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Request to focus Ride Comfort for R1S

Aravind Srikumar

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Hi RivianTeam,

I’d like to make a humble request to focus on ride comfort. Most of the manufacturers focus on outdoors off-road conditions etc but overlook/not focus on ride comfort/quality.

The benchmark for ride comfort/quality that I use is Lexus RX/LX & Lincoln SUV’s. I recently took Testla Model-X for a test drive and I did not like the ride comfort as it was stiff at the best comfort setting.

I understand that Rivian is focussed on off-roading but in reality most people drive on highways/normal roads most of the time day in and out. All I ask for is to give us a confort setting that maximizes and focuses on road comfort and is really comfortable (light steering, supple suspension that soaks the bumps etc making the driving experience effortless). This will help win customers like me and there are a quite a few of us, I believe.

Thank you!
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ElectricTrucking

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There has been just a touch on the air suspension from Rivian. I'm looking forward to more thorough information. I only recall the negatives of air suspension when it comes to failures. Lets hope Rivian has given this a lot of thought. Don't want to hear about blown bladders as with other manufacturers and expensive repairs after end of warranty. With reference to the Model X there have been ongoing complaints about a front end shutter with many replacements of half shafts and no solution. Please Rivian look into Teslas issues and do not duplicate. These are not off road causes.
 

JG Rivian

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If I were to bet the drive will likely be closer to that of a Range Rover than a Model X. Poised on and off-road but still responsive. Don’t think the market here wants to be floating on a cloud, but they do want a smooth ride for the price.
 

A Hawk

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If I were to bet the drive will likely be closer to that of a Range Rover than a Model X. Poised on and off-road but still responsive. Don’t think the market here wants to be floating on a cloud, but they do want a smooth ride for the price.
+1. The R1S with the same capabilities and suspension as the R1T will also actually be capable of off-roading, like a Range Rover and unlike the Model X which does not even pretend to be able to. I look at the R1S as basically an electric Range Rover, but with much better technology (and hopefully reliability).
 

Hydro

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With the R1S being 44lbs lighter, 15" shorter length and shorter wheelbase, how do you all think the ride quality will feel compared to the R1T? I'm considering both and will be doing limited off roading so like the OP the comfort of the ride on roads really matters.
 

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Katsudon

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With the R1S being 44lbs lighter, 15" shorter length and shorter wheelbase, how do you all think the ride quality will feel compared to the R1T? I'm considering both and will be doing limited off roading so like the OP the comfort of the ride on roads really matters.
44 lbs difference on a 5000+ lbs vehicle won't make any difference at all.

The 15" wheelbase length difference will make a difference though. Usually, the longer the wheelbase the better the ride quality, so on paper the R1T should ride better than the R1S. But, ride quality is also determined in large part by suspension tuning. AFAIK, Rivian hasn't said if they've tuned the suspensions differently in the R1S vs R1T, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if they engineered the R1S suspension to have a more compliant ride quality since it will likely be used more as a family hauler and less off-roading than the R1T.
 

Hydro

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Thanks for the input. I think and this is just a guess like others have said they may try to let the adjustable air suspension take care of that by allowing both R1T and R1S owners to adjust for on-road comfort or off-road capability. That way the suspension can be engineered the same way to keep build and repair costs down while allowing owners flexibility. My two cents...
 

Hmp10

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How soft you can go in suspension tuning and keep taut handling is partially a function of the torsional rigidity of the vehicle -- the higher the torsional rigidity, the softer the suspension can be tuned, as the vehicle itself functions less like a spring. One of the reasons the Tesla Model X is sprung so stiffly is that they gave up a lot of torsional rigidity for the sake of those silly falcon wing doors.

Rivian has opted for a body-on-frame design rather than a unibody design, which is easier to make more rigid. It will be interesting to see what the torsional rigidity specs turn out to be on the Rivians.
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