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Rivian Developing Service Menu to Let Owners Handle Repairs Like 12V Battery Replacements
Zack from JerryRigEverything called out Rivian this week after learning it costs $775 to replace the two 12-volt batteries in his R1T, and Rivian wouldn’t even sell him the parts to do it himself. He said Rivian warned that using off-the-shelf batteries could void his warranty, which sparked a ton of frustration in the community.
Rivian’s VP of Software, Wassym Bensaid, jumped in to respond. He said the issue isn’t intentional and that replacing those batteries currently requires a diagnostic tool to clear error codes. Rivian’s apparently working on a new Service menu inside the vehicle that’ll let owners handle simple fixes like this on their own.
Honestly, this is one of those growing pains for newer automakers. The right-to-repair debate isn’t going away anytime soon, and EV owners definitely want more control over basic maintenance.
If you know how to get into the RiDE menu, you can clear the 12v warnings after a battery change without special access on the current software version.
There are many YouTube videos out there that show how to do this.
Right, the RiDE menu is great but it won’t solve the full issues expressed.
Rivian considers fuse box diagrams top secret information, so I am not holding my breath for repair info to be released. Bigger problems in the US, but I hope someday we have right to repair laws that force companies to make repair info, parts and tools to be made available.
I find the cost extreme. The 12v battery in my 2019 Model 3 died. Tesla drove to my house and installed it right there. Out of warranty, total cost battery and labor was $100. Yes, surprised me too. The tiny 12v battery in our Prius cost $384 and we had to install ourselves.
I unjust had both of my 12v batteries replaced, and was equally frustrated by the cost. Then I watched the replacement take place since it was mobile. I watched the full exercise. I would not have wanted to do it myself, and I am good enough around cars to thought I could do it myself. It was a lot of labor, working in tight spaces, specific orders of operation, etc. If I were to have bought the batteries myself, that would have been over $500. The $250 I paid to have it done with no stress and no risk was in the end, very worth it. This is not changing the 12v of an ICE vehicle by any stretch. Crazy it is that complicated and have to remove that much stuff. But, you do.
I don’t see why people say it’s complex and hard. All you do is pop the cowl cover, pop out the fresh air intake to the cabin filter, then unbolt the cables on top of the batteries. Dual battery you also just need to remove the bolt holding on the frunk insert but that’s it. Single battery is even easier. I watched the guy swap mine in 10 minutes. There is videos on YT that show it as well. ICE batteries can be far more complex, especially when they hide them under the seat or like Chrysler when they put it in the front fender well and you had to remove the tire.
Honestly, I don’t think $700 is all that expensive for changing TWO batteries. BMW charged me 900 to swap a single 12v on my i3 8 years ago; that hurt! Rivian isn’t making huge profits charging $700 for this.
1) For two batteries, not a bad cost when you look at what it takes to disassemble and reassemble everything.
2) The battery has custom terminal locations so you’re still going to have to buy the battery from Rivian at whatever price they set.
3) I think the bigger frustration is that you still can’t roll into a Rivian SC and do simple service like this on the spot.
Just had my 12v replaced by mobile tech as part of the new warranty recall on the Gen2s … Watched the tech and it’s a lot more complicated than a Gen1 switch (they moved the battery under passenger seat) so I agree I wouldn’t have wanted to do that myself. But hopefully they prioritize easier repair designs in the future.