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Rivian is one of the buzzier EV startups around. Its R1T ($69,900) was the first electric truck to market. The R1S SUV version ($75,900) is an outdoorsy alternative to Tesla favored by many celebrities. One of its signature features is a carabiner-shaped key fob. After over seven years of research and development, Rivian is still losing money on every expensive 4WD it sells. Its latest strategy–to charge extra for physical key fobs and its phone app–has some owners feeling nickeled-and-dimed.

All the new Rivians for sale are officially 2025 models now and enjoyed a “refresh” which includes some new features. But when Redditor “OK_Airline_9182” took delivery of an R1S they found one feature conspicuously missing: keys.

Here’s what they said to their Rivian customer service representative, “Hi! I took delivery of my R1S on Wednesday. We were given the card keys and had the phone set up, but I just realized we got no key fob. Are the fobs not included with the R1S anymore?”

The Rivian representative responded with, “Hello! The vehicles do not come with a key fob however these will be available to purchase in the Rivian Gears Shop at a later date.”

So there you have it, on 2025 Rivians, the key fob is an extra feature. Owners who don’t want to spring for it must make do with the credit-card-like temporary keys or the phone app. And that’s not all.

Rivian just announced the Connect+ service for its vehicles will cost $14.99 every month. This suite of features include the in-vehicle hotspot, Alexa Connected commands, music streaming apps such as Spotify, Google Cast and YouTube, the Gear Guard Live Cam, and satellite images.

Note that without paying this subscription fee you can still get basic functionality and the basic phone app, which will unlock your Rivian. You can get basic Alexa voice commands and even play music with your Spotify if you tether your phone.

This more expensive Connect+ tier will mean that current Rivian owners will see features they already enjoy, such as their vehicle’s hotspot, disappear unless they pony up the extra cash. You can see my previous coverage of how Rivian and General Motors sold out their customers, charging subscription fees for software to appease shareholders.

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Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.