Photo: @OutofSpecDetail via X
Rivian is preparing to end the year with impressive delivery results as production has finally ramped up. The hundreds of vehicles piling up at service centers indicate that logistics might start to be a problem unless Rivian manages to send all these EVs to their owners in time.
We're fast approaching the end of the third quarter, and carmakers are busy trying to expedite deliveries. Tesla traditionally uses all the tricks in the book to deliver as many cars as possible in the last weeks of every quarter. This allows it to report impressive delivery numbers when the time comes and is willing to spare no effort to convince people to buy its EVs. Rivian appears to follow the same recipe and is gearing up to deliver a record number of vehicles in the third quarter.
A recent video shared online shows hundreds of R1S and R1T vehicles awaiting delivery on a service center's lot in Denver, Colorado. According to a Rivian Updates order survey, Colorado is the state with the most Rivian deliveries per capita, which explains why the Denver Service Center appears so busy. The pictures show that production of the R1 models has caught up with demand and might soon outstrip it unless Rivian improves logistics.
If that were a traditional carmaker, I'd say Rivian is having problems finding buyers for its vehicles, so they clog parking lots while waiting for new customers. Still, based on past experience, Rivian doesn't deliver cars to service centers unless they are assigned to their buyers. This indicates that many people will get their Rivian in the next two weeks, in time for the end of the quarter. It also shows that Rivian is facing a logistics nightmare coming its way as production ramps up.
Most of the vehicles in Denver are R1S SUVs, and one Rivian fan shared that they found out the EVs are available to purchase from the R1 Shop. This contradicts the theory that vehicles are only delivered to Service Centers after customers pay for them. Rivian has started to offer more units through its R1 Shop. Reservation holders who live near service centers can request access to the Shop and select a configuration from the inventory. This way, they can significantly reduce the waiting time by choosing a readily-available configuration instead of waiting for theirs to be built.
This also optimizes production for Rivian, as it can produce the most efficient configuration at a particular time based on parts and trim availability. Assembling large batches of vehicles is always more efficient than changing configurations repeatedly. This production optimization allows Rivian to express confidence that it will meet its 52,000-unit production guidance in 2023. Rivian also improved profitability as production costs have dropped by about 25%, mainly thanks to using the Enduro motors.
A recent video shared online shows hundreds of R1S and R1T vehicles awaiting delivery on a service center's lot in Denver, Colorado. According to a Rivian Updates order survey, Colorado is the state with the most Rivian deliveries per capita, which explains why the Denver Service Center appears so busy. The pictures show that production of the R1 models has caught up with demand and might soon outstrip it unless Rivian improves logistics.
If that were a traditional carmaker, I'd say Rivian is having problems finding buyers for its vehicles, so they clog parking lots while waiting for new customers. Still, based on past experience, Rivian doesn't deliver cars to service centers unless they are assigned to their buyers. This indicates that many people will get their Rivian in the next two weeks, in time for the end of the quarter. It also shows that Rivian is facing a logistics nightmare coming its way as production ramps up.
Most of the vehicles in Denver are R1S SUVs, and one Rivian fan shared that they found out the EVs are available to purchase from the R1 Shop. This contradicts the theory that vehicles are only delivered to Service Centers after customers pay for them. Rivian has started to offer more units through its R1 Shop. Reservation holders who live near service centers can request access to the Shop and select a configuration from the inventory. This way, they can significantly reduce the waiting time by choosing a readily-available configuration instead of waiting for theirs to be built.
This also optimizes production for Rivian, as it can produce the most efficient configuration at a particular time based on parts and trim availability. Assembling large batches of vehicles is always more efficient than changing configurations repeatedly. This production optimization allows Rivian to express confidence that it will meet its 52,000-unit production guidance in 2023. Rivian also improved profitability as production costs have dropped by about 25%, mainly thanks to using the Enduro motors.
Absolutely insane how many @Rivian’s are at our local service center in Denver. This is a small fraction of the R1T’s and R1S’s awaiting delivery. Wow! pic.twitter.com/Ahb3dZ6D80
— Coleton Guerin (@OutofSpecDetail) September 11, 2023
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