2023 Rivian R1S Air Bags & Restraints Problems

Yesterday was the 3rd time in 2 months that the vehicle displayed a "Airbag System needs service - Drive with caution until serviced" warning. I have taken it to Rivian 2 times where each time they replaced various components of the airbag system and it was reported to be fixed. Yesterday the warning returned. I am extremely concerned that Rivian does not have the ability to properly diagnose and or fix whatever the underlying issue is regarding my airbag system. I am now scheduled to take my vehicle in for the 3rd time for them to "try to figure it out".

Front passenger airbag is inactive for long periods of time while a passenger is seated in the vehicle during operation. This is indicated by the message displaying the airbag as being off. This occurs regularly with an adult seated normally in the seat while traveling at highway speeds, for long periods of time. I reported this to Rivian and they said the car is functioning normally but it does not seem safe that the airbag is turned off with a passenger present in the vehicle during operation. I am listing the latest incident date here but this has been persistent since I purchased the car new in 2023.

the sensitivity of the airbag sensor on the passenger seat is not functioning properly in my opinion. there are times when there is a passenger present and seated, the car is showing that the passenger airbag is off. I took the car to Rivian service center. They indicated that they could not replicate the problem and that to make sure the passengers are over 110 lbs. They also noted that with future software update, they may make it better, which indicates to me that they know there is a problem. I know for a fact that my passengers have been over 110 lbs.

The passenger seat airbag turns off when a passenger is sitting in the seat. I have taken the vehicle to the service center twice for this issue and they insist it is working as intended. This is a major safety issue for myself and children when we are sitting in the passenger seat. Please help in resolving this!

My right front passenger seat does not detect adult occupants reliably, and therefore does not enable the airbags. My wife is approximately 105 pounds and sits in the seat in a standard upright fashion without leaning back. Her legs are not crossed and are just resting on the floor. it is rare that the vehicle detects her presence and therefore she is rarely protected by the safety restraint system in the event of an accident. I brought the vehicle into Rivian Service and they inspected and said the sensor is working properly and is designed to detect occupants roughly 105 to 110 pounds. They said there is nothing that they can do about it. Every other vehicle I currently own and have owned in the past properly detects her presence for the SRS system.

My wife does not shows up as a passenger in the front seat about 30% of the time with the seatbelt fastened. She is 105~108 lbs. This is a continuing problem with no fix in sight. Not registering when seated means two key things: 1) no airbag support in case of an accident 2) passenger side climate control doesn't function separately from synced mode. After multiple attempt with the Rivian service center/mobile service, all they can only say that it's within spec. Rivian SC staffs say that SW fix is coming. That was 4 over the air firmware updates ago. Unfortunately the problem is so small in terms of affected population, they have done nothing to date.

Passenger occupancy system seems flaky when my fiance sits in the passenger seat - sometime it takes 30 seconds to register she is there, sometimes it goes off while we are driving if she makes slight adjustments in the seat (while sitting straight and not in any awkward position), which can be dangerous if we were in a near crash situation, her weight shifted causing the airbag not to deploy. Although she is on a smaller side (5’5’’ 110lb) we never had this issue with any car we owned or rented.

Longstanding issue with R1S and R1T’s not recognizing a front passenger is present. Many reports in online forums regarding the same problem and ours does not even see a 6’4” 450lb passenger regularly. Other complainants are reporting feedback that it’s ‘within spec’, ‘it’s safer for smaller passengers’, and that ‘you need to sit in the seat properly’(?!). Please do something about this serious safety issue. Thanks.

The passenger airbag does not consistently turn on or stay on with passengers in the seat.

The passenger seat doesn’t recognize a passenger in the seat. Happpens all the time for my wife, who ways 120lbs… there are hundreds of folks who also have this problem with the Rivian passenger seat/driver seats. Huge safety issue.

The system does not turn on the airbags for driver or passenger under 140 pounds. This is a safety hazard.

The passenger side airbag shows that it is turned off about 50% of the time that my wife is riding in the passenger seat. She meets the minimum weight requirement for passenger airbag deployment. If she moves around in the seat the airbag off light will go out temporarily but usually comes back on within several miles of driving. This vehicle is available for inspection. When this happens my wife or any other passenger is at risk of not having an airbag if an accident was to occur. This issues has been looked at several times by the manufacturer and I was told that the vehicle is operating as intended. No resonable solution was offered. The only solution from the manufacturer was to have the passenger move around or adjust the seat until the airbag came on. Then have the passenger stay in that position for the duration of the ride. We’ve tried this and it doesn’t work the airbag still turns off.

Intermittently does not register a passenger in the passenger seat (even with a seatbelt on and seat upright in a normal position) such that the airbags are turned off and climate controls are not activated. Passenger weighs more than 120 lbs.

Vehicle routinely (>90% of the time) fails to detect occupancy of front passenger seat resulting in disabled airbags and other related safety systems. Our particular vehicle experiences the issue with passengers ranging from 150-425lbs resulting in a significant safety concern. Searching online indicates this is a common issue and repair requests are routinely denied with claims that it is operating correctly. Others have been told it is due to posture or seating position…I’ve never had a vehicle whose safety features were disabled due to poor posture?!

I was headed straight but stopped so that I could move into a left turn lane. As I got into the left turn lane and was straightening up behind the person in front of me at almost a dead stop the R1S lunged forward and accelerated at a high rate of speed hitting the car in front of me (speed control issue already known on the R1T). The camera footage verifies it. No warning lights went off (forward collision avoidance, automatic emergency braking) that there was a car in front of me and to brake (normally if there is a car in front of you that close and the vehicle thinks there will be a collision the screen goes red and the letters BRAKE come up bold in black, the car will brake if it thinks you may hit something). Of course now all my side sensors don’t work. I am still waiting on diagnostics from Rivian. Additionally, my seatbelt didn’t lock throwing me forward. I have only had this SUV two months with 848 miles. The car in front of me had substantial damage. If anyone had been in her backseat especially a child they would have been injured. My safety was in danger with the seatbelt not locking. I am waiting on the diagnostics still from Rivian. Insurance is waiting on Rivian. There had been nothing like this prior to this incident.

The front Passenger seat intermittently disables the Passenger Air Bag System, depending on the movement of the passenger. For example, my girlfriend was sitting in the seat, with her legs crossed. When she is in this position, the system disables. If she shifts her weight around, the system reenables. This is repeatable, with numerous members of my family. I had the vehicle in service, and they were not able to reproduce the issue (No trouble found). As soon as I got my daughter, in the care ,the issue presented itself once again. My daughter is 108 lbs.

Every time my wife gets into the front passenger seat the sensor in the seat doesn’t recognize her sitting down and doesn’t active the passenger side airbag also the climate control is inactive. Rivian claims that there is a seat weight limit but my wife weighs 145 lbs. this happens all the time until my wife moves around enough to activate it. Then sometimes it turns off in the middle of a drive as if there wasn’t a passenger in that seat. This has also occurred with some heavier passengers. Rivian claims nothing wrong with the vehicle. I took delivery at the end of October and the problem still continues.

A passenger of lighter weight will not trigger the passenger seat’s weight sensor, rendering the passenger side airbag disabled. The passenger must sit up perfectly straight and center their weight on the center of the seat for them to be properly detected. A service center visit claimed the seats are working as designed, but there is clearly an issue.

Passenger side airbag off sign stayed on while my girlfriend was sitting in the seat. She weighs about 100 pounds. When I sat in the passenger seat, the Passenger side airbag off sign turned off. I weigh about 170 pounds.

Passenger seat does not detect light to normal weight/BMI adult buckled in and disables the front passenger airbag. Vehicle service state it is working as intended. Therefore, for all intent and purposes the vehicle does not have passenger airbag.