What we might see in that configurator: Options, Launch Edition, etc...

[ajdelange]

Your solar system needs a battery to run when the grid is down, at least with the current microinverters. The next generation will not, apparently, but even so there isn't much point in having a solar system to cover outages unless you have batteries. Your truck could be that battery but you probably don't want it to be because the battery in a solar system is constantly being charged and discharged which is exactly what it supposed to be doing. This charging and discharging ages the battery faster than it ages in automotive use and, in a vehicle, results in range loss sooner than you like. That is not so much an issue in a Power Wall type of product and you may have seen that Rivian is using its old batteries with solar systems and Tesla plans to do the same. This implies that these batteries will retain some usefulness for 10 or more years.

Rivian has talked about a feature that would allow one vehicle to charge another. This implies access to the high voltage DC. I would certainly welcome a battery bank in my solar system but I wouldn't use a BEV for the battery. I would use the system to charge the BEV so that if, in bad times (such as what we may be facing sooner than we ever thought we would) I could use the BEV to get out of Dodge. However I would see the ability to plug my Rivian into the system as a big plus to cover, for example, an longer than usual number of cloudy days.

Sponsored

 

[Coast2Coast]

AJ, good thoughts. You're suggesting a battery backup to my solar system, one that charges and discharges regularly. Then I tap into the storage battery with my Rivian, thereby keeping the Rivian fully charged. All of that makes sense.

When power goes down, am I pulling electricity from the Rivian or the solar system storage batteries? I would think the capacity of the solar system's batteries is a lot less than even the smallest Rivian battery pack. Hence, you may get a couple of hours of backup power with a solar system's storage batteries, but if you want to have power for a day or two, you're still going to want to pull power from a Rivian.

I overheard a discussion along these lines at the Mill Valley/SF event. Brian Gase said it was possible for a Rivian to power a house, but he didn't go into details. But overhearing the discussion was important to my own thinking as I have an all electric house and PG&E as a service provider.

 

[ajdelange]

AJ, good thoughts. You're suggesting a battery backup to my solar system, one that charges and discharges regularly. Then I tap into the storage battery with my Rivian, thereby keeping the Rivian fully charged. All of that makes sense.

I'd add one feature to this and I know it's silly but I'd like to have it and that is to be able to isolate the solar system so that its entire output goes to the Rivian whenever the Rivian demands power for charging.

When power goes down, am I pulling electricity from the Rivian or the solar system storage batteries?

You do not want to be pulling power from the Rivian unless it is absolutely necessary.

I would think the capacity of the solar system's batteries is a lot less than even the smallest Rivian battery pack.

Power Walls come in 13 kWh capacity. Thus it would take 10 of them to provide 130 kWh.

Hence, you may get a couple of hours of backup power with a solar system's storage batteries, but if you want to have power for a day or two, you're still going to want to pull power from a Rivian.

Right but most power failures are a matter of hours. Were the power failure to last longer than that the Power Walls will shut down and it is at this point that you would start to draw from the Rivian (or, in my case, start the generator).

I overheard a discussion along these lines at the Mill Valley/SF event. Brian Gase said it was possible for a Rivian to power a house, but he didn't go into details. But overhearing the discussion was important to my own thinking as I have an all electric house and PG&E as a service provider.

The CCS connector has access to the battery and in addition to that there is the car to car charging port so it's all doable if software is modified to allow interface to a two way charger.[/QUOTE]

 

[JamesCockrill]

I have been watching Rivian for years and one question that has been burning in me as a preorder; When do you think there will be a web-based "build your Rivian" for preorders so we can see the options or possible price? My best guess would be Spring of 2021. What does everyone think?

 

[bajadahl]

I think the most recent kind of official statement was sometime "summer 2020". I imagine the shutdown does not need to make this date slip, however, I wonder if Rivian will delay the launch of the configuration tool purely due to the fact that the delivery date is definitely slipping into 2021. They've got to know that many of their customers (potential customers I guess) are waiting anxiously to play with the configurator.

 

[EyeOnRivian]

I have been watching Rivian for years and one question that has been burning in me as a preorder; When do you think there will be a web-based "build your Rivian" for preorders so we can see the options or possible price? My best guess would be Spring of 2021. What does everyone think?

If you haven't already you might want to check out the following thread: Rivian configurator coming "Late Summer"

Sponsored