Spent 3 hours in a Rivian R1S - comparing it to the Mach E

[SWO]

The 3-12% battery drain per day figure is literally from Rivian. Seems most are on the lower end of that figure, but still disappointing.

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[Cm12]

I’ll add a few more comparison notes:

Heated steering wheel in the Mach E is phenomenal. Best of any car I’ve driven. The material on the steering wheel is awesome and showed absolutely no wear over 14 months. Regular leather steering wheels are nice too, but they oftentimes lose that “new” feeling. TBD on the Rivian.

Heated seats are great in both.

I thought not having CarPlay would be a major issue for me - turns out, I’m doing fine. Google Maps has a “send to Rivian” button and it instantly appears on my nav. Works super well. The audio quality of having a dedicated Spotify app is SO much better than CarPlay or BT (you have to be a Spotify user, obviously, which not everyone is). On the plus side, I don’t have to wait for CarPlay to connect which was frequently an issue with the Mach E. I can just get in and it plays. The native Spotify app is much more functional than Spotify on CarPlay

Calls still work just fine. I’d like to have the CarPlay option, sure, but it’s been fine for me.

The backseat of the Rivian is very upright. It’s not uncomfortable IMO, but a rear-facing car seat is a real issue to get in. Although the Rivian seems to have more legroom and is bigger for adults, the geometry of the Mach E easily allows for a rear-facing car seat. I have to scoot the Rivian seat way forward.

 

[mkhuffman]

The 3-12% battery drain per day figure is literally from Rivian. Seems most are on the lower end of that figure, but still disappointing.

I sort of understand the drain when Gear Guard is turned on, but when it is off it should be like the MME. Even on though it seems excessive.

It is not a problem if you can always plug in. But if you arrive at the airport with a low charge, what do you do?

 

[MachEMaster]

I have yet to see a Rivian in the wild. Very elusive, unlike the White Tesla.

 

[ElectrikPony]

No matter how great a Rivian is I just can’t buy one with those ugly oval headlights. Seriously hideous .

 

[tesla2mme]

How does it possibly survive after 5 seconds of full throttle without turning into a potato?

 

[Guss-E 2021]

I was really excited about Rivian and I still hope they succeed (though I worry people are buying cars they won't be able to get serviced in 5 years...), but their vampire drain is atrocious and "showstopper" for me.

TFL did a video on this recently and, though Rivian has come out with multiple updates to supposedly address the issue, they released a statement saying that 3-12% battery drain overnight is "normal."

1. I have a crowded driveway and plugging in every night isn't possible.
2. Battery drain like that really makes mileage tests like Out Of Spec does pretty worthless. What good is the more efficient vehicle if you lose 10% of your battery overnight when you get to your destination? A Rivian might get better mileage/kwh than a Lightning, but it will cost more to power over a year.

I was just reading about this (vampire drain) on InsideEVs. Seems to be confirmed in the article comments by some Rivian owners. EV Buyers Guide (Alex) also had an issue with it while the Lightning parked next to it did not appear to.

I really do not hover over my range and SoC. My daily driving is just too minimal and I plug in each night. So I'm unlikely to notice any Mach-E vampire drain. I'm curious to know if anyone else has observed a (meaningful) loss of charge while idle with the MME?

UPDATE: Just noticed several posts included comments that the MME does not appear to suffer from vampire drain similar to its larger sibling. Nice work out of the gate Ford

 

[mkhuffman]

I was just reading about this (vampire drain) on InsideEVs. Seems to be confirmed in the article comments by some Rivian owners. EV Buyers Guide (Alex) also had an issue with it while the Lightning parked next to it did not appear to.

I really do not hover over my range and SoC. My daily driving is just too minimal and I plug in each night. So I'm unlikely to notice any Mach-E vampire drain. I'm curious to know if anyone else has observed a (meaningful) loss of charge while idle with the MME?

UPDATE: Just noticed several posts included comments that the MME does not appear to suffer from vampire drain similar to its larger sibling. Nice work out of the gate Ford

There is no vampire drain in the MME. Mine has been unused and unplugged for days and the SoC doesn't change. I can park at the airport and know the charge will be the same as I left it even if I am gone for a week or two.

 

[Guss-E 2021]

There is no vampire drain in the MME. Mine has been unused and unplugged for days and the SoC doesn't change. I can park at the airport and know the charge will be the same as I left it even if I am gone for a week or two.

Thanks MK

 

[WJKramer]

I have a 2021 Mach-E GT and my delivery window is quickly approaching for my wife's R1S. It is a LOT of money and I am unsure if we will go through with the transaction but I can't wait to get rid of the Honda minivan.

 

[Maquis]

I’ll add a few more comparison notes:

Heated steering wheel in the Mach E is phenomenal. Best of any car I’ve driven. The material on the steering wheel is awesome and showed absolutely no wear over 14 months. Regular leather steering wheels are nice too, but they oftentimes lose that “new” feeling. TBD on the Rivian.

Heated seats are great in both.

I thought not having CarPlay would be a major issue for me - turns out, I’m doing fine. Google Maps has a “send to Rivian” button and it instantly appears on my nav. Works super well. The audio quality of having a dedicated Spotify app is SO much better than CarPlay or BT (you have to be a Spotify user, obviously, which not everyone is). On the plus side, I don’t have to wait for CarPlay to connect which was frequently an issue with the Mach E. I can just get in and it plays. The native Spotify app is much more functional than Spotify on CarPlay

Calls still work just fine. I’d like to have the CarPlay option, sure, but it’s been fine for me.

The backseat of the Rivian is very upright. It’s not uncomfortable IMO, but a rear-facing car seat is a real issue to get in. Although the Rivian seems to have more legroom and is bigger for adults, the geometry of the Mach E easily allows for a rear-facing car seat. I have to scoot the Rivian seat way forward.

At risk of detailing this thread, have you driven your Mach any long distances using the heated seats and/or steering wheel? Mine both fade badly after an hour or so. So much that you can’t even tell the wheel has heat. I have to turn the seat from 1 to 2 after an hour to keep the same comfort level.

 

[gryphon]

my delivery window is quickly approaching for my wife's R1S.

Wow, when did you put in your reservation?

 

[Fremont Kid]

I live in Bloomington where they are being manufactured. This city loves EVs in general which is atypical for downstate Illinois. RIvian vehicles are everywhere around town, easily the second most common BEV after the Tesla Model 3. There are two just in my neighborhood.

They are outstanding vehicles. I got to look over both an R1T and R1S recently and wanted to buy one, which brings me to a major con...

- The wait list is over 12 months at this point.

I live just west between Carlock and Congerville.

 

[WJKramer]

Wow, when did you put in your reservation?

May of 2022 and my current delivery window is May-June 2023. They decided to prioritize dual motor configurations in the last update so we jumped ahead of people still waiting 3+ years. Also post price hike which probably helps their bottom line as the company seems to be struggling a bit lately. I wasn't expecting delivery till 2024 and will likely delay our delivery date. Also no one has reached out to us for a test drive yet. I am waiting for guide contact to ask for that.

 

[gryphon]

May of 2022 and my current delivery window is May-June 2023. They decided to prioritize dual motor configurations in the last update so we jumped ahead of people still waiting 3+ years. Also post price hike which probably helps their bottom line as the company seems to be struggling a bit lately. I wasn't expecting delivery till 2024 and will likely delay our delivery date. Also no one has reached out to us for a test drive yet. I am waiting for guide contact to ask for that.

Just to clarify, you are saying that they are prioritizing dual-engine models over the quad-engine models? Was this information in an e-mail from them or third-party sources?

I'm a fairly recent reservation holder (late November) and I wasn't even thinking about checking on my reservation status until the end of this year, so your post caught my attention.

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