Rivian might be the hottest new name in the electric car market, but this company could be in trouble. The wait time for new Rivian cars is much longer than anyone could anticipate. Additionally, this company is losing money on every vehicle produced. Could current reservation holders need to wait several years for their Rivian R1T or R1S?

Why is there such a long wait time for Rivian cars?

All automakers face the same shipping delays and supply chain issues, making things more difficult for a startup company. Rivian produced fewer than 25,000 vehicles last year and currently holds more than 100,000 reservations for the R1T. That math works out to four years if the company doesn’t increase production, but a few other factors raise issues.

Find My Electric tells us the three factors most heavily impacting delivery times for Rivian cars are:

• Configuration – supply chain difficulties for some parts and packages
• Delivery Location – Delivered vehicles need to be closer to full-service areas
• Preorder Date – Balancing early customer reservations with profit margins from new orders

How much does the configuration chosen impact Rivian R1T delivery dates?

The configuration customers choose for their new R1T electric truck could move them to the front of the line. Currently, R1T deliveries take as little as forty days and as long as four years. This is entirely based on the chosen configuration, but there’s a caveat.

Rivian is prioritizing specific features and builds. This choice is a direct result of supply chain problems. Those reservation holders with the Max battery pack, manual or absent tonneau cover, or the Ocean Coast interior are moved to the back of the line.

Reservation holders with the Quad-Motor with the Large battery pack could see their trucks in two months or less.

The caveat to this situation is that current reservation holders cannot reconfigure their Rivian R1T to receive it sooner. This means those reservations with features on hold are stuck with their place in line.

Are any other Rivian cars being delivered?

The Rivian R1S seems to be the bigfoot of the automotive world. Some report having seen it but aren’t really sure what they saw. Rivian currently prioritizes the R1T over the R1S, which has pushed this new electric SUV to the back burner. The few R1S models on the road are mostly in the hands of Rivian employees and executives, with only a few exceptions.

Most Rivian R1S models won’t hit a delivery date until late in 2023 or early in 2024. Certainly, the longer it takes to fill the R1T orders, the further the R1S will be pushed back.

Can Rivian survive making electric cars this slowly?

Rivian isn’t the first startup company to face struggles, but the supply chain issues put an additional strain on potential growth and success. Unfortunately, as The Motley Fool reports, the cash this company is burning through is unsustainable.

Thankfully, if Rivian can find a way to scale up and hit profitable margins, there’s a lot of upside for this company. How fast can Rivian cars hit the market? This could be the most important question regarding the future success of this electric car startup.

Next, check out the capability of the Rivian R1T, or learn more about the Rivian cars heading to market in this video below: