What will we learn on Thursday? A Predictions Thread...

[cwoodcox]

I agree with those, such as lg3103, that think Rivian is a quite good value. You don't even need to spec comparable ICE options from BMW, etc to see this. People looking at the pricing of a comparable Ford Expedition comes to might find themselves exceeding the cost of the R1S without much difficulty.

? that’s me! While a little bigger, I’d be spending at least as much money on an Expedition as I would be on the R1S, and I’d have to gas it up. The R1S is a great value on a premium full-size-ish SUV and checks every box for me.

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[Rhidan]

The statement was a 135KWh truck with electrochromatic roof for $69000.

I'm nearly certain this is not accurate. Rivian previously said it was $69,000 for the base model, a.k.a. the smallest battery pack with only 230 mile range. I know this because I put my deposit down the day this changed in January 2020. RJ announced at that time the $69,000 would now get you a "well-equipped" truck with the mid-range (300+ mile) battery. That was the difference for me, and what made me put down a deposit. Now you get the 300+ mile battery for $67,500.

You are correct that they suggested the "well-equipped" truck would come with an electrochromatic roof for $69,000. We no longer are getting that. But I'm not so sure Rivian originally said the "base model" for $69,000 would include the electrochoromatic roof.

[Edit: maybe we are just talking about different things. They did "upgrade" the battery at $69,000, but they also suggested that $69,000 would still include the roof.]

Here is an article from January 2020:

According to founder R.J. Scaringe, a well-equipped mid-range version of the Rivian R1T pickup will be priced at $69,000, and that includes a battery with 300 miles of range and Rivian's unique "glass sky panel," which is an electrochromic panel which can change from clear to blue at the press of a button. A similarly equipped R1S SUV will go to market at around $72,000.

If you've been following Rivian's progress for some time, the $69,000 price tag might sound familiar. When initially announced, the R1T was said to start at $69,000 for the base model, a vehicle that offered a modern electric drivetrain but may have experienced stunted sales with a range of only 230 miles. This new information reveals that Rivian will now offer at least three packs with its vehicles: a small 135-kilowatt-hour pack with 230 miles of range, a top-trim 180 kWh pack with 400 miles of range, and the mid-range pack that offers up to 300 miles.

 

[IHScout]

? that’s me! While a little bigger, I’d be spending at least as much money on an Expedition as I would be on the R1S, and I’d have to gas it up. The R1S is a great value on a premium full-size-ish SUV and checks every box for me.

I agree that the value is definitely there. I also own an expedition LE and love the interior space and towing prowess. It is infinitely better than my suburban. I am excited for what the rivian can do better than my expedition. And if fuel prices continue to rise, this will become even more profound in my mind. Excited to see the interior functionality and UI. Hopefully tomorrow or Friday. My wife thinks it's cute to ask me several times a day if I've heard anything yet. Usually starts Wednesday evening when I get home....something to look forward to. Haha

 

[cohall]

I'm nearly certain this is not accurate. Rivian previously said it was $69,000 for the base model, a.k.a. the smallest battery pack with only 230 mile range. I know this because I put my deposit down the day this changed in January 2020. RJ announced at that time the $69,000 would now get you a "well-equipped" truck with the mid-range (300+ mile) battery. That was the difference for me, and what made me put down a deposit. Now you get the 300+ mile battery for $67,500.

You are correct that they suggested the "well-equipped" truck would come with an electrochromatic roof for $69,000. We no longer are getting that. But I'm not so sure Rivian originally said the "base model" for $69,000 would include the electrochoromatic roof.

[Edit: maybe we are just talking about different things. They did "upgrade" the battery at $69,000, but they also suggested that $69,000 would still include the roof.]

Here is an article from January 2020:

I'm just quoting what RJ said. It was very specific. 300 mile battery with electrochromatic roof for $69K. I don't know how else to interpret that.

 

[DucRider]

I'm just quoting what RJ said. It was very specific. 300 mile battery with electrochromatic roof for $69K. I don't know how else to interpret that.

No one is disputing that when Rivian dropped the price and increased the range and HP, their intent was still to offer the features you are complaining about. But the specifications have always been subject to change (and still are).

If you expected no changes once they started testing and working out production details, most would call that unreasonable. If you don't think the vehicle is worth what they are asking with the features that are included, don't buy it. Whining about what people feel they are entitled to has somehow become de rigueur, but it does get old. It is usually attributed to Millenials, but the disease seems to have spread.
Rivian has made thousands of decisions related to bringing their products to market. Every one of them likely has proponents and detractors. Bottom line is they promised nothing more for the $1,000 reservation than the chance to buy the final product after it was fully developed. That has not changed at all. There was no commitment to any specifications, what would be included (or not), nor at any specific price.

 

[drhnbtx]

I'm just quoting what RJ said. It was very specific. 300 mile battery with electrochromatic roof for $69K. I don't know how else to interpret that.

The above was quoted well after the initial price of 69k for the base model was also quoted. i have never seen anything regarding the 180 tailgate being included and was told in person at fully charged live in Austin that it would be available as an option.

 

[DaveA]

IIRC, that $69K statement came about a year after the reveal and after when many placed deposits. The base $69K version was going to be 400HP with ~230 miles of range - I like the 800+ HP 300+ miles of range version for $67,500 better. The specifications were always preliminary and subject to change. If anyone feels what they are offering is not a good value, they are under no obligation to purchase. Anyone that expects a production vehicle to match a concept in features is in dreamland and a bit out of touch with reality. Did they want to include all those features? Absolutely. Did it make sense to them to offer them? Not in their analysis. Once again, if the changes/compromises they made after testing and working to get the vehicles into actual production result in a vehicle you no longer wish to purchase ....

I might be in the minority, but I am happy they are dropping some of the "gee whiz" gimmickry that adds cost and complexity while reducing reliability and increasing TCO thru bumped maintenance/repair costs (long term). Removing some of those gimmicks probably allowed them to give the increased bumper to bumper warranty length - and that adds a lot of value in and of itself. It also likely reduced the potential for introducing production delays (think Model X doors).

I wish they'd nix the "fancy" charging door. Jeezus, just make it manually operated. The most important thing that needs to open and close reliably, and its gimmicky. Hoping for a manual override.

 

[Eager2own]

I wish they'd nix the "fancy" charging door. Jeezus, just make it manually operated. The most important thing that needs to open and close reliably, and its gimmicky. Hoping for a manual override.

Optional manual override will be available for $1,500.

And NO!! This is not Launch Green — stop asking.

 

[DaveA]

Optional manual override will be available for $1,500.

And NO!! This is not Launch Green — stop asking.

Probably why we haven't seen any of the charging doors on very straight. They've been using this to get in. lol

 

[skyote]

I'm just quoting what RJ said. It was very specific. 300 mile battery with electrochromatic roof for $69K. I don't know how else to interpret that.

@DucRider & @Rhidan are correct. The $69K was always the "starting price", which everyone assumed was a minimally equipped 105kW pack. Personally, I mentally estimated & budgeted $85K to get an R1S outfitted the way I wanted.

There was a lot of excitement in the preorder community when RJ said those same previous "starting prices" now represented a "well equipped" vehicle with the 135kW pack.

 

[LoneStar]

Go to Ford's or Ram's truck configurator and do an honest "high-end, well-equipped" rig and see how rapidly it surpasses $70k.

The Rivian R1T (and R1S) are amazing values, highly-engineered techno-marvels. Especially after federal & state tax credits

 

[cohall]

@DucRider & @Rhidan are correct. The $69K was always the "starting price", which everyone assumed was a minimally equipped 105kW pack. Personally, I mentally estimated & budgeted $85K to get an R1S outfitted the way I wanted.

There was a lot of excitement in the preorder community when RJ said those same previous "starting prices" now represented a "well equipped" vehicle with the 135kW pack.

Ugh. I feel like we're going in circles here. Yes, the original price back in 2018 was $69K base. Lots of things have changed since then, including RJ stating the $69K price was actually for a well equipped 135KWH version with with the crazy awesome/expensive roof. That was the last and most updated information we had prior to the current pricing being announced.

I'll post this one final time. I literally don't know how it could be more clear.

Rivian founder and chief executive R.J. Scaringe told Reuters the mid-range R1T pickup truck with a glass sky panel that can change from blue to clear was about $69,000. It can travel 300 miles on a full charge

 

[cohall]

Whining about what people feel they are entitled to has somehow become de rigueur, but it does get old. It is usually attributed to Millenials, but the disease seems to have spread.

Please let me know where in this thread I've been whiny. I've stated facts, including quotes direct from RJ, and spoken only about the pricing. What it was stated it would be, and what it ended up being. I never even gave an opinion on it one way or the other.

And definitely please tell me where I state I'm entitled to anything. Such a cliche Red Herring cop out of an argument.

I, like everyone else will end up making a value-based decision. If it's not there, I'll move on. If it is, I'll proceed with the purchase. It's not that hard.

 

[Friscorays]

Bummer about March 1, 2022.

 

[cohall]

So the quote from Reuters is apparently "Rivian founder and chief executive R.J. Scaringe told Reuters the mid-range R1T pickup truck with a glass sky panel that can change from blue to clear was about $69,000. It can travel 300 miles on a full charge."

Assuming that R.J. wasn't misquoted or did not simply misspeak in this one brief statement which is likely well over a year old at this point and assuming that everyone can agree on what "about 69,000" means, I still think most reasonable people would not have taken this as some sort of legally binding contract between customer and manufacturer.

It is almost universally understood that things change between initial concept introduction and actual final product. If I personally found the fancy roof to be that important, I would be looking into one of the other EV pickups currently or soon to be available that offer that option and remain within my particular budget.

I give up. Never stated it was binding. Simply stated the price is higher than what RJ said, and provided plenty of evidence. Totally fine to raise the price, they don't owe us anything. They can charge $500k for it if they want. I never stated otherwise.

Apparently simply stating the fact that the price is higher than RJ said it would be makes me an entitled, whining millennial-type who is holding a legally binding document. People don't take kindly to negative information 'round these parts.

Done with this thread

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