- After the R1T skidded to a stop, mysterious smoke began to enter the cabin.
- There’s no word on what caused the reported catastrophic failure of this Rivian.
- Fortunately for the owner, the truck seized up on a small neighborhood street.
Electric vehicles are often celebrated as a glimpse of the future, but real-world ownership can sometimes deliver a harsher reality. While the Rivian R1T has earned plenty of praise since its release, there have been recurring stories about reliability issues and inconsistent service experiences.
A recent account from one Rivian owner in the United States highlights the kind of breakdown that could make potential buyers pause before signing on the dotted line.
Read: Bricked Screens, Greasy Fingerprints – A Rivian Driver’s Frustrating Service Journey
According to this driver, his nine-month old R1T abruptly locked up while he was cruising through his neighborhood, leaving him no choice but to call for a tow. He shared the experience on Reddit, where he expressed doubts about the truck’s reliability and Rivian’s response in situations like this.
A Sudden Breakdown
The owner says that while he was slowing to a stop in the green R1T, the vehicle seized up, the wheels skidded, and the entire EV shuddered. Moments later, it randomly shifted into neutral, and every warning light was illuminated on the instrument cluster. The issues didn’t stop there as a “terrible smelling smoke” then started to enter the cabin from under the center console.
To make matters worse, he says he had to stay inside the pickup as smoke filled the cabin because if he dared to lift his foot off the brake pedal, he says the Rivian would roll have backward.
Understandably, the incident has left the owner rather shaken. In the past, he questioned what could have happened had the alleged catastrophic failure occurred while he was driving on the highway, or if there were other cars nearby. “I could have slammed into someone! I can’t trust this vehicle ever again. I wouldn’t let my family be in it,” he wrote in the post.
The Towing Headache
The process of towing the vehicle also proved to be quite a headache for the owner. He says he decided to use his roadside insurance to get the R1T towed to a local Rivian service center, but was then given a “five-minute lecture” from a Rivian representative for not calling the carmaker directly.
“When I called Rivian support to confirm that my tow truck could just take it straight to the service center I had to listen to the rep lecture me on how I should have called Rivian first and not have used my roadside insurance,” he said.
“Seriously a five minute lecture while my foot was on the brake, my hand was propping the door slightly ajar so I could air out the cabin, all the while trying to signal to traffic to go around (people were nicely stopping and asking if I was alright),” the owner added.
Also: Rivian Owner’s Quality And Service Nightmares Expose The Pain Of Being A ‘Beta Tester’
At the time of writing, the owner hadn’t provided any updates about their electric pickup, and didn’t mention if Rivian had looked at the EV to determine what the problem was. If the incident unfolded as the owner claims, then it seems likely the R1T suffered either a serious mechanical or electrical malfunction, which left it stranded.
Rough R1T Experience – Will never go Rivian again
byu/lekun inRivian
Lead image Reddit u/lekun
