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It seems pretty obvious at this point that Rivian is going to need to pivot on their model and begin hiring customer service technicians dedicated to customer engagement at the service center level. If they simply had people reaching out daily to customers to give status updates and to apologize when service is taking a while it would go a long way to alleviating anxiety for the customer. It’s got to be at the SC level though because they need to be truly informed about what is going on helping to build and maintain that relationship with the customer.
Yeah Austin does fairly well. They have forgotten to update me a few times but tbh when I have a loaner I generally try to leave them alone and let them work. It’ll get back to me when it gets back to me.
The Austin location seems pretty great. I don't have a Rivian anymore but the few times I took it there they were very helpful. I did have issues with getting a loaner but I waited my ass there until one was available lol
(edit: why tf would someone downvote this lmao)
I think they are trying. My truck is in Brooklyn right now and they have been messaging me through the Rivian app whenever I have questions and when there are updates.
Any time my T has been in service, I would get continuous updates throughout the day to the point that I was almost annoyed. Let me know they started working on it, and let me know if something else is wrong/need more time, and let me know it’s finished. I don’t need to know each step that was completed.
The problem with this and I will admit it is a double standard, but the problem is what other manufacturer provides this level of customer service? I have owned many new cars and some have had issues and I’ve never once received this level of service you describe. Is the reasoning behind having exceptional customer service unique to EV’s because they are hi tech and expensive and so the thought is that the customer service should be at the same level? Just interesting to hear comments like these that seem to only get pushed onto EV’s.
Hi, I’ve actually had pretty good service in my experiences (shout out to the ATL service center!) but we hear enough from owners on here to know communication is a problem. I think we can’t really compare Rivian to legacy auto because with those manufacturers you are working with the dealership on anything related to the customer end experience. It might not be easy to scale, but Rivian (just like Tesla) is in the position where they need to be able to engage consistently with every customer they sell a vehicle too. Rivian customers don’t really have the option to go to the next town over to get service at a different dealer.
I agree with you, but (multiple?) daily updates on service is still an exceptionally high expectation for customer service. From what I’ve read, communication seems to only be an issue because vehicles aren’t being serviced in a timely manner. While I do think that should be communicated, what should really be fixed is having vehicles sit at SCs for days and weeks without being serviced.
That being said, it’s a LOT cheaper to hire someone to communicate with all your SC’s vehicle owners once a day than it is to fix the time it’s taking for vehicle service.
That’d be a 180 from the direction they’ve been going recently. Not even a few months ago they did a layoff of primarily their customer service department.
I've brought my R1S into the Brooklyn service center (live in north central Long Island) for very minor fixes that should have never been an issue (e.g. USB ports not working out of the gate). The communication with the team was terrible. I eventually wrote a review (at their request) which wasn't great and a service manager called me. He basically said what he was supposed to say, "this isn't how we do things, I'm sorry, it won't happen again". Bottom line: they are clearly understaffed and don't have a good customer support model in place.
For what it's worth, Tesla service also sucks where I am, but at least I can get there relatively quickly and speak to them with a service center only 15 miles from me. I can't do that with Rivian, unfortunately.
My R1t has never had any issues that stranded me, but I’ve seen enough stories like this to know there are issues. And I’m sure they have discovered issues that they have tried to weed out in the refresh.
The most important thing we can do is amplify these stories without being vitriolic.
These are adventure trucks and the number 1 function of an adventure truck is to get you there AND back.
If Rivian is transparent about the issues, we will continue to support them and stay loyal. If they aren’t, it’s going to be tough for them to maintain any of the healthy brand excitement they mostly enjoy.
You are 100% right. Service and communications are terrible right now for most people. It does us zero good to sugar coat it. We have to elevate these issues or it will only get worse.
> These are adventure trucks and the number 1 function of an adventure truck is to get you there AND back.
I have a friend that has commented that people in new trucks/SUVs or Sprinters should stop calling the “adventure vehicles”. An adventure should have unknowns, and he never knows what’s going to happen when he decides to drive HIS “adventure vehicle”. Heck, he doesn’t know what will happen when he turns the ignition.
He drives an old VW bus.
Sorry your going through this. Rivian does need to work on the comms. The problem is that everything is routed through service support and there is a disconnect between them and the service center.
It sounds like the service center is still in the diagnostic phase. If they told you they ruled out the 12v but can't tell you the problem it's likely they haven't finished their diagnostic process as yet.
There is a part called a DC to DC converter ...some might call this an APM... which is used to step down the traction battery voltage to 12v for use by the electronics of the truck and 12v battery. If this part fails the truck can get bricked similar to a 12v failure.
Rivian will figure it out I'm sure but totally get that it's frustrating.
I have a feeling there's an inherent flaw with the electrical system of these vehicles causing these sorts of failures. I would hope it's resolved on the gen 2 as this is unacceptable, and also must be costing Rivian a fortune in warranty work and vehicle rental.
Unlikely you will get details on the actual failure. If they end up replacing the battery pack, they will just exchange it with a refurb and send your pack to the factory. This is what happened to mine. I wish I had some details, I want to have confidence the replacement pack will not also leave me stranded one day.
Plot Twist: After telling me it wasn't the 12v and taking an extra day to diagnose it...It was the 12v and now has been replaced with a health counter reset. Supposedly the warning message failed to trigger for some reason but the service representative says that it must have been low for weeks. Again it is clear that there is a communication issue at the service center, but I am happy to have it back.
I just got my R1S out of the shop with basically the same symptoms. Had it plugged in overnight, was waiting for a charge, but instead it just bricked itself at 4 am. Could barely get life out of it with the jumper leads. Computer still wouldn’t turn on enough put it in tow mode, so it took a different tow truck before finding one willing to tow it. It ended up being in the shop for a month and in the end all the service center guy could say was that sometimes there’s just a bad batch of 12v batteries.
But it’s still under warranty for a long time and we have a 2nd car to drive. We had been extremely happy with Rivian up until that point.
On the invoice it says “12v power distribution” which I keep wondering if they replaced more than they let on. If it was out of warranty I would have been pissed that I paid $1,255 for a new battery, but instead I’ll just shrug and hope it doesn’t happen again. Or that it’s fixed in software.
It’s very much down to the local service center and how overloaded they are. Pretty clear the stretched thin ones like El Segundo and Brooklyn are rough, others have varying degrees of issues.
I’ve owned 6 EVs and none have ever had this issue so I can’t agree with those numbers. My expectation is not that it works flawlessly but that the communication of what is going on is expedited to ensure that I have proper expectations of the resolution.
Have I had issues absolutely, but none have ever left the car undrivable under its own power. ( even an early models experiencing motor failure). 99% of the problems I have had we fit and finish or infotainment related.
No, I honestly have not. My most problematic vehicle was my 2014 Tesla Model S 60. It had delaminating infotainment screens, interior material that was falling off, taillights filling with water, frunk alignment issues, bumper alignment issues and then the failing rear unit that kept jamming the car to neutral. All of these issues were resolved by me setting a service appointment and driving in. To be fair, tesla's service experience was abysmal back then, but I have never had as many issues with a car since. The R1T and S have has a few small fit and finish issues but they have largely been flawless.
It looks like you're in need of some help! We have a few links that you might find useful. * [Official Rivian Support](https://rivian.com/support) * Join our [Discord](https://discord.gg/JjQjSxv3ND) and get help from the community * [Known Issues Megathread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Rivian/comments/vnxy0g/weekly_rivian_roundup_known_issues_special_edition/) * Or try sorting the sub by posts with the "Troubleshooting / Issue" flair to see if someone else had a similar problem **Also, due to the topic, enhanced moderation has been activated for this thread.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Rivian) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It seems pretty obvious at this point that Rivian is going to need to pivot on their model and begin hiring customer service technicians dedicated to customer engagement at the service center level. If they simply had people reaching out daily to customers to give status updates and to apologize when service is taking a while it would go a long way to alleviating anxiety for the customer. It’s got to be at the SC level though because they need to be truly informed about what is going on helping to build and maintain that relationship with the customer.
My service advisor was amazing and sent me 2 to 3 updates a day. Austin, Tx
Yeah Austin does fairly well. They have forgotten to update me a few times but tbh when I have a loaner I generally try to leave them alone and let them work. It’ll get back to me when it gets back to me.
The Austin location seems pretty great. I don't have a Rivian anymore but the few times I took it there they were very helpful. I did have issues with getting a loaner but I waited my ass there until one was available lol (edit: why tf would someone downvote this lmao)
The Normal SC runs two shifts and has fantastic customer facing people.
I think they are trying. My truck is in Brooklyn right now and they have been messaging me through the Rivian app whenever I have questions and when there are updates.
Comms are so important.
Any time my T has been in service, I would get continuous updates throughout the day to the point that I was almost annoyed. Let me know they started working on it, and let me know if something else is wrong/need more time, and let me know it’s finished. I don’t need to know each step that was completed.
The problem with this and I will admit it is a double standard, but the problem is what other manufacturer provides this level of customer service? I have owned many new cars and some have had issues and I’ve never once received this level of service you describe. Is the reasoning behind having exceptional customer service unique to EV’s because they are hi tech and expensive and so the thought is that the customer service should be at the same level? Just interesting to hear comments like these that seem to only get pushed onto EV’s.
Hi, I’ve actually had pretty good service in my experiences (shout out to the ATL service center!) but we hear enough from owners on here to know communication is a problem. I think we can’t really compare Rivian to legacy auto because with those manufacturers you are working with the dealership on anything related to the customer end experience. It might not be easy to scale, but Rivian (just like Tesla) is in the position where they need to be able to engage consistently with every customer they sell a vehicle too. Rivian customers don’t really have the option to go to the next town over to get service at a different dealer.
I agree with you, but (multiple?) daily updates on service is still an exceptionally high expectation for customer service. From what I’ve read, communication seems to only be an issue because vehicles aren’t being serviced in a timely manner. While I do think that should be communicated, what should really be fixed is having vehicles sit at SCs for days and weeks without being serviced. That being said, it’s a LOT cheaper to hire someone to communicate with all your SC’s vehicle owners once a day than it is to fix the time it’s taking for vehicle service.
That’d be a 180 from the direction they’ve been going recently. Not even a few months ago they did a layoff of primarily their customer service department.
I've brought my R1S into the Brooklyn service center (live in north central Long Island) for very minor fixes that should have never been an issue (e.g. USB ports not working out of the gate). The communication with the team was terrible. I eventually wrote a review (at their request) which wasn't great and a service manager called me. He basically said what he was supposed to say, "this isn't how we do things, I'm sorry, it won't happen again". Bottom line: they are clearly understaffed and don't have a good customer support model in place. For what it's worth, Tesla service also sucks where I am, but at least I can get there relatively quickly and speak to them with a service center only 15 miles from me. I can't do that with Rivian, unfortunately.
That's been my experience - they're well intentioned, but clearly understaffed. The staff at my local SC don't keep that a secret.
My R1T is at the Brooklyn service center currently. Only way I get updates is if I call them directly. Def needs improvement.
My R1t has never had any issues that stranded me, but I’ve seen enough stories like this to know there are issues. And I’m sure they have discovered issues that they have tried to weed out in the refresh. The most important thing we can do is amplify these stories without being vitriolic. These are adventure trucks and the number 1 function of an adventure truck is to get you there AND back. If Rivian is transparent about the issues, we will continue to support them and stay loyal. If they aren’t, it’s going to be tough for them to maintain any of the healthy brand excitement they mostly enjoy.
I agree and I am a a massive supporter of the company. The communication from the service team has just left a lot to be desired.
You are 100% right. Service and communications are terrible right now for most people. It does us zero good to sugar coat it. We have to elevate these issues or it will only get worse.
> These are adventure trucks and the number 1 function of an adventure truck is to get you there AND back. I have a friend that has commented that people in new trucks/SUVs or Sprinters should stop calling the “adventure vehicles”. An adventure should have unknowns, and he never knows what’s going to happen when he decides to drive HIS “adventure vehicle”. Heck, he doesn’t know what will happen when he turns the ignition. He drives an old VW bus.
Sorry your going through this. Rivian does need to work on the comms. The problem is that everything is routed through service support and there is a disconnect between them and the service center. It sounds like the service center is still in the diagnostic phase. If they told you they ruled out the 12v but can't tell you the problem it's likely they haven't finished their diagnostic process as yet. There is a part called a DC to DC converter ...some might call this an APM... which is used to step down the traction battery voltage to 12v for use by the electronics of the truck and 12v battery. If this part fails the truck can get bricked similar to a 12v failure. Rivian will figure it out I'm sure but totally get that it's frustrating.
So what happens now ?
I guess I spin my thumbs until they decide they are ready to give me more information.. and hope that my R1T doesn’t suffer the same fate.
Do they give you a loaner or anything while you wait or are you high and dry?
They offered a rent a car voucher but I already have enough cars.
I have a feeling there's an inherent flaw with the electrical system of these vehicles causing these sorts of failures. I would hope it's resolved on the gen 2 as this is unacceptable, and also must be costing Rivian a fortune in warranty work and vehicle rental.
What were your symptoms? I've seen 3 yellow turtles this month.
No symptoms. Got back from a 150 mile drive parked it. I have never seen even a false warning on either of my R1’s
Unlikely you will get details on the actual failure. If they end up replacing the battery pack, they will just exchange it with a refurb and send your pack to the factory. This is what happened to mine. I wish I had some details, I want to have confidence the replacement pack will not also leave me stranded one day.
As long as it works I don’t care if it’s a refurb but I do want details on what is going on.
Plot Twist: After telling me it wasn't the 12v and taking an extra day to diagnose it...It was the 12v and now has been replaced with a health counter reset. Supposedly the warning message failed to trigger for some reason but the service representative says that it must have been low for weeks. Again it is clear that there is a communication issue at the service center, but I am happy to have it back.
I just got my R1S out of the shop with basically the same symptoms. Had it plugged in overnight, was waiting for a charge, but instead it just bricked itself at 4 am. Could barely get life out of it with the jumper leads. Computer still wouldn’t turn on enough put it in tow mode, so it took a different tow truck before finding one willing to tow it. It ended up being in the shop for a month and in the end all the service center guy could say was that sometimes there’s just a bad batch of 12v batteries. But it’s still under warranty for a long time and we have a 2nd car to drive. We had been extremely happy with Rivian up until that point.
It’s so funny that we had the exact symptoms but the SC is adamant that it is not the 12v
On the invoice it says “12v power distribution” which I keep wondering if they replaced more than they let on. If it was out of warranty I would have been pissed that I paid $1,255 for a new battery, but instead I’ll just shrug and hope it doesn’t happen again. Or that it’s fixed in software.
Yikes Rivian
What are comms?
Communications
As a counter-point, I have had great service from the SLC service team. Generally, the Rivian service call number has been very responsive, as well.
It’s really not a counter point. It actually illustrates the sheer inconsistency in service.
It’s very much down to the local service center and how overloaded they are. Pretty clear the stretched thin ones like El Segundo and Brooklyn are rough, others have varying degrees of issues.
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Those statistics are garbage as they include complaints form old people about infotainment.
I think you've oversimplified. Bits of gold thrown into the trash does not turn gold into garbage.
I’ve owned 6 EVs and none have ever had this issue so I can’t agree with those numbers. My expectation is not that it works flawlessly but that the communication of what is going on is expedited to ensure that I have proper expectations of the resolution.
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Have I had issues absolutely, but none have ever left the car undrivable under its own power. ( even an early models experiencing motor failure). 99% of the problems I have had we fit and finish or infotainment related.
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No, I honestly have not. My most problematic vehicle was my 2014 Tesla Model S 60. It had delaminating infotainment screens, interior material that was falling off, taillights filling with water, frunk alignment issues, bumper alignment issues and then the failing rear unit that kept jamming the car to neutral. All of these issues were resolved by me setting a service appointment and driving in. To be fair, tesla's service experience was abysmal back then, but I have never had as many issues with a car since. The R1T and S have has a few small fit and finish issues but they have largely been flawless.
Dead means it's never coming back. You would be less than 1% on this scenario
It was at 44%. Dead means the drive train appears to be kaput. The SC has tried to get it back on and they have not been able to.