2023 Rivian R1S

The specific failed component is UNKNOWN. My 2023 Rivian R1S has experienced recurring intermittent Limited Performance/loss-of-propulsion-type events since within months of delivery. The events involve unexpected reduction of available propulsion, reduced maximum speed, warnings, restarts, system/display restarts, and at times inability to move or change gears. Rivian documented Limited Performance while driving in January 2024. In March 2024, Rivian documented loss of propulsion and an approximately 10 mph maximum speed; a reset and sleep cycle did not correct the condition. Rivian later stated it could not reproduce the concern. In March 2026, Rivian documented Limited Performance while driving, the vehicle coming to a stop, and multiple restarts before it would move. On September 4, 2026, the vehicle again entered Limited Performance and would not exceed approximately 20 mph. After a restart, it operated normally. Rivian received the vehicle for service on September 7. On September 9, Rivian stated that initial testing did not duplicate the Limited Performance telltale, that it had no confirmed repair, and that it proposed an extended approximately 100-mile test drive to try to reproduce the issue. I retained photos and videos of additional events involving reduced speed, warnings, restarts, and inability to move. The intermittent loss or reduction of propulsion while driving can affect my ability to maintain safe speed and creates a potential crash risk. There was no crash, injury, or fire in the incidents described.

On XXX, at approximately 12:19 PM, I was in the drive-through lane at a Chick-fil-A in [XXX], with my child as a passenger. I was using one-pedal driving mode and had come to a complete stop with my foot off the accelerator. I turned briefly to hand my child an ice cream cup, and when I looked back at the road, the vehicle was accelerating at full power with no contact from either pedal. To avoid striking the vehicles stopped ahead of me in the drive-through line, I swerved left into the Chick-fil-A building, causing a collision with the building. This put myself, my child, and nearby pedestrians and drivers at serious risk of injury. Cedar Park Police Department responded to the scene and a report was filed. I have video footage of the incident. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I believe the accelerator pedal and/or its sensor malfunctioned, possibly related to a known issue some other Rivian owners have reported involving cabin temperature affecting the pedal sensor; this has not yet been confirmed by a dealer or manufacturer. I am requesting that the manufacturer pull the vehicle’s black box/EDR data and perform full diagnostics on the pedal and sensor. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The vehicle's infotainment, driver gauge cluster and on display safety systems all fully lock up and reboot after about 30 minutes of driving. If you have highway ADAS engaged, warning sounds will occur but no display explaining the warnings. If you're using the vehicle's safety systems you suddenly do no have blindspot monitoring, or enabled ADAS. Additionally, navigation will not be available causing immediate confusion.

The contact owns a 2023 Rivian R1S. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the message "Electrical System Fault - Contact Rivian Service Immediately - Avoid Fording" was displayed along with a picture of the vehicle in water. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was an internal short circuit in the HVAC system due to water intrusion or condensation from the HVAC system. The dealer determined that the HVAC system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 69,000.

On five separate occasions the airbag system on my car has become inoperable. Starting in July 2025 I noticed an airbag error on the display of the vehicle. I brought the car in for service and they replaced the steering wheel. The airbag error occurred again in August, this time requiring replacement of a different wiring harness. The error occurred again and again went in for service in November, this time replacing the front seats, seatbelt control modules, and the airbag module. This past weekend the air bag alert appeared again. Rivian seems unable to fix the issue with the airbags on my vehicle creating a significant safety concern.

I pulled into my semicircle, long driveway as I do every morning, and stopped at the top by releasing my foot off the accelerator (no need for brakes as it is an EV). I opened the garage door and slowly stepped on the accelerator, but it started to go fast, and I felt out of control. I immediately released my foot off the accelerator (which should have stopped the vehicle) and slammed on the brakes (there is proof in my driveway with tire marks leading up to the accident) but still did not stop. I quickly realized I was going to crash into the garage, and possibly into the house, so I steered away as much as I could to only drive into and through the side of the garage wall. The space I had would have given me enough time to stop had the car not been driving at a fast speed. Even the neighbors heard braking and ran outside to see what was happening. There is a recording on a ring cam, and you can hear him say "I heard brakes". Oddly, the massive impact did not deploy the airbags. Also, the car usually records all incidents with time before and after (it has successfully done this before when I was rear ended and will if you get too close to anything), but for some reason it recorded what was labeled "incident" and you can only see me pulling into the driveway, the garage door going up, and then the video stops - no record of the crash. The car should have also detected the house. The car only stopped after driving through concrete and stucco, and up the stairs. House has massive damage, personal items in the garage destroyed, and the vehicle is possibly unsalvageable. It took until the next day to see if we could remove the vehicle from my house, but it is now at the service center and Rivian has been notified. I've since researched online and found countless similar incidents.

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? — ACCELERATOR PEDAL. YES, AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? — DUE TO ACCELERATOR PEDAL DEFECT, IT RESULTED IN ONE CASUALTY AND ONE INJURY. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? — YES, SERVICE RECALLS HAVE BEEN FOR THE SAME ISSUE WITH PRIOR MODELS. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? — CURRENTLY IN POLICE CUSTODY Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? — NO WARNING SIGNS.

I received a critical safety recall regarding side air bags from Rivian regarding my 2023 R1S on June 14. After multiple attempts by me to connect with their Customer Service, I was informed that a mobile service technician would come to fix the issue on August 26, 2024. This would be more than 60 days after Rivian's initial notification. Additionally, on July 6 2024, when I turned on the vehicle, I was notified of multiple system failures. I promptly created an incident ticket with Rivian on this but have to yet hear back from Rivian. Rivian's lax attitude on getting such critical issues fixed is of great concern. The vehicle is barely over a year old since I have owned it and I feel distrustful of this company and thoroughly disappointed by their nonchalant approach to getting these critical issues fixed.

(1) Q: What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? A: "Critical Battery Issue" + "Electrical Hazard Possible; Drive to service center immediately. Avoid driving through water" + "Coming to emergency stop soon; Steer to safety and park" (2) Q: How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? A: (1) The car abruptly stopped near a corner in middle of street blocking the street, police had to intervene with traffic *potential for collision/pedestrian strike (2) The car had no electrical, completely blacked out and HAZARD lights didn't work when Police asked to turn them on, nothing would turn on **potential for collision (3) Car was blacked out with all windows down, doors unlocked and unable to get into compartments of vehicle to remove personal items of value due to all electrical being backed out *potential safety / theft concern Police ended up towing due to Rivian being unable to locate a tow in a timely manner the incident occurred at 4:30pm and Police politely waited for Rivian until her 6:30 and then called their local tow yard for secure space for unresponsive unit blocking street (3) Q: Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? A: Not sure - It took Rivian until 11:30am the next day to coordinate a pick up from local tow yard where Police mandated tow due to Rivian being unable to clear a hazard blocking the street (4) Q: Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? A: The local Police were on scene and were highly accommodating directing traffic to mitigate any potential safety issues for pedestrians, drivers and on-lookers. Rivian hasn't shared anything at all and its 24hours+ after the incident (5) Q: Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? A: Yes, as listed above in #1