thunderdeep
Active Member
- First Name
- Deep
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2019
- Threads
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- 39
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- Location
- San Francisco
- Vehicles
- Tesla Model3, Toyota Landcruiser, Porsche 911
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- #1
After all the delays I did get my R1S in the last few days of 2022, which I am very grateful to team Rivian for! 8-step opened around 12/8 and I took delivery 12/27 but the car was produced in October. Interesting.
Background
I’m not new to EVs. We have a Tesla Model 3 so I’ll draw some comparisons. I also have a Porsche 911 and a Toyota Land Cruiser. They all have their own charm as you might imagine and the R1S impresses all the more because it can match aspects of each!
Delivery
Overall a very smooth process. Paperwork only took about 10 minutes on Delivery Day as most of it was done during the 8-step before DD. I did a 1st mile drive about a week before the delivery (just a coincidence) but it worked out perfectly because I had all my questions answered already and got to know some of the features before delivery day. This also gave me a framework to come up with any questions for delivery day. It was raining on DD and Rivian had no covered area for delivery (come on Rivian, that’s just basic…) The delivery expert explained some things on his standard checklist which were very helpful. I did a quick walk around to check panel gaps and paint but I found no issues. (Quick note- my roof rack hooks have no covers- and that’s normal- they are meant to be openly exposed)
Tech/Infotainment
This is probably where the learning curve is- lots of sub-menus. Mainly it’s Nav, Music, Drive Modes, Settings, Charging but within those there are more submenus. The system is infinitely more refined than the version they showed during the demo drives they did in 2021 (faster/more responsive/more logical). The music interface for Bluetooth and Spotify is basically the same as Tesla. There is no Apple Music, no entertainment box, no video streaming and no AM radio. For basic music/FM radio it does perfectly fine, however it does not sound nearly as good as the Model 3 system or even the Bose system in the 911. There is also Tidal and Tune-In. The navigation is not Google-based but it seems to work well in the last 3-4 days I’ve used it.
The parking cameras are phenomenal- way better than Tesla with the Birdseye view etc, great to have with a bigger car in the parking lot.
Drive modes- you have total control of ride height and damper firmness here. It feels like this is where Rivian spent all the money!
After a couple days of use you figure out where to go to get what you need quickly which is great.
Controls are basically a copy of Tesla but Rivian did a great job in making physical headlight and windshield wiper controls they are on the left stalk- not buried in menus like Tesla. Mirror controls are inside menus but once you have them set you don’t really need them as often.
One annoying thing is the lift-gate cannot be opened via phone app, its the physical button under the “V” on the rear RIVIAN badge or via the physical key fob. (Needs to be in the app too!)
Ride/Handling
The R1S really deceives you. You think you’re driving something much smaller and more nimble… until you go to park it and then realize… oh crap its a lot of car to park.
In comfort setting the dampers feel like a 70’s Cadillac- the car bounces around and has excessive and delayed body roll… it just seems unsettled. I use the stiff setting in All Purpose mode and it takes care of it.
Handling is excellent- not telepathic like a 911 or Tesla Model 3 but there is so much more weight here so its understandable. Ride is great as long as you’re in the middle of the suspension travel but its a bit too stiff/jarring in the lowest and highest settings. As I said- all purpose with stiff is a sweet spot for me but if they had something in between stiff and comfort (please Rivian push that out with a software update) it would be even better. Point is there are so many options here its basically infinitely configurable to suit every drivers taste.
Lots of rain in NorCal since I took delivery and the R1S has inspired nothing but confidence. I haven’t taken it off road yet but I can tell its going to be very capable, probably way more so even than my 1997 FJ80 Land Cruiser which has open differentials, but that rig sacrifices so much on road comfort for its off road prowess.
Oh yeah… did I mention this thing is FAST. And one pedal driving is just like Tesla- maybe better because it gives you 4 motors of regenerative braking with 2 settings for how aggressively you want it to stop. The Perelli's on the 21 inch road wheels are doing a great job with 7000 lbs of weight on 8.5 inch wide tires.
A note on visibility- you do have a hood to look over and there is a bit of a blind spot but the Driver+ tech helps with that. Its quiet and well-damped so it does feel fairly luxurious coming from the Tesla which is loud and low.
Charging
Coming from a 75 kWh battery in the Model 3 to the 125 kWh battery in the R1S, a couple things become apparent. Firstly, charging time is sooooo much longer with the same amperage- obviously. So adding 200 miles in the Tesla at 40amps took 8 hours and now in this it take 14 hours in the R1S! Not a big deal but its going to be plugged in more often and for longer. The flip side of that is the range estimates are more exact. In the Tesla when the car says 275 miles and you do 200 you’re left with 20. In the R1S you actually get what it tells you- it shows 260, you do 200 and you still have 55 left. I was impressed with that and Conserve mode on long highway trips helps a little as well. Power is NOT a problem even in Conserve and you get a little bit more range- awesome! Although Sport and All Purpose doesn't drain the battery that much more quickly than conserve
Interior
The first thing my wife said when I brought the R1S home was… “the inside is beautiful, but I thought it would be bigger”. After 3-4 days we realize it the perfect size. The middle row can recline and move forward and back to accommodate the third row of seats. That allows everyone to get comfortable. I’ve got 3 kids and we did a trip with grandma (three adults and three kids) with NO problem. Then after a triple date drive home 6 adults NO problem. I took A LOT amazon packages back to UPS- dropped the 3rd row in 1 sec and stacked them in and I was off. USB chargers everywhere. Overall I’m very happy. Oh and I got the wood trim around the front seat back headrests which looks great. The hooks and USB-C charging in the seat backs is good for trips - someone just needs to come up with the iPad mount for those so the kids can be set for their road trips.
As far as materials and finish- top rate. Its 911 good. Leather and wood are top quality, all the surfaces are quality soft touch rubbers. Let’s see how they all age but from new it all looks and feels great.
Summary
I guess I drank the cool-aide because I can’t think of much negative. This checks all the boxes for me- 7 seats, utility, electric, comfort on road, confidence off road. The ride and handling are delicious. If anything negative- I do feel like the air compressor comes on and makes noise way too often- which I’ve read in other reviews. Not a big deal but I wonder how much battery is just being killed by the compressor. The seat heaters aren’t the hottest but they work and I don’t need much in NorCal. Haven’t tried seat cooling. The damper settings need that in-between stiff and comfort setting but overall the ride is great.
(Side note- this comparison also left me impressed me with the Tesla Model 3 the package is an excellent balance of road visibility, handling, range, weight and charging speed)
Background
I’m not new to EVs. We have a Tesla Model 3 so I’ll draw some comparisons. I also have a Porsche 911 and a Toyota Land Cruiser. They all have their own charm as you might imagine and the R1S impresses all the more because it can match aspects of each!
Delivery
Overall a very smooth process. Paperwork only took about 10 minutes on Delivery Day as most of it was done during the 8-step before DD. I did a 1st mile drive about a week before the delivery (just a coincidence) but it worked out perfectly because I had all my questions answered already and got to know some of the features before delivery day. This also gave me a framework to come up with any questions for delivery day. It was raining on DD and Rivian had no covered area for delivery (come on Rivian, that’s just basic…) The delivery expert explained some things on his standard checklist which were very helpful. I did a quick walk around to check panel gaps and paint but I found no issues. (Quick note- my roof rack hooks have no covers- and that’s normal- they are meant to be openly exposed)
Tech/Infotainment
This is probably where the learning curve is- lots of sub-menus. Mainly it’s Nav, Music, Drive Modes, Settings, Charging but within those there are more submenus. The system is infinitely more refined than the version they showed during the demo drives they did in 2021 (faster/more responsive/more logical). The music interface for Bluetooth and Spotify is basically the same as Tesla. There is no Apple Music, no entertainment box, no video streaming and no AM radio. For basic music/FM radio it does perfectly fine, however it does not sound nearly as good as the Model 3 system or even the Bose system in the 911. There is also Tidal and Tune-In. The navigation is not Google-based but it seems to work well in the last 3-4 days I’ve used it.
The parking cameras are phenomenal- way better than Tesla with the Birdseye view etc, great to have with a bigger car in the parking lot.
Drive modes- you have total control of ride height and damper firmness here. It feels like this is where Rivian spent all the money!
After a couple days of use you figure out where to go to get what you need quickly which is great.
Controls are basically a copy of Tesla but Rivian did a great job in making physical headlight and windshield wiper controls they are on the left stalk- not buried in menus like Tesla. Mirror controls are inside menus but once you have them set you don’t really need them as often.
One annoying thing is the lift-gate cannot be opened via phone app, its the physical button under the “V” on the rear RIVIAN badge or via the physical key fob. (Needs to be in the app too!)
Ride/Handling
The R1S really deceives you. You think you’re driving something much smaller and more nimble… until you go to park it and then realize… oh crap its a lot of car to park.
In comfort setting the dampers feel like a 70’s Cadillac- the car bounces around and has excessive and delayed body roll… it just seems unsettled. I use the stiff setting in All Purpose mode and it takes care of it.
Handling is excellent- not telepathic like a 911 or Tesla Model 3 but there is so much more weight here so its understandable. Ride is great as long as you’re in the middle of the suspension travel but its a bit too stiff/jarring in the lowest and highest settings. As I said- all purpose with stiff is a sweet spot for me but if they had something in between stiff and comfort (please Rivian push that out with a software update) it would be even better. Point is there are so many options here its basically infinitely configurable to suit every drivers taste.
Lots of rain in NorCal since I took delivery and the R1S has inspired nothing but confidence. I haven’t taken it off road yet but I can tell its going to be very capable, probably way more so even than my 1997 FJ80 Land Cruiser which has open differentials, but that rig sacrifices so much on road comfort for its off road prowess.
Oh yeah… did I mention this thing is FAST. And one pedal driving is just like Tesla- maybe better because it gives you 4 motors of regenerative braking with 2 settings for how aggressively you want it to stop. The Perelli's on the 21 inch road wheels are doing a great job with 7000 lbs of weight on 8.5 inch wide tires.
A note on visibility- you do have a hood to look over and there is a bit of a blind spot but the Driver+ tech helps with that. Its quiet and well-damped so it does feel fairly luxurious coming from the Tesla which is loud and low.
Charging
Coming from a 75 kWh battery in the Model 3 to the 125 kWh battery in the R1S, a couple things become apparent. Firstly, charging time is sooooo much longer with the same amperage- obviously. So adding 200 miles in the Tesla at 40amps took 8 hours and now in this it take 14 hours in the R1S! Not a big deal but its going to be plugged in more often and for longer. The flip side of that is the range estimates are more exact. In the Tesla when the car says 275 miles and you do 200 you’re left with 20. In the R1S you actually get what it tells you- it shows 260, you do 200 and you still have 55 left. I was impressed with that and Conserve mode on long highway trips helps a little as well. Power is NOT a problem even in Conserve and you get a little bit more range- awesome! Although Sport and All Purpose doesn't drain the battery that much more quickly than conserve
Interior
The first thing my wife said when I brought the R1S home was… “the inside is beautiful, but I thought it would be bigger”. After 3-4 days we realize it the perfect size. The middle row can recline and move forward and back to accommodate the third row of seats. That allows everyone to get comfortable. I’ve got 3 kids and we did a trip with grandma (three adults and three kids) with NO problem. Then after a triple date drive home 6 adults NO problem. I took A LOT amazon packages back to UPS- dropped the 3rd row in 1 sec and stacked them in and I was off. USB chargers everywhere. Overall I’m very happy. Oh and I got the wood trim around the front seat back headrests which looks great. The hooks and USB-C charging in the seat backs is good for trips - someone just needs to come up with the iPad mount for those so the kids can be set for their road trips.
As far as materials and finish- top rate. Its 911 good. Leather and wood are top quality, all the surfaces are quality soft touch rubbers. Let’s see how they all age but from new it all looks and feels great.
Summary
I guess I drank the cool-aide because I can’t think of much negative. This checks all the boxes for me- 7 seats, utility, electric, comfort on road, confidence off road. The ride and handling are delicious. If anything negative- I do feel like the air compressor comes on and makes noise way too often- which I’ve read in other reviews. Not a big deal but I wonder how much battery is just being killed by the compressor. The seat heaters aren’t the hottest but they work and I don’t need much in NorCal. Haven’t tried seat cooling. The damper settings need that in-between stiff and comfort setting but overall the ride is great.
(Side note- this comparison also left me impressed me with the Tesla Model 3 the package is an excellent balance of road visibility, handling, range, weight and charging speed)
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