for unknown reasons. Starting with the tonneau cover, it's an aluminum panel that slides along the integrated bed rails. Owner complaints about the cover not opening completely and noisy or jerky operation prompted an investigation that found a flawed subcomponent. Rivian told owners it needed to rework the component in a way that"improves the tonneau cover's robustness against manufacturing build variations.
Buyers who haven't taken delivery are stuck with unsavory options. Those who ordered the powered cover will have the powered option removed. The insult salting the injury is that the powered tonneau can't be added later, so buyers need to choose the manual cover or go with no cover. For Launch Edition buyers, switching to the manual cover cuts theirprice by $700, omitting any cover cuts the bill by $1,500. Rivian doesn't mention a lower price for trucks with the Adventure Package.
The carmaker's support page explaining the situation says"In early 2023, we will transition to a design without the integrated siderails." That could explain why the powered tonneau can't be added later. It could also mean a partially redesigned bed is on the way, or Rivian plans to make side rails an upgrade, or something else. We'll find out next year when the updated trucks arrive. The company says R1T delivery times will not be affected by any of this.
As for the Camp Kitchen, it doesn't appear to be flawed in a way customers have noticed. All Rivian will say about the production pause is that its in-house team"continued testing Camp Kitchen in various environments [and] found opportunities to refine the design and make our version of cooking in the wild even better.
What's arguably even stranger about Rivian removing this feature is that owners weren't complaining about it. At least the Camp Kitchen can be added at a later date, although we suspect the kitchen and shuttle are going to be more expensive when they come back.