Photo: Rivian | Edited
People who wish to buy a Rivian R1T or R1S with the Max Pack battery will have to wait longer before they can choose their configuration. Rivian has sent Max Pack reservation holders a letter explaining that it needs to sort out the configurator before people can choose their configuration. The EV startup still has no delivery windows for the Max Pack trims.
Rivian may have been the first company to launch an electric pickup truck, but it’s still far from making its customers happy. When it launched the R1T, the startup promised three battery specifications - Standard, Large, and Max, along with dual-motor and quad-motor configurations. Like many other EV startups, Rivian intended to launch with the more expensive versions first, as it maximizes income and, possibly, profit.
Nevertheless, things didn’t go exactly as planned, as Rivian was affected more than other carmakers by component shortages and supply chain constraints. In these difficult economic conditions, the EV maker had to prioritize what it could deliver faster to more customers, so it decided to go with the quad-motor variant with the Large battery pack. Although reservation holders could still switch to this configuration for speedy delivery, many chose to wait until their dream truck was available.
Things again went in the wrong direction, and last December, Rivian announced that people should forget the quad-motor AWD and Max Pack combination in 2023. Those who had already placed an order still hung on to their reservations in the hope Rivian would finally be able to deliver their configuration. Based on another letter Rivian sent on Thursday, this would not be the case. All reservation holders who preordered a Quad-Motor/Max pack truck would have to choose either a Max pack with Dual-Motor or a Max Pack with Dual-Motor Enhanced.
Even those configurations are not guaranteed availability. According to the letter, Rivian missed the deadline to offer its customers a delivery window for their configurations and would not be able to offer one until at least April. Rivian blamed some “necessary changes to the configurator” for this problem, which it said should be solved by April. The letter also nudges reservation holders to opt for a vehicle already in the R1 Shop inventory.
Of course, reservation holders aren’t happy. The delay means that Rivian would not have news for its customers for another two months at least. Even then, it might be possible to announce further delays, as it has done in the past. People are not even buying into Rivian’s claim that the configurator is at fault. Most believe it’s a production problem, and the EV startup takes its time to update the configurator to reflect what’s realistically deliverable.
Some think Tesla might launch the Cybertruck sooner than Rivian would launch the Max pack with Quad-Motor AWD configuration. Or, God forbid, GM, the Chevrolet Silverado EV. The truth is that there are options on the market for those who want an electric pickup truck, and these options will soon multiply.
Nevertheless, things didn’t go exactly as planned, as Rivian was affected more than other carmakers by component shortages and supply chain constraints. In these difficult economic conditions, the EV maker had to prioritize what it could deliver faster to more customers, so it decided to go with the quad-motor variant with the Large battery pack. Although reservation holders could still switch to this configuration for speedy delivery, many chose to wait until their dream truck was available.
Things again went in the wrong direction, and last December, Rivian announced that people should forget the quad-motor AWD and Max Pack combination in 2023. Those who had already placed an order still hung on to their reservations in the hope Rivian would finally be able to deliver their configuration. Based on another letter Rivian sent on Thursday, this would not be the case. All reservation holders who preordered a Quad-Motor/Max pack truck would have to choose either a Max pack with Dual-Motor or a Max Pack with Dual-Motor Enhanced.
Even those configurations are not guaranteed availability. According to the letter, Rivian missed the deadline to offer its customers a delivery window for their configurations and would not be able to offer one until at least April. Rivian blamed some “necessary changes to the configurator” for this problem, which it said should be solved by April. The letter also nudges reservation holders to opt for a vehicle already in the R1 Shop inventory.
Of course, reservation holders aren’t happy. The delay means that Rivian would not have news for its customers for another two months at least. Even then, it might be possible to announce further delays, as it has done in the past. People are not even buying into Rivian’s claim that the configurator is at fault. Most believe it’s a production problem, and the EV startup takes its time to update the configurator to reflect what’s realistically deliverable.
Some think Tesla might launch the Cybertruck sooner than Rivian would launch the Max pack with Quad-Motor AWD configuration. Or, God forbid, GM, the Chevrolet Silverado EV. The truth is that there are options on the market for those who want an electric pickup truck, and these options will soon multiply.
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