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R1T Service Experience UPDATE 11-18-22

itselectric

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Thoughts on service so far:
  • The bad: it took a month to get in (service center is 10 miles away just as an fyi).

  • Every ticket I put in the app prompted a call and discussion from Rivian's central service team. I really appreciated this.

  • WOW, what a difference compared to Tesla. They actually took the time while I was there to go through each and every issue. The service tech spent 30 minutes on a test drive with me going through each issue.

  • Unlike my Tesla experience where they declined to fix anything on my brand new Model S, every item I mentioned they had at least some resolution or investigation they said they could do. I know they can't fix the suspension knocking, but he said he would go through the components and make sure everything is at least fitting together in the best way it can and make sure nothing is damaged.

  • They gave me a loaner (as mentioned above) which was completely clean and damage free. Tesla once gave me a loaner that was 6 years old and was in terrible condition (smelled awful too) and very dirty.

Context:
  • my VIN is 119XX, 21 inch wheels (~1k miles on odometer)

  • loaner is 124XX, 20inch road wheels (looks great btw)

  • This is the second R1T I have driven for more than 20 minutes and had some immediate thoughts on issues/how things compare to my truck with issues.

  • I'll post when I get my R1T back to tell you what the issues are and what was resolved.

Loaner Issues vs my R1T:
  1. The amount of vibrations entering the cabin is much lower than on my truck, even with much wider tires.

  2. It pulls to the right, but nowhere near as bad as mine does.

  3. Steering wheel shakes, but as bad as mine (again, with wider tires).

  4. It makes all of the knocking/ticking/squeaking noises too (500 miles on odometer).

  5. The air suspension doesn't make the squeaky air release sound when going over big bumps (I thought this was normal - it isn't?!)

  6. It has even more rattles (by a lot) versus my truck.

  7. Engine sounds whine much more and are louder and more consistent.

  8. It does handle a lot better overall.

  9. Road noise is higher, but by less than I thought.

  • My service guy said the shaky wheel is a known issue they are trying to fix with software and/or hardware adjustments.

  • They are trying to implement software to remove drivetrain lashing, which he called out on our test drive before I said anything, they are working on a fix for the suspension noises but he made it pretty clear outside of inspecting components and lubricating them, nothing they can do about it until a design change occurs.

Overall quite pleased with my experience - but my satisfaction will ultimately come down to whether they truly put the elbow grease in to fix some of the less obvious problems or if they give me the "within spec" excuse. TBD on this but I will follow up.


***UPDATE 11/18/22: Got the R1T back, my thoughts:

  • First and foremost, it took about a week to get everything done, but major credit to the Rivian team for a) attempting to work on everything requested and b) not giving me any "within spec" BS. Huge kudos.

  • Here are the initial issues and the solutions:
    • Wind noise coming from warped applique
      • Solution: Applique was replaced entirely, things on the roof fit correctly and wind noise was greatly reduced (FIXED)
    • Front right suspension sag
      • Solution: ride height sensor was not correctly calibrated. Calibrated sensor (FIXED)
    • Rattling sound in passenger door area
      • Solution: Door seal not properly placed causing it to be constantly pressed. Removed, replaced (FIXED)
    • Charge port door rubbing paint off body
      • Solution: charge port door misaligned. Door was realigned, paint was corrected (FIXED)
    • Underbody panel not properly set
      • Solution: remove and replace, set properly (FIXED)
    • Front hood buffeting
      • Solution: more sealant added between hood layers (Much improved, not totally gone, but happy. Unrelated -he hood latch design is terrible and there needs to be two latches because the wind gets under the hood and forces it upward while driving.)
    • Warped dashboard vinyl
      • Solution: remove and replace (FIXED)
    • Suspension tock/knock
      • Solution: re-lube/grease (NOT FIXED)
    • Shaking steering wheel at highway speeds (70-80mph)
      • Solution: Known issue, no fix currently (NOT FIXED)
    • Vehicle pulls to the right
      • Solution: alignment, much better but still there (NOT FIXED)
    • Various panel gaps
      • Solution: adjustment, seem to all be much better or fixed (FIXED)

I am extremely happy with the treatment and respect by the service center. They called me every day to let me know an update on where things stood and were friendly and open about any concerns that I had. I feel like they put in a truly honest effort to fix the issues above. 10/10 from this regard.

I am disappointed, however, that a few of the things I really dislike about the vehicle the most (shaking steering wheel, suspension knock, pulling to the right) can't be addressed. Rivian really needs to get on it about communication and fixes for these issues, as they do ruin the driving experience quite a bit.

However, I'll give my service team an A+ as they did what they could and I definitely appreciate that.
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jjswan33

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Kudos on getting in within 30 days I was told a month ago that 2022 wasn't possible out here.

Regarding the wheel balance issue, this seems silly. I had this issue with my spare when I rotated it on but a local shop fixed it. My two new front tires (installed by discount tire) brought the shake back. I took them to the local shop again to have them balanced, they were both out of balance so hoping it's fixed. Will know more today. The old school tire balance machine seems to be the ticket for some reason.
 
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itselectric

itselectric

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Kudos on getting in within 30 days I was told a month ago that 2022 wasn't possible out here.

Regarding the wheel balance issue, this seems silly. I had this issue with my spare when I rotated it on but a local shop fixed it. My two new front tires (installed by discount tire) brought the shake back. I took them to the local shop again to have them balanced, they were both out of balance so hoping it's fixed. Will know more today. The old school tire balance machine seems to be the ticket for some reason.
I think it helped that A) my service center is new, they weren't delivering a ton of vehicles to my area before and that B) I live in Texas, where there are three service centers now in all major metro areas (Austin, Dallas, Houston).
 

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How do they expect to fix the shaky steering wheel with a software update? What do they think the cause of that is? They aren't doing remote wheel balancing now are they?
 
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itselectric

itselectric

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How do they expect to fix the shaky steering wheel with a software update? What do they think the cause of that is? They aren't doing remote wheel balancing now are they?
Stiffening the response/electric steering is what I took out of it. Don't quote me on that, it was 8am with little coffee. He said that the last update already included some code to help. Anecdotally - I felt that mine was better this morning. But it needs more weight no doubt about it.
 

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godfodder0901

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How do they expect to fix the shaky steering wheel with a software update? What do they think the cause of that is? They aren't doing remote wheel balancing now are they?
I've thought about this for a little while, and I have a theory. The steering, I believe, is all drive by wire. In order to provide better steering feel, they would need to provide some electric feedback (think Force Feedback controllers from back in the day). When hands are off the steering wheel, the 'shake' may just be undamped artificial feedback that may be exacerbated by small alignment differences (hence some trucks exhibit worse 'shaking' than others).

Just a theory.
 

COdogman

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I've thought about this for a little while, and I have a theory. The steering, I believe, is all drive by wire. In order to provide better steering feel, they would need to provide some electric feedback (think Force Feedback controllers from back in the day). When hands are off the steering wheel, the 'shake' may just be undamped artificial feedback that may be exacerbated by small alignment differences (hence some trucks exhibit worse 'shaking' than others).

Just a theory.
That actually makes a lot of sense. I forget that basically every new vehicle has electric steering now. The few that can update via software could definitely adjust all of that OTA. Very interesting.
 

mini2nut

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It's great to hear that the company is being proactive and trying to engineer fixes. Rivian wants a customer for life and are apparently bending over backwards for most owners.

All of these are not a surprise given the R series is their 1st vehicle to market.
 

DaveA

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I've thought about this for a little while, and I have a theory. The steering, I believe, is all drive by wire. In order to provide better steering feel, they would need to provide some electric feedback (think Force Feedback controllers from back in the day). When hands are off the steering wheel, the 'shake' may just be undamped artificial feedback that may be exacerbated by small alignment differences (hence some trucks exhibit worse 'shaking' than others).

Just a theory.
Drive by wire means that there is no physical connection to the steering linkage, right, and instead some servos? I'm pretty sure there is a steering shaft on this truck. Way too much feedback to be drive by wire. Electric steering for sure, though.
 

godfodder0901

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Drive by wire means that there is no physical connection to the steering linkage, right, and instead some servos? I'm pretty sure there is a steering shaft on this truck. Way too much feedback to be drive by wire. Electric steering for sure, though.
Admittedly, I don't know exactly how the linkage works in the Rivian, but there would likely still be a steering shaft connected to the steering wheel.

Your question prompted a Bing (yeah, I know...) search which yielded the following from Bosch...
Steer-by-Wire (bosch-mobility-solutions.com)
The steering wheel actuator generates the steering feel and passes the driver's steering signal "by-wire" quickly and precisely to the steering rack actuator, which steers the wheels, depending on the driving speed and conditions.
 

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DaveA

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coshesey

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I do hope you get the steering shake and drift solved but (you knew there had to be a butt sandwich) My R1T does not exhibit either of those issues at all. I have no wheel shake at any MPH and the truck tracks straight as an arrow (aside from massive road crowning).

The challenge with a software fix is, how would that affect a vehicle that does not have the issues that you have? I would hate for them to implement a "fix" that negatively affects other vehicles without the issue.

PK
 
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itselectric

itselectric

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I do hope you get the steering shake and drift solved but (you knew there had to be a butt sandwich) My R1T does not exhibit either of those issues at all. I have no wheel shake at any MPH and the truck tracks straight as an arrow (aside from massive road crowning).

The challenge with a software fix is, how would that affect a vehicle that does not have the issues that you have? I would hate for them to implement a "fix" that negatively affects other vehicles without the issue.

PK
Interesting. They wrote specifically in my notes that the steering shake was a known issue for the 21 inch wheels. Your truck was delivered before mine so if they had a fix that wouldn't be the case. Very strange.
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