Taking your R1T through an auto car wash

[BuckeyeTruckGuy]

I belong to one of those car wash clubs where you pay a monthly fee and you can get your vehicle washed unlimited times. I was going through the car wash last weekend and realized that the water sprayers at the wash are extremely high pressure and has me concerned when I begin to take my future R1T LE.

If I go through the wash with the auto tonneau cover in the closed position, I am positive that water will get into the storage area (at the front end of the bed where the cover rolls up) and start to accumulate. Will there be any drainage in that area? If not, I see three potential issues:
1) any metal parts will rust in there
2) the tonneau motor if in there can short out
3) in the NE Ohio winter, the trapped water can freeze, expand then blow apart that entire section.

If I go through the wash with the tonneau cover in the open position, will the water jets being as powerful as they are get into the electrical outlets or air compressor and cause damage?

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[PoorPilot]

No way to tell until you actually tried this, but I would have to believe that all pertinent areas that would sustain damage from water would be completely sealed. With that being said, there are always going to be areas that are more prone to collecting water- these would have proper drainage.
My personal opinion is to never use an automatic car wash for any type of car.

 

[GoWest!]

My personal opinion is to never use an automatic car wash for any type of car.

I feel like an alien sometimes when I’m out washing my car; people just don’t seem to do it themselves much anymore. But I get joy from hand washing my new cars, like I’m promising to take care of them.
Then my kids and the youth sports carpool get in the car ?

 

[PoorPilot]

I feel like an alien sometimes when I’m out washing my car; people just don’t seem to do it themselves much anymore. But I get joy from hand washing my new cars, like I’m promising to take care of them.
Then my kids and the youth sports carpool get in the car ?

I'm in the same boat! Even in the dead of winter, I'd much rather hand wash my vehicle than risk damage from an automatic wash. Granted, not everyone wants to or has the ability to do this, but it's my preferred method.
On a side note- ever since I got a ceramic coating on my X, washing is almost too easy! Dirt, bugs, etc. literally slide right off the coating with a simple spray of water.

 

[CommodoreAmiga]

I have a hard time thinking that Rivian wouldn't have accounted for a car wash.

Don't waste time on things that aren't problems.

 

[Rhidan]

Looks like Rivian is testing it out

 

[Rivian-WI]

Looks like Rivian is testing it out

WTH. Out of nowhere a picture showing Rivian doing a 'test'. Is there anything they are not testing?

 

[McRat]

One overlooked benefit of auto car washes is that they recycle the water.
If you are buying an EV to be green, you should consider it.

 

[timf]

With my Model X I've always avoided pull-through car washes, even though I've seen other people go through them without issue. I only use the touch-free wash and then towel dry to make the results somewhat decent. It is my intent with the R1S to go back to using conventional car washes, so it's good to see they are taking those into account.

 

[szimmer624]

I belong to one of those car wash clubs where you pay a monthly fee and you can get your vehicle washed unlimited times. I was going through the car wash last weekend and realized that the water sprayers at the wash are extremely high pressure and has me concerned when I begin to take my future R1T LE.

If I go through the wash with the auto tonneau cover in the closed position, I am positive that water will get into the storage area (at the front end of the bed where the cover rolls up) and start to accumulate. Will there be any drainage in that area? If not, I see three potential issues:
1) any metal parts will rust in there
2) the tonneau motor if in there can short out
3) in the NE Ohio winter, the trapped water can freeze, expand then blow apart that entire section.

If I go through the wash with the tonneau cover in the open position, will the water jets being as powerful as they are get into the electrical outlets or air compressor and cause damage?

Where in Ohio?

 

[electruck]

One overlooked benefit of auto car washes is that they recycle the water.
If you are buying an EV to be green, you should consider it.

Agreed. I always used to hand wash... why pay for something I could do for essentially free at home? But then we had a prolonged period of drought and the local restrictions on water use forbid hand car washes at home (among other things). That's when I really started to pay attention to the fact that many car washes actually recycle a large portion of the water that they use. At the time I started using automatic car washes because I had no other option but at this point I have abandoned hand washing altogether - in part to conserve water and in part because I now prefer to spend that time doing other things.

 

[BuckeyeTruckGuy]

Where in Ohio?

I live in Hudson. There are so many EV owners in town (Tesla, i3, eTron, Bolt, Volt, etc) so I can’t wait to join my EV neighbors with my R1T in a few months...hopefully.

 

[RIV206]

Is this the first time we've seen the 22" black wheels out in public?

Looks like Rivian is testing it out

 

[n8dgr8]

Sorry to be the nag... be careful when you hand wash at home that the soap drains into your yard. Soap and detergent is bad for the fish in the streams and lakes. Paying the few extra dollars to hand wash at the self service station is much better for the environment.

 

[GoWest!]

Sorry to be the nag... be careful when you hand wash at home that the soap drains into your yard. Soap and detergent is bad for the fish in the streams and lakes. Paying the few extra dollars to hand wash at the self service station is much better for the environment.

With complete respect to you and the environment, I don’t even know how to reply to this. I never in a million years thought washing my car at home (using a sprayer that is only on when rinsing and using, well soap) was bad for the environment. I could switch to biodegradable soap.

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