More Rivian Owners Are Reporting Loose Bolts in Steering Knuckles

Two years ago, Rivian issued a recall for more than 12,000 R1T pickup trucks and R1S SUVs due to a potentially major safety issue: a loose fastener that connects the steering knuckle and front upper control arm. Now, however, several Rivian owners whose vehicles were not subject to the initial recall are experiencing what appears to be the same problem: the bolts that hold the knuckle in place are, apparently, backing out.

Speaking to Road & Track, Rivian R1S owner Peter Lopez confirmed that bolts holding his knuckle onto the car were fully ground down off after unscrewing. "This just happened on a 10-month-old, 15,000-mile car," he said in a post on a Rivian owners' private Facebook group.

In September of 2022, Rivian issued a recall of 12,212 vehicles for a similar issue. The brand said at the time that the recalled vehicles might have improperly torqued steering knuckle fasteners, and told customers that they might experience excessive noise, vibration, or harshness from the front suspension. That's exactly what Lopez says he's experienced, despite having a car not included in that original recall group.

Lopez says at first, he heard a creaking noise while turning; by the time Rivian could work him in for service roughly a month later, it had become a metal-on-metal noise.

Lopez isn't alone either. Another Rivian owner provided his experience in the same group: "Had the same on my 2023 R1S at 21k miles. All four wheels. Noise at slow speed was easy to hear but by this time three of the four were metal on metal."

Photos supplied by Lopez confirm the condition, and show damage to the bolt head as well. It appears that at least one bolt became completely rounded off when it back out. Witness marks show damage to the CV axle as well.

To Rivian's credit, it seems as though the brand is performing internal work to review the situation. A complaint to the NHTSA highlights the problem and what Rivian did in response: "One of the bolts that attaches the electric motor to the front wheel (internal, under the vehicle) backed itself out. That seems really dangerous and I am hopeful the condition does not exist on the other wheels. I sent pictures to Rivian and they are taking the vehicle to their service center for further inspection."

For now, we'll have to wait to see if Rivian issues an additional recall for any more vehicles. If so, we'll update this post accordingly.

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