You can't make this type of failure up. Watching these people with more money than brains is hilarious. It's truly no wonder why 1 out of 5 EV buyers go back to ICE after a myriad of major headaches and disappointing performance and other "back to reality" moments.
From the files of overpromising and underdelivering, the EV + nanny-state technology is defeated by a couple INCHESfeet of snow.
Note my ICE pickup will move thru 2.5 feet of snow like it's barely there. Done so, many times. Snow, mud, you name it. Never been stuck. And when new it cost 1/2 the price of this Rivian, adjusted for inflation.
Edited: The article claims 2.5 feet of snow. The pictures in post #2, show about 8 inches of snow.
Chase Merrill ... was unsure about making the switch from his 2015 Ford Edge to a fully electric SUV, especially since he lives in a relatively remote area in the Adirondack Mountains in New York.... Got behind the wheel of the $85,626 car, .... "I was in a honeymoon phase," Merrill said in an interview with Insider. "It's an incredible car, and it handles unlike anything I've ever driven."
The honeymoon didn't last long. Two days later, Merrill drove his R1S to his family's shared property in the mountains. He wanted to put his rugged electric SUV to the test, so he drove it on the unplowed, snow-covered road into the property.
At first, the R1S sliced through the snow. Then, a large snowdrift stymied the car, he said. "I hit about 2 ½-feet of snow and it just stopped right there," Merrill said. "I had seen all the Rivian marketing campaigns with the cars just eating through the snow so it was kind of like, man this is disappointing."
Merrill said he's dislodged cars from snow banks before, and enlisted another vehicle to help pull him out. While he was sitting in the driver's seat, unbuckled, rocking the R1S out of the snow bank, he said he accidentally triggered a safety feature that got the car stuck between the park and drive gears. His Rivian was bricked, rendering it completely useless.
The brand new Rivian ultimately had to be loaded onto a flatbed and driven to a service center in Chelsea, Massachusetts, hundreds of miles away. The towing fee was $2,100.
The ordeal now has Merrill considering trading the R1S for a Toyota Tacoma or a similar gas-powered pickup truck, he said.
In an interview with Insider, Rivian executives said the car did exactly what it was programmed to do in a dangerous slide-away situation. But in this case, it wasn't sliding away.
Merrill isn't the first early Rivian fan to start souring on the company. Rivian has had trouble keeping some of its order-holders happy as it navigates the early days of full production for its three electric vehicles.
From the files of overpromising and underdelivering, the EV + nanny-state technology is defeated by a couple INCHES
Note my ICE pickup will move thru 2.5 feet of snow like it's barely there. Done so, many times. Snow, mud, you name it. Never been stuck. And when new it cost 1/2 the price of this Rivian, adjusted for inflation.
Edited: The article claims 2.5 feet of snow. The pictures in post #2, show about 8 inches of snow.
A Rivian buyer waited 3 years for his dream car. It died within days.
Two days after it arrived, Chase Merrill's electric R1S SUV was bricked in the snow. The company said it would cost $2,100 to transport for repairs.
www.businessinsider.com
Chase Merrill ... was unsure about making the switch from his 2015 Ford Edge to a fully electric SUV, especially since he lives in a relatively remote area in the Adirondack Mountains in New York.... Got behind the wheel of the $85,626 car, .... "I was in a honeymoon phase," Merrill said in an interview with Insider. "It's an incredible car, and it handles unlike anything I've ever driven."
The honeymoon didn't last long. Two days later, Merrill drove his R1S to his family's shared property in the mountains. He wanted to put his rugged electric SUV to the test, so he drove it on the unplowed, snow-covered road into the property.
At first, the R1S sliced through the snow. Then, a large snowdrift stymied the car, he said. "I hit about 2 ½-feet of snow and it just stopped right there," Merrill said. "I had seen all the Rivian marketing campaigns with the cars just eating through the snow so it was kind of like, man this is disappointing."
Merrill said he's dislodged cars from snow banks before, and enlisted another vehicle to help pull him out. While he was sitting in the driver's seat, unbuckled, rocking the R1S out of the snow bank, he said he accidentally triggered a safety feature that got the car stuck between the park and drive gears. His Rivian was bricked, rendering it completely useless.
The brand new Rivian ultimately had to be loaded onto a flatbed and driven to a service center in Chelsea, Massachusetts, hundreds of miles away. The towing fee was $2,100.
The ordeal now has Merrill considering trading the R1S for a Toyota Tacoma or a similar gas-powered pickup truck, he said.
In an interview with Insider, Rivian executives said the car did exactly what it was programmed to do in a dangerous slide-away situation. But in this case, it wasn't sliding away.
Merrill isn't the first early Rivian fan to start souring on the company. Rivian has had trouble keeping some of its order-holders happy as it navigates the early days of full production for its three electric vehicles.
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