a peace of mind standpoint. One cool thing is that you could technically top up the batteries if they aren't charging using Rivian's onboard power and a trickle charger.

https://www.ohmmu.com/product-page/12v-lithium-battery-2-pack-for-rivian-r1t-r1s

I have been looking at those. The reviews are very mixed though for the Tesla batteries. A lot of that has to do with the software changes made by Tesla. But I expect there are some software changes coming from Rivian soon and I am worried about that causes issues with the battery swap. Some owners have reported very poor customer service. Others have reported good customer service but limited contact info. A very mixed bag.

There are three big points in favor for me though.
1) the batteries can discharge lower than SLA batteries. I do use the 115V plugs a lot.

2) the batteries have a Bluetooth monitor so I can at least monitor the 12V system, unlike with Rivian. Let's see a 12V battery level indicator Rivian!

3) the batteries have a low voltage protection cutoff. In theory, attaching a charger to the rear leads on the car should be able to bring the batteries back without permanent damage. Unlike the SLA batteries which seldom come back from sever discharge and if they do they typically do not last long afterward. Now will charging this allow an R1 to unbrick itself without a SC trip??

 

[SANZC02]

When I do take delivery, I'm getting these first day. I also confirmed with the sales rep that the Rivian batteries have bluetooth integration so you can view battery status etc through their app. That alone makes it worthwhile from a peace of mind standpoint. One cool thing is that you could technically top up the batteries if they aren't charging using Rivian's onboard power and a trickle charger.

https://www.ohmmu.com/product-page/12v-lithium-battery-2-pack-for-rivian-r1t-r1s

Curious if you asked them if the BMS heats up the batteries in colder temperatures?

LFP batteries should not be charged when temps are below 0 c (32 F). I have heard some batteries have heaters that will allow charging to -10 c or -20 c (14 f or-4 f). Just curious if these have that or what the temp ranges are.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

Curious if you asked them if the BMS heats up the batteries in colder temperatures?

LFP batteries should not be charged when temps are below 0 c (32 F). I have heard some batteries have heaters that will allow charging to -10 c or -20 c (14 f or-4 f). Just curious if these have that or what the temp ranges are.

Per their website
• Battery Management System - Prevents Damage to Battery in Extreme Situations and Balances the Battery Cells for a Longer Service Life

The main reason I'm drawn to these is it's ability to protect itself from excessive draining, unlike the Lead Acid batteries currently installed. The bonus is that they can be monitored through an app.

I opted for an AGM Optima battery as a replacement for my standard Lead Acid one in my current vehicle. So far so good, but I also picked up a jump kit from Canadian Tire in case of emergency. So far it's been used to jump a Mercedes, and 2 fork lifts, and 1 telehandler. But it seems the jump kit is unlikely to bring the rivian back to life from what I've read elsewhere.

 

[ctpolo1]

They replaced both batteries for me and those died within 48 hours. The mobile tech also tried to jump them but they were dead as a door nail. Nothing worked. I don't pretend know anything about cars and batteries but I find it hard to believe that this isn't avoidable. I mean the main batteries are massive. Why cant those top up the 12v's?

The mobile tech told me the crevice center and engineers were

sounds like it might be more of a software issue and not the actual batteries. If so then putting in new batteries probably won't help.

 

[Kuro-Rivian]

Mobile service? Either way, do me a favor and ask the service people if there's a specific process to get the vehicle going again after the battery replacement, and what might go wrong that might require additional replacements or work.

So central service asked me to plug in the truck while I await service. They said I could manually release the hood and the charge port door. Told them they were right about 1/2 of that. You can open the hood manually and release a charge plug...but you cannoot open the charge port door manually. Anyway, I thought I'd open the hood and check the batteries . They were at 6 volts (see pic). I did very briefly apply charge to see what would happen and everything woke up almost instantly. But I don't wanna f$%k with it anymore and/or f#%k something-up...I'll just let them fix it. But it appears the answer to your question is most likely...replace the battery and the truck "fires" right up.

 

[Dark-Fx]

So central service asked me to plug in the truck while I await service. They said I could manually release the hood and the charge port door. Told them they were right about 1/2 of that. You can open the hood manually and release a charge plug...but you cannoot open the charge port door manually. Anyway, I thought I'd open the hood and check the batteries . They were at 6 volts (see pic). I did very briefly apply charge to see what would happen and everything woke up almost instantly. But I don't wanna f$%k with it anymore and/or f#%k something-up...I'll just let them fix it. But it appears the answer to your question is most likely...replace the battery and the truck "fires" right up.

I highly doubt the charger will be able to activate with the system voltage that low. But that's potentially something else to try during a jump.

 

[Kuro-Rivian]

I highly doubt the charger will be able to activate with the system voltage that low. But that's potentially something else to try during a jump.

It's a pretty nice Schumacher charger and like I said I did use the charger briefly at 30amps to see what would happen. Everything turned on instantly...screens, headlights, charge door operable. Also note that I did try to measure the voltage from the jump wires in the hitch and it couldn't measure anything. Such a weird thing going on with these batteries....GOTTA be a software thing. But it's way out of my depth.

 

[Dark-Fx]

It's a pretty nice Schmacher charger and like I said I did use the charger briefly to see what would happen. Everything turned on instantly...screens, headlights, charge door operable. Also note that I did try to measure the voltage from the jump wires in the hitch and it couldn't measure anything. Such a weird thing going on with these batteries....GOTTA be a software thing. But it's way out of my depth.

ah, yeah I meant the HV battery charger. Jump starter/charger should be able to get everything going but whether or not the DC-DC converter onboard will kick on is the important thing to happen. If it thinks there's an issue with the HV battery it might not.

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