Over the past week, sleuths over on Rivian forums spotted updates to the EV startup’s vehicle warranties, and it has well and truly thrown down the gauntlet to all other manufacturers with its five-year, 60,000-mile comprehensive warranty. I’m not surprised if warranties don’t get you as hot under the collar as they do me, so bear with it.
What makes Rivian’s warranty so good?
Typically, car warranties cover two things, time or miles driven, whichever comes first. It’s quite common for carmakers to offer a comprehensive three year, or 36,000 mile, warranty. If you drive more than 36,000 miles in three years, then your warranty expires. That’s what “whichever comes first” means. Rivian’s warranty, however, squeezes a little more out of that. According to the company’s website, the comprehensive warranty covers, “The cost of all parts and labor necessary for any defective materials are covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first.” The EV maker also offers a very impressive corrosion warranty too. Rivian is covering all body panels for eight years, with unlimited miles. This is two years longer than Land Rover’s corrosion warranty. Given that its vehicles are intended to be used off-road, in dirty and wet conditions, this is great to see.
Beyond the usual
However, because Rivian is an electric carmaker it also offers warranty on its battery, motors, and drivetrain components. It’s safe to say its battery and drivetrain warranties are beyond great, they are the best for any electric carmaker. Rivian says it will cover all components inside its high-voltage battery pack, for eight years or 175,000 miles. While covering the pack for eight years is quite common, usually other manufacturers remove cover after 100,000 miles.
Drivetrain
As for the drivetrain, that’s also covered for eight years and 175,000 miles, whichever comes first. The best bit of all though, is Rivian’s warranty is super clear, understandable, and doesn’t appear to leave much wiggle room for the company to charge customers for repairs by claiming it’s not covered by the warranty. What’s more, Rivian’s warranty applies to all of its vehicles, and all the components unless otherwise stated. Sure it only makes two models right now, but the wording suggests it’ll have one warranty that will apply to all of its cars. Not like Tesla, where every vehicle has a slightly different warranty, and not all components are included. Self-driving cars are exciting and all, but this is the kind of simple disruption is what the motor industry actually needs.
Looking good
Of course, we’ll have to wait for owners to start submitting warranty claims to see how Rivian responds, but so far it’s looking good. The robust and clear warranty should give potential buyers a generous helping of confidence too. It’s always a bit of an unknown, buying into a new car brand which has no track record for reliability. Knowing you’re covered by a solid warranty is great for peace of mind. If something does go wrong, it’s just an inconvenience — not a financially ruinous incident. Hopefully other EV makers will follow in Rivian’s footsteps by simplifying and strengthening their warranties. If you want more detail on how Rivian’s warranty stacks up against the competition, John Goreham over on Torque News did a great comparison. Check it out here. I hope you’re as excited about warranties as I am now. Do EVs excite your electrons? Do ebikes get your wheels spinning? Do self-driving cars get you all charged up? Then you need the weekly SHIFT newsletter in your life. Click here to sign up.
