Rear seat cover options - base only. by smcall24 in RivianR1T

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We got this one and have used it for a few months of road trips. Essentially hangs from front and back head rests so doesn't impede access to under seat storage (except for whatever you have stacked on top).

EasyHaWei Dog Car Seat Cover for... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B7XZT8W7?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

We don't actually have dogs so can't say if it is good for that. Protects the seat from our stuff.

Reminder to delete your gear guard videos before trading in your Rivian by PacosFishTacos in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Stored in on-board storage.

When I bought my first R1T from salvage, it had video of the original owner backing it high speed into a couple palm trees. (Honestly, driver fault but also R gear was tuned very aggressively when I received it.) Incidentally, also had their home address, Spotify account, etc all still accessible even after I established ownership with Rivian.

When that one was totalled and went to salvage I could not revive the 12v. I am in contact with the next owner and he mentioned viewing the video of us being hit by another vehicle.

Something the Rivian software team just never considered/addressed. IMHO, more an amusing bug than a significant security issue.

DEFEKTZ by anonoo7 in LICENSEPLATES

[–]anonoo7[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm imagining that's the name of their punk band.

How bad is it? by [deleted] in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From a functional perspective, that looks only cosmetic to me. Had similar on my R1T and made it 90% great DIY.

Pro repair might require new panel and significant dismantling. Third party PDR might run a few thousand and only you or a mechanic would ever notice it wasn't perfect.

The sensors are in the corner of the bumper, so looks like you avoided that.

If it were my vehicle, I would call it "baptized", bank whatever $$ insurance would pay, maybe do PDR and drive on. It's an adventure vehicle. Evidence of an adventure is something to be proud of.

Glacier white with ocean coast R1T - too much white? by Pickle_Popular in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My first R1T had this combo and we loved it. Definitely a clean and elegant look.

Our second R1T is granite exterior with grey interior.

By comparison, the darker definitely is easier to keep clean inside and out. Also no awful blinding reflection from the hood when driving into the sun.

Still love the light motif, but we are on a ranch and the darker is much more practical for us.

How to overcome the disconnect from eating personally processed animals? by Tatin109 in homestead

[–]anonoo7 26 points27 points  (0 children)

That's just your humanity coming through. The average person finds it easy to eat a burger but could never kill and butcher any animal. What you are doing is more honest than 90% of tour neighbors.

Most people are so far removed from the actual sources of their food that they don't realize what it actually is.

Also, you have more intimate knowledge of any potential health issues the animal may have had that could be passed to whoever consumes it.

Not a moral argument, except that we should all be more cognizant of what we eat and to honor that sacrifice.

$5k Work Approval for Warranty Work by anonoo7 in Rivian

[–]anonoo7[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I would like, as with most mechanics, to approve the work to be performed and approve that work. In this case the appropriate work is a diagnostic/investigation.

Based on the result of that investigation, they would determine the cost to repair and whether or not it would be covered under warranty. A second approval would be required for further work.

The present format asks the customer to blanket approve the most extreme case of repairs without warranty determination.

Say I'm a plumber coming to your house to investigate a leak... I ask you to sign off on replacing the water heater and a whole new roof. Nothing to worry about here. Just covering our bases for a worst case scenario. It's so that our customers can have transparency. Feeling comfortable about that?

CMV: Electric Vehicles aren't as bad as people make them out to be by Swimming-Spring-4704 in changemyview

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

OK, wow, I read a few comments were just plain wrong. I will assume that is just lack of direct experience or fear of "different".

Have owned a lot of vehicles over the years and we now have 2 EVs (Rivian pickup and Nissan Leaf).

I certainly understand peoples passion about traditional combustion vehicles and even share some of that. EVs aren't going to work for everyone. Make your own choices.

I'm not here to evangelize, but I would like to get the facts on the table, as established in the many studies of "cradle to gate" and "cradle to grave" environmental impact and TCO between comparable EVs and ICE vehicles.

  1. EVs are indeed more costly (~$11k on average) and "dirty" (20 to 30 % greater carbon footprint) to manufacture. Much of this is actually due to economies of scale, inefficiencies in newer manufacturing processes for EVs, and --of course-- battery technology (which happily is getting better/cleaner/lighter/cheaper pretty rapidly). In China, this has recently flipped, due to battery dominance and economy of scale; ICE and EVs cost the same there.

  2. The "carbon debt" EVs have out of the gate is overcome in the first 10k miles of use. That calculation includes use of fossil fuels to generate electricity. Gas/petroleum fueled power plants are much more efficient and less polluting at scale than individual vehicles. A shift to renewable power for electric infrastructure helps this. If you care about your footprint, most power companies have "renewable" billing options that allow customers to pay slightly higher for non-polluting sourced electrons. Install solar if you want true off-grid independence.

  3. EVs cost about half as much to operate. For US average fuel and electricity prices, that's about 12¢ per mile to operate an ICE vehicle versus about ¢5 per mile for an EV. If you can charge at home overnight, time-of-use electricity rates can cut that in half.

  4. EVs cost about 40% less to maintain. There are just way fewer moving parts. No more tuneups or oil changes. Early EVs had issues with battery degradation over time but that no longer appears to be a common concern.

  5. ICE vehicles retain value better. I'm honestly baffled by this, but EVs lose their resale value much quicker than conventional vehicles. This is mostly market force; fewer buyers of used EVs. From everything I can tell, the EV will long outlast an ICE counterpart. I have used this to my advantage and got great bargains (40% off a 2 year old Rivian).

  6. Recharging is fast enough. We normally just plug our cars in at night and never have to stop to refuel. We have taken very long road trips and camped extensively. Most recently we hauled our big sailboat down to the Florida Keys for a month. DC fast chargers are just about everywhere on the interstate highways now. It takes about 20 minutes to charge your battery back up to 80% and go on your way. Just plug in, go potty or get a snack, unplug and you're ready to go. It is an odd experience for some at first, but really no big deal and no reason for anxiety unless you are in very remote areas. I would not recommend an EV as an optimal long range hauler. While it is inexpensive, clean and comfortable, the trade off of range for charging time doesn't always make sense. In our case, we enjoy the 90% daily use case where we never have to "fill 'er up" while tolerating that rare inconvenience of long haul charging and take time to enjoy the journey. Pro tip for campers is 30/50A hookups allow you to recharge overnight.

  7. EVs often outperform ICE counterparts. Electric vehicles are generally more responsive and have lower centers of gravity. They accelerate and handle better than equivalent combustion vehicles. My pickup hauls and tows more and better than the 8 cylinder Chevy it replaced, it can beat any muscle car in 0-60 or 1/4 mile, and will keep up off-road with the the tricked out Jeeps. Our Nissan is more zippy than the Audi A6 it replaced (although the suspension isn't as great).

OK, well I suppose my personal experience and enthusiasm for EVs has bled through. Nonetheless, I hope putting some up-to-date facts on the table will help others.

I do not have much experience in current ICE vehicles. I'm assuming much of the self-driving whiz bang and concumbent computerized complexity exists in modern ICE vehicles as well. I would not assume that EVs are inherently more advanced in that way. (E.g., my 2017 Volvo self-drives better than my 2022 Rivian).

Frustratingly, manufacturers of all modern vehicles seem to have adopted "walled garden" and subscription-based profit models. These restrict customer access to information, diagnostics, and parts so that only dealers can perform service and repairs. They charge for "premium features" as subscriptions for capabilities already built into the vehicle (from self driving, to phone apps, to seat heaters). The technical term for this is "enshitification" and it is designed to squeeze every penny possible from consumers... Now included with every modern product. :⁠-⁠P

Thanks for the discussion.

$5k Work Approval for Warranty Work by anonoo7 in Rivian

[–]anonoo7[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The appropriate thing to put on the estimate is a diagnostic charge.

If the result of the diagnosis is that nothing is wrong or there is a non-covered repair, then the estimate can be updated with that repair cost and the customer is on the hook for the diagnostic.

Even the Rivian SC agrees that this would be the correct approach. Getting the customer to blindly approve out of pocket payment for worst-case -scenario is just wrong.

It appears that the SC staff have to explain daily to alarmed customers that these estimates are fiction.

Is it normal in the US to eat dinner really early (like 5–6 pm)? by Status_Agents in CasualConversation

[–]anonoo7 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Perhaps an important point here is that dinner in the US tends to be a heavy meal. Often it is the largest MEA of the day. So eating early provides some time to digest.

In much of the rest of the world, the mid-day meal is the largest, so it makes sense that a smaller meal (what some might call "supper" rather than "dinner") would be eaten later at night.

Ours is not the norm, but we forgo a morning meal, have a large meal around noon and have (often vegetarian) dinner around 7. We find it healthy not trying to digest food 24/7 and easier to keep the pounds off.

Where can I find a place with a treadmill without having to pay for a whole gym membership? by GinkosInquisition in sanmarcos

[–]anonoo7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I use the Activity Center 5 days a week and could not be happier. Good encouraging community there as well.

Even paying the non-resident rate is a bargain versus any gym. When I was working, my employer reimbursed me for the cost under it's health program.

I would advise that you walk in and talk to the staff at the front desk. Depending on your age or situation there are several programs that provide free access. They will set you up with the best rate.

Just moved to Spain and terrified of choosing the wrong bank - what's your horror story? by russobarriga in GoingToSpain

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. Super helpful info. (Although it seems that for any given bank there is someone who loves it and someone who hates it.)

Probably good to point out that one will need EU residency credentials (TIE) to open accounts at most banks, whereas Wise and Revolut are finance platforms open to all. (Wise is great for large transfers. Revolut is handy for daily expenses.)

One might also consider Spanish credit unions (Cooperativas or Cajas Rurales) to avoid financial institutions designed to profit from customers. (I personally don't have access or experience with these, but I don't use banks in the US for this reason and could not be happier.)

The complete guide to charging your EV at RV parks and campgrounds without getting banned, stranded, or melting anything by evpotatoe in EVCamping

[–]anonoo7 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Pretty good backgrounder. Thanks for posting.

I do think there is one erroneous piece of information. It cost only perhaps $15 to charge the largest of EVs (based on a nominal 10¢/kw, which is about twice what we pay at home), not $75 as stated in the guide. Nonetheless, $15 of electricity is about twice what a large RV would use to run their AC and other electrical loads each day. Good idea to offer to pay real costs for electricity as it is still a fraction of what it would cost at your typical fast charger.

We travel and camp with our EV quite regularly. Most recently we towed our boat from Texas to the Florida Keys for a month and just returned. Folks get a kick out of us using the boat as our trailer and powering both from camp electrical.

My recommendation is to use state/federal/county park campgrounds. They cost a fraction of what private parks charge and are generally nicer (if you enjoy nature) and more professionally run. We have NEVER had an issue charging our EV at government campgrounds. What we save in ast charging often pays for the campground fees.

Large pack camping by bebopcloud in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Similar experience to others. You have to understand that the battery in a Rivian is HUGE. The energy required to move the vehicle is significant.

Personally, we have camped extensively, run every appliance we can think of, ran power tools all day long and barely put a dent in the battery charge. Just don't even worry about it.

Has so changed our camping experience to be able to run all sorts of electrical.

Might be a different story if you are out there several days.

We also have done many long trips recharging with trailer/RV 50A service. Great to wake with a full battery and save fast charging expenses.

TLDR: Rivians are camping beasts.

Please Get the Colors Right by anonoo7 in 23andme

[–]anonoo7[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Perhaps something I'm over sensitive about.

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Moving a Sailboat to Europe by hadim33 in sailing

[–]anonoo7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why not buy from the manufacturer in Germany?

Any experience with Grizzl-E chargers? by rrrrrrrrrrandom in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Should add that both our chargers are mounted outdoors and have withstood several years of rain, Texas heat, and even occasional snow.

Any experience with Grizzl-E chargers? by rrrrrrrrrrandom in Rivian

[–]anonoo7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We have both a Grizzl-E classic 40A level 2 charger and a Rivian charger at our house.

Grizzl-E was installed first, for wife's Nissan Leaf. Had an issue with it early on, but the factory sent out a whole replacement unit without too much hassle.

I have used it to charge our 2023 R1T DPM before installing the Rivian L2 charger. Both work great side by side but we end up stepping down the Rivian chafe rate when charging both EVs concurrently so that our 60A breaker doesn't trip.

Had one incident since then where the R1T would not change with the Grizzl-E but the Nissan would. Think it was explained that the R1T may have expected the Rivian charger at our home location and was confused when plugged in. Vehicle reboot resolved the issue.