The canceled trim means order holders, no matter how old, won’t get the truck they want.
Rivian will refund deposits if order holders do not upgrade to the Adventure trim.
The American EV start-up company has done it twice this year, and that severely upsets its legions of fans and customers. In an email recently sent out to pre-order holders, Rivian has informed would-be owners that they will no longer be able to get a base Explore trim, leaving only the more expensive Adventure version.
One if not the main motivation behind the decision is simplifying the production process and delivering as many vehicles as possible. In other words, dropping the Explore trim from both the R1T truck and R1S SUV will enable Rivian to streamline its supply chain. A related motivation is the net loss of $1.71 billion for Q2 2022 – essentially, Rivian needs to deliver.
The email sent out to pre-order holders states: “We recognize you may choose to cancel and have your deposit refunded due to this news.” According to MSN, customers who’d ordered an Explore trim can either cancel their order and receive a full refund or upgrade to an Adventure.
While the base price gap was nearly $6,000, some customers, because of their selected configuration, may see an $8,000 or greater increase. Unlike the announced 20% price hike back in March, Rivian’s unlikely to go back on this decision.
