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Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth

Gator42

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We get it- the charging network isn't sufficient. We get it...

...as I always suggest, if you're insistent on an EV without compromise or inconvenience, maybe move closer to where you want to be?
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Max

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Against my best judgment, I clicked and moved the slider to the middle of the video just to get a feel for what they are talking about. I ended up on the slide bellow as the evidence why buying an R1T that does not have access to Tesla network is a mistake.

  • Even if their point that everyone should buy Tesla until other networks are better was true, wouldnā€˜t that work against other networks getting better?
  • They zoom out the Tesla map to get more dots. sneaky little dudes.
  • They are comparing Tesla network to non-Tesla network when they are talking but they are showing only electrify America on the slide.
  • right after talking about R1T, they are showing Cybertruck while saying ā€œTesla has surpassed themā€. what?

Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth 1655768207481


I am not sure if I am doing this right but what plugshare is showing me is not that bad.

Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth 1655768740968


I know I probably should watch the whole thing to make this judgement but these dudes seem to have an agenda and as far as I am concerned have no credibility.

All that said, I do admit a more efficient, faster charging vehicle would probably be a better traveling machine than R1T even if it is not a Tesla and Rivian still has work to do to make owning R1 a better experience but with all itā€™s flaws, most owners seem to believe it is worth the shortcomings.
 
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dduffey

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Love em or hate them, they are spot on regarding the Tesla and non-Tesla fast charging networks and experience (speaking from experience).

I've been asked several times if I recommend the Rivian and the first question I ask back is "Will you ever need to charge on a road trip or go more than 250 miles round trip?".

If they don't, then yeah, if they do then the answer is usually "no".
 

Max

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I wonder if Rivian is going to get into this for remote locations (50 sec video):

 
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mambi

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As a Model 3 2018 (Nissan Leaf 2016 before that) owner waiting for a R1S I'm happy mine should not arrive until late 2023 or 2024.

As most people I do +95% of my charging at home. However we do 2 to 3 10-16hrs road trips a year. We also do weekend camping trips 2hrs away. The only reason we do that with confidence, even with a roof box or towing a small utility trailer with toys, is because of the super reliable supercharger network.

I'm buying the R1S to do even more adventure road trips. Lack of charging network infrastructure will make me reconsider any non-Tesla vehicle. Yes, this is not *just* a Rivian problem.

These guys are awful and are clearly chasing views with clickbaits. There is a point to be made here though. My hope is Rivian might have decided to wait for the funds that are coming to help improve charging infrastructure. If that's the case I applaud them. Take advantage of any incentive you can like Tesla and the oil industry do.
 

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DuckTruck

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It was a month ago today that my Launch Green R1T charged just fine at that smallish (and full, on a Friday afternoon) Bend station. If that thing were to be out of commission, travel in or through Central Oregon would be dicey. Like many of you, I see the current fabric of DCFC charging as rather threadbare when it comes to CCS, especially in rural areas.

It's because of those holes in the network that I've picked up various adapters, including the TeslaTap Mini-80, the TT-30 to 14-50R, and, just five minutes ago, a 14-30P to 14-50R unit. I think of these options akin to a sewing kit for when I suddenly find a rip or hole in my shirt. Or worse yet, in the seat of my pants.

I don't want to find myself exposed at the wrong place or time. I have nightmares about that kind of
stuff! šŸ„µ
So, having just returned home, this was waiting on my front porch. I ordered it from Amazon after 8:00 this morning, and true to their messaging, it was here the same day.

I love Amazon Prime!

(Nice touch that the two ends are rotated 180ā° to allow them to hang more naturally from the 14-30P outlet.)
Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth 20220620_191444
Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth 20220620_191453

Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth 20220620_192306
 

HA-Opec

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Seems like a Rivian is not for you if you struggle with anything non-Tesla and need to share your insecurity on a message board. The Electrify America network will not get any better anytime soon, and will continue to struggle as more and more CCS vehicles leverage the network. Looks like a Cybertruck is more your speed. You should probably cancel your reservation since you are easily frustrated with anything non-dramatic when it comes to charging.

You should listen to your wife and cancel your reservation.
He just wants to move up the line :)

But, if the CT has 500+milles of range, access to the "effortless" Tesla SC network, but looks wierd as sh!t, I won't care.. I'll sell you my R1T. I just need a capable truck.
 

No.92

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"Don't reset while you're driving.... But we're on a trip?" Would you seriously risk crashing by rebooting the car/ECUs while it's moving?
 

No.92

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Its not a Rivian problem per se, but itā€™s a non-Tesla problem. Tesla knew early on that A reliable, high-speed charger network would help sell the cars as something that would get people to feel comfortable traveling long distance in their EVs. The other manufacturers just waited for Tesla to fail and made half-hearted efforts to add a few chargers, while outsourcing the chargers to companies that did not have a stake in the game, resulting in the fragmented charging network we have today. Rivian is at least working on their own RAN network, but thats only level 2. There needs to less fragmentation and better service from the networks loke EA.
its not Rivians fault but they need to try and work with the networks to improve reliability, speed and availability of high-speed chargers if they want to get more people to take the plunge and buy their EVs
Sure, but how many years has Tesla had cars on the road? How many Superchargers were out there 8 months after 1st production car went out the door?
 

Cavalryscout18

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I dont quite understand the hate. These guys own their R1T and really like it. The issue is with the charging network and its disjointedness. Tesla superchargers work something like 97% of the time. EA and other chargers work consistently in the 70ā€™s % of the time. And, it takes lots of hunting and pecking to figure out where they are, and how fast they charge. How is it pIts a PIA. And frankly, if youā€™re like me whooes 4-6 hour drives in your EV regularly, thats a big deal.

my goal is to show people (and myself) that EV travel can be done with ease without the need for an ICE. The charger networks have to step up and make the chargers that are out there easy to find, readily available and ultra reliable JUST LIKE GAS STATIONS otherwise people will go back to their ICE cars as soon as gas prices go down.
Tesla has it nailed in terms of reliability, ubiquity, speed and Teslas nav route you through superchargers without any input from the user. Rivian needs to make it this easy!
I just donā€™t like the clickbate aspect of it; it degrades their channel. They could present the same content without naming it ā€œWhat went wrong - Rivian not cutting itā€ in big bold red letters across their thumbnail.
 

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Dark-Fx

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This. So many people talk about "the road trip scenario" when in reality it is a once a year type of thing. Certainly there are people who's daily usage requires frequent non home charging, but those are the exception not the rule.

I tell folks having a charger at home means I never wake up in a hurry to get out the door because I am running late and then realize I am running even later because I am low on gas.
The only time I've been stranded during my last 4+ years of EV ownership was when I took a trip in my Camaro in 2019 because I didn't trust that I'd be able to manage taking my Bolt EV into da UP. I left to come home late, and as I'm crossing the UP I needed to stop for gas. Well they shut the gas pumps off at night time because there is apparently a law that they have to have someone physically present to watch them.

Ended up driving to the next one in hopes that they might still be open. Nope, they were closed too. Now my tank was low enough I couldn't chance driving farther. Slept in my car overnight.

The irony of the whole situation is where I was stranded had an open Tesla Destination charger that would have worked fine to charge my Bolt.
 

ERguy

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I don't hold Rivian accountable for the inconsistent and unreliable EA chargers, but I do think some people are letting them off the hook too easily for not following through with the RAN network.

How many DCFCs has Rivian built so far? They have been promising these chargers for quite a while. When initially announced they claimed some would be up and running in 2021.

We are well past their own target date, and are any of them up and running now?

This is another example of Rivian setting expectations they cannot meet.

At this point, any date they announce for any feature or vehicle is not believable.

Rivian R1T R1S Rivian Not Cutting It - In Depth broken-promises-broken
 
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sacramentoelectric

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Against my best judgment, I clicked and moved the slider to the middle of the video just to get a feel for what they are talking about. I ended up on the slide bellow as the evidence why buying an R1T that does not have access to Tesla network is a mistake.

  • Even if their point that everyone should buy Tesla until other networks are better was true, wouldnā€˜t that work against other networks getting better?
  • They zoom out the Tesla map to get more dots. sneaky little dudes.
  • They are comparing Tesla network to non-Tesla network when they are talking but they are showing only electrify America on the slide.
  • right after talking about R1T, they are showing Cybertruck while saying ā€œTesla has surpassed themā€. what?

1655768207481.png


I am not sure if I am doing this right but what plugshare is showing me is not that bad.

1655768740968.png


I know I probably should watch the whole thing to make this judgement but these dudes seem to have an agenda and as far as I am concerned have no credibility.

All that said, I do admit a more efficient, faster charging vehicle would probably be a better traveling machine than R1T even if it is not a Tesla and Rivian still has work to do to make owning R1 a better experience but with all itā€™s flaws, most owners seem to believe it is worth the shortcomings.
Your Plugshare map is showing level 2 chargers which deliver around 6.2 to 7.6KW vs the >150kW you would get at a Supercharger or Level 3 / DCFC fast charger as shown in Youtube video. If you filter by CCS/SAE with Plugshare, you will get a more accurate picture of how many DC Fast chargers are available in the area. There are few if any areas in the country where there are as many DC Fast chargers as there are Tesla Superchargers. Furthermore, as the endless number of customer testimonials will illustrate, third party fast charging networks just don't have the reliability or convenience of Tesla chargers. Hopefully Rivian will start installing the DC Fast chargers they've promised but right now they're vaporware. I don't believe a single one is online despite Rivian saying they would be available starting in 2021. I guess they'll be ready s00n.
 

NY_Rob

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Seems like a Rivian is not for you if you struggle with anything non-Tesla and need to share your insecurity on a message board. The Electrify America network will not get any better anytime soon, and will continue to struggle as more and more CCS vehicles leverage the network. Looks like a Cybertruck is more your speed. You should probably cancel your reservation since you are easily frustrated with anything non-dramatic when it comes to charging.

You should listen to your wife and cancel your reservation.
lol... sad fact is, there were two EVSE stations at the Mystic Aquarium... so they could have at least served four cars, but both had plastic bags over them and were out of service (call the aquarium to confirm that if you'd like).

Tesla had 13 stations, one was occupied, 12 stall were opened and working.

So, yes, you are right... I prefer the Tesla option where you actually have working charge stations available for use vs. a plastic bag over EVSE stations.
 

Denver_Paulie

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lol... sad fact is, there were two EVSE stations at the Mystic Aquarium... so they could have at least served four cars, but both had plastic bags over them and were out of service (call the aquarium to confirm that if you'd like).

Tesla had 13 stations, one was occupied, 12 stall were opened and working.

So, yes, you are right... I prefer the Tesla option where you actually have working charge stations available for use vs. a plastic bag over EVSE stations.

It is all good, Rob.

Remember, happy wife, happy life. If she is has expressed doubts about the CCS charging network, you should listen to her. If you have a Rivian reservation, I would cancel since you don't need the stress.

Seems like the Cyber truck and the CCS charging infrastructure have something in common - you don't know if it will ever be available!

Be safe out there!
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