Unlocking the car at home is maddening

[SoCal Rob]

I regularly have issues with my fob as well. Sometimes it takes up to a minute to register the button presses to unlock.

I have similar issues. Sometimes I end up pulling the keycard out of my wallet, in order to open the door.

I think there is something wrong with your truck and/or phone.

In the nearly 2 years since we bought our R1S, the vehicle almost always unlocks (where proximity unlocking is enabled) by the time I get close enough to reach out for the handle. I’d say in the 98% to 99% range.

Every so often I get next to the vehicle and before I can finish my thought, “I wonder if I should get my phone out,” the Rivian unlocks.

The only times it has taken more than a couple seconds to unlock after arriving at the vehicle I just had to wake up my phone (not even unlock it, just get the display on) and the vehicle immediately unlocks. This has happened to me maybe 15-20 times total in almost 2 years. I’m pretty sure that’s a phone problem and it is infrequent enough that I haven’t bothered looking into a solution.

Sponsored

 

[ThirteenElectrics]

For me, PAAK has never really worked out and about. I'll come up to the car and it the doors won't present until I take my phone out and fiddle with it. It's like my phone is asleep, or the car is, or both. I had the same issue with Tesla. I always run the latest iPhone.

This is one reason I always carry the fob. Unfortunately the gen1 fob has been backordered for months and months and months. They can't even manufacture a fob consistently. It's like everything at Rivian is still in "best effort, whatever, I'm busy baking bread" pandemic mode.

 

[tjrivian]

I think there is something wrong with your truck and/or phone.

In the nearly 2 years since we bought our R1S, the vehicle almost always unlocks (where proximity unlocking is enabled) by the time I get close enough to reach out for the handle. I’d say in the 98% to 99% range.

I'm not sure you've understood what's being discussed here The entire discussion is about unlocking the car when proximity unlocking is disabled. Datapoints about how well PaaK works when proximity unlock is enabled are mostly irrelevant to the discussion.

 

[Indy avocado]

I think there is something wrong with your truck and/or phone.

In the nearly 2 years since we bought our R1S, the vehicle almost always unlocks (where proximity unlocking is enabled) by the time I get close enough to reach out for the handle. I’d say in the 98% to 99% range.

Every so often I get next to the vehicle and before I can finish my thought, “I wonder if I should get my phone out,” the Rivian unlocks.

This is typically my experience with PAAK (and I wander sufficiently far from the truck), but not when using the fob - the fob is significantly "dumber" for me.

If I'm "on the bubble" of range for PAAK, it seems like it tries to filter things out and can take several extra seconds to unlock

 

[SASSquatch]

I've never owned a vehicle before my gen1 R1S that was so maddening to unlock, particularly at home. At home my gen1 R1S is parked in the driveway, and I regularly am in a part of the house near the driveway which means that if I leave proximity unlock ON at home then it constantly unlocks itself. So I can't do that, and have it set for proximity-locking at home, but not proximity-unlocking.

So now to unlock the car at home I have to pull my phone out of the pocket, open the rivian app, and press the unlock button. Annoying, but if it works then fine I can live with it. But more than half the time it doesn't work, pressing the unlock button in the app will just give me an error. So I stand there like an idiot for a few minutes trying to figure out how to get into my car. All while this isn't working to unlock the door handles, the car lets me press the buttons on the frunk and on the liftgate and it will open those doors! Why the hell would it not immediately unlock the door handles once it has already decided that it will respond to my trunk/liftgate button presses affirmatively?

Is this something wrong with my particular vehicle, or is this a widespread problem? Is there any solution to not have to stand around for 2 minutes until the app finally allows me to press the button to unlock the door handles?

The most frustration free experience ever is to always just use the key fob. In my stable I have a Genesis GV60 and not only does it have all the bag of tricks as Rivian (including apple watch unlock) you can get into the vehicle with your face. It has a face scanner on the outside. Once inside you can use your fingerprint to start the car. No phone, no fob, no key needed. Just your face and finger.

I have used this feature exactly 0 times. The GV60 forums are littered with complaints about every method of unlocking the car not working on some occasion or another under some condition or another. The complaint you don't hear? Carrying a key fob.

If you don't trust that any other method will work 99% of the time (or whatever the percentage is that your key fob works) then you are potentially a danger to yourself and others not carrying the fob.

For me, it's just not worth the frustration of not having reliable access to the vehicle. Life already has too many frustrations.

 

[SoCal Rob]

I'm not sure you've understood what's being discussed here The entire discussion is about unlocking the car when proximity unlocking is disabled. Datapoints about how well PaaK works when proximity unlock is enabled are mostly irrelevant to the discussion.

I think if you read what I quoted you’ll find the conversation has drifted a bit. I’m replying to what I quoted.

One person was discussing a fob button press not immediately working on the truck and another person was discussing the app failing to work.

My assumption is that proximity locking/unlocking is the least reliable means of interacting with the vehicle. On the other hand, using buttons in the app should be an absolute certainty. Keep in mind that the less reliable proximity-based usage is very reliable for me. I should have written this explicitly, and I apologize for not doing it: my phone app has always unlocked or locked the vehicle with a single tap on the corresponding app button. It has never failed to do that. It is 100% reliable and I have proximity locking and unlocking off at home so I use it a lot. Hopefully this lets people understand my experience: Proximity (un)locking is nearly 100% reliable for me and using the app buttons to (un)lock is 100% reliable for me.

People are writing that they have to use multiple taps on the app, grab a card to access, or they are having issues with the fob. My understanding is that the fob also relies on Bluetooth and that pressing a physical button on a fob is the same as tapping the corresponding button in the app. If you’re having problems with the app buttons, an access card, or the fob then I think there is something wrong with your truck and/or phone.
Edit:reworded for clarity

 

[zymolysis]

On the other hand, using buttons in the app should be an absolute certainty.

Actually proximity unlocking sort of works (on my truck) - although I often have to pull it out of my pocket (or turn around), so that my rear pocket with the phone is near the door), or just tap the door with my phone (I don't know that that actually does anything more than give it a couple extra seconds in close proximity).
What often doesn't work well, is at home (where I have proximity unlock turned off), using the the app. Often I can stand next to the driver's side door, and press "unlock" over and over, with no response, or a delayed response. A few times I have given up and pulled out my keycard.

 

[JM.]

I just realized something. You can set an iPhone to recognize three taps on the back of the phone to run a shortcut. Now that sounds useful. If you accidentally trigger it, the vehicle will re-lock in two minutes anyway.

 

[zymolysis]

If you accidentally trigger it, the vehicle will re-lock in two minutes anyway.

If you trust it - there have been a few times when it didn't re-lock, so I try to remember to check before I get too far away.
And last year my truck was burglarized in the wee hours. I had pressed unlock, intending to go outside for some reason, but then did not. It apparently did unlock. And was still unlocked in the morning. Meanwhile someone had gone through the contents of my truck, mainly stealing keys. Gear guard showed nothing.

 

[zymolysis]

At home, I use the Rivian app Widget (swipe from screen left to screen right). It's a swipe and a touch.

No video with supported format...

 

[JM.]

If you trust it

Not so much trust as just don't give a shit. Unfortunately it does work, I often find myself having to unlock it again. Two minutes is too short to get all my stuff, put it down because I forgot something, get it again, put it down because the wife wants to add something to the errands,, get all my (LOCK) stuff again...

 

[SoCal Rob]

Actually proximity unlocking sort of works (on my truck) - although I often have to pull it out of my pocket (or turn around), so that my rear pocket with the phone is near the door), or just tap the door with my phone (I don't know that that actually does anything more than give it a couple extra seconds in close proximity).
What often doesn't work well, is at home (where I have proximity unlock turned off), using the the app. Often I can stand next to the driver's side door, and press "unlock" over and over, with no response, or a delayed response. A few times I have given up and pulled out my keycard.

I’m responding out of order to discuss the proximity off behavior first.

Tapping unlock over and over again on your phone for manual (not proximity) unlock makes me think there is something wrong with your truck or your phone. If there’s anyone else who has a phone key setup for your Rivian, do they see the same behavior with their phone? (Adding a phone, another device with variations in hardware and software, to the mix makes it harder to troubleshoot and gives Rivian a chance to point fingers, so I think it’s worth going to Rivian with as much diagnostic info as possible.) I just have never seen the app utterly fail to execute an (un)lock command when I’m right next to the vehicle. If you can test with another phone and see the same behavior, I’d test at least a couple miles from your home with the proximity behaviors turned off everywhere. If it behaves there and not at home then there may be something in the area of your home which is interfering with the RF signals.

The rest of this response is related to the proximity unlock issue you described:

Just out of curiosity, when you tap the door with your phone is the display already on meaning the phone is ready, even if still locked? I’m just wondering if, in those cases, your phone isn’t awake and you’re essentially doing a tap to wake. I’m not sure what type of phone you have but that’s just one possible explanation. Again, I’d test with another phone and see how it behaves.

 

[bigsky]

Back in my day, we had to insert a “key” into the “lock” and “turn” to unlock….uphill…both ways….in 4ft of snow….

OMG, the key. So horribly ICE, so horribly passe, so horribly absolutely not, never again. And that goes for the [expletive] fob also. Good riddance to both. Phone rules, amen.

 

[SoCal Rob]

OMG, the key. So horribly ICE, so horribly passe, so horribly absolutely not, never again. And that goes for the [expletive] fob also. Good riddance to both. Phone rules, amen.

For people who are experiencing it working well, like us, I agree since I love having one less thing to carry around. However, for me, since I have to leave proximity (un)lock off at home, it would be a much better if Rivian had included some kind of button on or near the handle which would serve the same function as the other buttons (frunk, lift gate, etc .). If I had a way on the vehicle to tell the vehicle to (unl)ock as long as a valid phone or fob is present then I’d never need to touch the phone when the proximity features are off.

I think if would’ve made a lot of people happier if Rivian had put in manual vents and, using the money they saved, added a button or sensor on each door handle. Then everyone who has to leave proximity features off at home (many people with an attached garage) would probably be a lot more satisfied with the experience.

 

[technerd]

If you use a newer iPhone, you can customize the shortcut button on the side. I setup a shortcut on my phone to unlock my Rivian, and set it to that button. So on my way out to leave, I just long press the button in my pocket and it's usually unlocked by the time I get there.

Of course it was still a minute of me standing there looking like an idiot this morning, but 60% of the time, it works every time.

Sponsored