Sponsored

SASSquatch

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2022
Threads
34
Messages
1,834
Reaction score
3,563
Location
Washington DC
Vehicles
BMW i3s Ford C-Max Hybrid
Occupation
Semi-Autonomous Yeti
Clubs
 
Excellent and thoughtful review. A lot of the issues you bring up are indicative of first generation/first production model issues that all new OEMs are going to go through.

We haven't had all that many new OEMs the last decade. Tesla was really the last major one and they went through very documented issues (and frankly still are when it comes to QC/build quality).

The realization that the R1 was overkill for your needs is unfortunately a lesson you were unlikely to avoid until you actually owned the vehicle.

I spent mucho $$ on Turo renting an R1T for a week to see how it fit my needs and even though I loved the truck, I wondered whether something smaller, more efficient, less capable for the things I care less about, wouldn't be a better fit.

Maybe that means R2? We'll see.

Either way, thanks for the post.
Sponsored

 

mini2nut

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 4, 2022
Threads
43
Messages
1,606
Reaction score
1,925
Location
SoCal
Vehicles
Rivian R1T, Model Y
Vampire battery drain. Even after all of the software updates I’m still losing 4 miles per day when parked.
 

RivianNowPlz

Banned
Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 2, 2021
Threads
17
Messages
184
Reaction score
325
Location
Minnesota
Vehicles
Bronco, Tesla
I'm not sure why people think a heat pump is a better option for cold weather climates.
Heat pumps struggle (take longer) to heat the cabin with lower ambient/outside temperatures.
Overall, heat pumps are more energy efficient, but if you drive in very cold climates a lot, a more traditional resistive heater would be more effective.
This is egregiously false on every conceivable metric. Coming from a S owner with resistive heater and X owner with a heat pump. Thank you.
 

Yossarian

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2020
Threads
17
Messages
413
Reaction score
399
Location
SE Pennsylvania
Vehicles
Telluride, Wee-Strom, Lynskey Cooper
Terrific write up @itselectric, and a very helpful guide for those of us still waiting for our Rivian's.

From what I've seen posted, it appears that build quality continues to improve, and I have every expectation that when I finally get my R1S, it will be more than satisfactory. I am however concerned about the range impact in cold weather that you identified. Since that's due to the design of the Rivian, it will surely also negatively impact my late 2023 R1S. While we no longer get much in the way of snow and cold weather in my part of PA, we drive to the Mountain West every winter and stay there for several weeks.

As folks who live in that part of North America well know, temperatures often drop to well below 0F and stay there for extended periods. My worry however is not so much the cold when I'm at my destination, but much more about being able to get there from southeastern PA. Driving west on I-70 or 80 takes you through parts of the country where the charging network is pretty spread out, which is challenge enough. When the drive is paired with days-long sub-zero temps and the often severe headwinds, along with the need to keep the cabin warm, efficiency will plummet. You mention seeing efficiency drop to the 1.5 - 1.7 mikWh range in 40F weather, so it's not inconceivable that we may see efficiency at 1.0 mi/kWh or even below. That will make getting across some states with very widely spaced chargers challenging, to say the least.
 

Donald Stanfield

Well-Known Member
First Name
Donald
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Threads
37
Messages
4,051
Reaction score
8,044
Location
USA
Vehicles
Rivian R1T, 2024 BMW i4 M50
Occupation
Stuff and things
Yeah some of your issues totally sound like you just want a step down car. My cousin is the same way, he is thinking of getting a R1T now but only the dual motor config that starts in the 70's. It would be a big step up for him as he is very conservative on what he spends on vehicles. He drives a Camry right now and has a beater F150 single cab additionally.

Regardless I love the excessiveness of the quad motor and will probably stick with something this level of silliness. If I wanted a change made I would request better placement of the rear camera, the ability to switch to the top rear camera at will for backing up( I believe this is coming in the development roadmap) and the side cameras activating when you have turn signals on (also I believe this is in the pipeline).

That plus the drive cam thing we just recently got would make a perfectly equipped vehicle in my use case.
 

Sponsored

OP
OP
itselectric

itselectric

Well-Known Member
First Name
Wes
Joined
Aug 27, 2021
Threads
15
Messages
567
Reaction score
1,078
Location
USA
Website
evhelphub.com
Vehicles
R1T
Yeah some of your issues totally sound like you just want a step down car. My cousin is the same way, he is thinking of getting a R1T now but only the dual motor config that starts in the 70's. It would be a big step up for him as he is very conservative on what he spends on vehicles. He drives a Camry right now and has a beater F150 single cab additionally.

Regardless I love the excessiveness of the quad motor and will probably stick with something this level of silliness. If I wanted a change made I would request better placement of the rear camera, the ability to switch to the top rear camera at will for backing up( I believe this is coming in the development roadmap) and the side cameras activating when you have turn signals on (also I believe this is in the pipeline).

That plus the drive cam thing we just recently got would make a perfectly equipped vehicle in my use case.
I agree with your suggestions. The cameras make it much easier to drive and I missed the turn signal camera from my Tesla when I switched. Like you said, I believe those are coming soon.

The only thing that stinks is that I am paying a higher MSRP for a "lesser" vehicle. But I don't really see it that way. I did sell my R1T for more than total cost and got the tax credit. This along with the second tax credit for the new truck should cut the price ~$15 - 20k which does make it more logical.

By the time I receive the truck, I am guessing (or hoping) that some of the gen 1 issues have been straightened out a bit. It sounds like some things have been addressed already.
 

MountainBikeDude

Well-Known Member
First Name
Adam
Joined
Jun 20, 2019
Threads
40
Messages
1,878
Reaction score
3,845
Location
Vancouver
Vehicles
2023 El Cap Quad Motor R1T (Selling the Xterra)
Clubs
 
@Donald Stanfield @itselectric
If you look through all the camera angles, even the drive cam, you realize the front rear facing fender cams aren't being used yet, I suspect those will be the turn signal ones once implemented.
 

Donald Stanfield

Well-Known Member
First Name
Donald
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Threads
37
Messages
4,051
Reaction score
8,044
Location
USA
Vehicles
Rivian R1T, 2024 BMW i4 M50
Occupation
Stuff and things
@Donald Stanfield @itselectric
If you look through all the camera angles, even the drive cam, you realize the front rear facing fender cams aren't being used yet, I suspect those will be the turn signal ones once implemented.
I agree. I also think the angle of those cameras and the placement of them make for a really nice side/blind spot view. I’m looking forward to that as the sensor that shows cars in your blind spot isn’t as good as I’d like.
 

SDH

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2022
Threads
8
Messages
514
Reaction score
916
Location
CA
Vehicles
R1T LE; Jeep Rubicon
Here's what I'd like to see on future R1's and R2's:

- IMO the R1 does not 'need' 4 motors. For a big heavy truck, you don't 'need' the acceleration of a 911 Turbo. I would advise a future buyer to save the $ (and Rivian to save on complexity) and just stick with 2 decent motors that don't make so much noise.

- Air suspension ... for a lower price, I'd take a set of decent shocks and coils. Less to go wrong too.

- Charge port at the REAR (try driving a truck in forwards to an EA charger in a slot 90 degrees with cars parked either side)

- Chill mode ... like Tesla does to reduce the instant torque and jerky driving. It'll also save a little on battery usage. I just don't need all 835bhp.

- Sort out the wireless phone charging pad while you're at it.

All in, less is more.
 

Donald Stanfield

Well-Known Member
First Name
Donald
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Threads
37
Messages
4,051
Reaction score
8,044
Location
USA
Vehicles
Rivian R1T, 2024 BMW i4 M50
Occupation
Stuff and things
Here's what I'd like to see on future R1's and R2's:

- IMO the R1 does not 'need' 4 motors. For a big heavy truck, you don't 'need' the acceleration of a 911 Turbo. I would advise a future buyer to save the $ (and Rivian to save on complexity) and just stick with 2 decent motors that don't make so much noise.

- Air suspension ... for a lower price, I'd take a set of decent shocks and coils. Less to go wrong too.

- Charge port at the REAR (try driving a truck in forwards to an EA charger in a slot 90 degrees with cars parked either side)

- Chill mode ... like Tesla does to reduce the instant torque and jerky driving. It'll also save a little on battery usage. I just don't need all 835bhp.

- Sort out the wireless phone charging pad while you're at it.

All in, less is more.
I guess this just proves different strokes for different folks. I bought the truck mainly because it is stupid fast. That’s also why I will most likely get another one when my trade in time is here. Maybe by then they will have an even faster pro street version.

I really wanted a sports car, but I will not have an extra car that just sits or a beater truck that I hate to drive every time I need to do truck things which is a few times a week. So the Rivian is a great compromise for me personally.
 

Sponsored

RexRemus

Well-Known Member
First Name
Chuck
Joined
Sep 27, 2021
Threads
30
Messages
609
Reaction score
1,088
Location
Chicago, IL
Vehicles
2023 R1S
Clubs
 
I guess this just proves different strokes for different folks. I bought the truck mainly because it is stupid fast. That’s also why I will most likely get another one when my trade in time is here. Maybe by then they will have an even faster pro street version.

I really wanted a sports car, but I will not have an extra car that just sits or a beater truck that I hate to drive every time I need to do truck things which is a few times a week. So the Rivian is a great compromise for me personally.
I feel like that's the strength of the R1 (and probably R2) lines - that's literally the "killer feature" of Rivians - they made a vehicle that isn't the "best" at anything, but it's about 75-85% good at just about "everything" - which is actually really hard to achieve.

I think that's the allure. you get basically all the capabilities of any of the best factory off-roaders you can buy today, you get basically all the utility of any other Truck/SUV you can buy, and you don't have to sacrifice the fun and enjoyment of sports car level performance to get any of it. Sure, there are better performers in all of those categories, but outside of a few very niche use cases, it's not by much. And you'd almost certainly pay as much or more to target the "best" in any one of those categories. R1s give you all of that.

Which isn't to say Rivian doesn't need to get better. They need to get better in just about.. well... everything haha. But mostly because with an electric drivetrain, none of this capability is out of reach for any other auto maker. Rivian just got there first. They need to keep innovating and increasing that 75-85% to 80-90% and so on while improving range, quality, service, and ramping production. That's also VERY hard. but so far so good - despite what the stock price seems to indicate. If Tesla was doing half as well 2 years into their production ramp as Rivian is... yeah...
 

Donald Stanfield

Well-Known Member
First Name
Donald
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Threads
37
Messages
4,051
Reaction score
8,044
Location
USA
Vehicles
Rivian R1T, 2024 BMW i4 M50
Occupation
Stuff and things
I feel like that's the strength of the R1 (and probably R2) lines - that's literally the "killer feature" of Rivians - they made a vehicle that isn't the "best" at anything, but it's about 75-85% good at just about "everything" - which is actually really hard to achieve.

I think that's the allure. you get basically all the capabilities of any of the best factory off-roaders you can buy today, you get basically all the utility of any other Truck/SUV you can buy, and you don't have to sacrifice the fun and enjoyment of sports car level performance to get any of it. Sure, there are better performers in all of those categories, but outside of a few very niche use cases, it's not by much. And you'd almost certainly pay as much or more to target the "best" in any one of those categories. R1s give you all of that.

Which isn't to say Rivian doesn't need to get better. They need to get better in just about.. well... everything haha. But mostly because with an electric drivetrain, none of this capability is out of reach for any other auto maker. Rivian just got there first. They need to keep innovating and increasing that 75-85% to 80-90% and so on while improving range, quality, service, and ramping production. That's also VERY hard. but so far so good - despite what the stock price seems to indicate. If Tesla was doing half as well 2 years into their production ramp as Rivian is... yeah...
This is a great post that really sums up my feelings on it. There are better handling and faster vehicles, but they don’t tow anything and don’t have a bed For hauling. There are higher towing capacity vehicles and vehicles with longer towing range but they are all conveyance level fast which means it will get you where you’re going but if you want a car that’s quick it ain’t it.

I’m not much of an off road guy so I can’t testify there. The most off roading I’ve done in my Rivian is driving on the grass when the house keeper parks on my lower level driveway and I have to go somewhere. I would personally be okay with removing lots of the off road capability but then as you said it loses some of that Jack of all trades appeal.

There is no other vehicle on the market that does so many different things to the level that Rivian does. I’ve never owned a vehicle that was as ready to go in as many different situations as this one is.
 

DaveA

Well-Known Member
First Name
David
Joined
Nov 17, 2020
Threads
12
Messages
1,897
Reaction score
3,348
Location
Texas
Vehicles
Rivian R1T
- Air suspension ... for a lower price, I'd take a set of decent shocks and coils. Less to go wrong too.



Agreed...the suspension is garbage at slow speeds....highway seems fine....but it is noise and clunky around town.
 

SASSquatch

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2022
Threads
34
Messages
1,834
Reaction score
3,563
Location
Washington DC
Vehicles
BMW i3s Ford C-Max Hybrid
Occupation
Semi-Autonomous Yeti
Clubs
 

PS 612

Member
First Name
Paul
Joined
Aug 29, 2022
Threads
1
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Location
55422
Vehicles
R1T
I agree with the statement above about the suspension at slow speeds. That is my only real complaint. On the highway or going faster than 35 mph the suspension is top notch. Below 35 MPH on rough roads the suspension is rough and loud. There are at least a few posts on this subject and I am hoping Rivian develops a software update or mechanical fix to address the issue. Otherwise I have no complaints and I love my R1T. Wait... my 21'' tires are crazy expensive to replace and the wireless charging pad sticks. I can live with those shortcomings!
Sponsored

 
 




Top