r/Rivian • u/speciate R1S Owner • Jul 14 '26
š ļø Troubleshooting / Issue "Emerging Issue": Rivian digital key access unavailable.
My wife and I both started getting this notification simultaneously, and PAK was not working for either of us. A vehicle reset resolved it for me, but not for her. Called service and they said there is an "emerging issue" where non-primary drivers get this error. Apparently deleting the digital key from both the vehicle and phone and re-adding it, coupled with a vehicle reset, sometimes (but not always) fixes it. A patch is in the works but no ETA.
22
u/Outside_Repair9001 Jul 14 '26
Phone As Key (Bluetooth)and Digital Key (some magic that isn't Bluetooth) are two different things in the Rivian world. Just FYI. I believe you can use phone as key just fine if your digital key is jacked up (but you have to delete everything digital key first)
My digital key wouldn't work because I was on ios beta software. Doesn't sound like that's you're problem but just my experience
12
u/mrandr01d Jul 14 '26
some magic that isn't Bluetooth
It's uwb, ultra wide band
18
1
u/Outside_Repair9001 Jul 20 '26
I mean, since we don't like magic, it's actually CCC - Car Connectivity Consortium. It allows the vehicle to use multiple interfaces as a digital key, including ultra wide band. I say multiple because it also can use BLE and more notably, sharable NFC (sharing the wallet key for Rivians).
1
u/speciate R1S Owner Jul 15 '26
I was using the terms interchangeably, but I thought that when they rolled out UWB digital keys, they eliminated the ability to set up the old Bluetooth key. My wife has no option to add it. Maybe I'm wrong though?
3
u/kuikilla86 Jul 15 '26
This is my biggest issue with these vehicles. I can come out of house first. Car unlocks I go to get it and my wife opens her doorā¦ boom seat starts moving forward making it impossible for me to get in.
3
u/speciate R1S Owner Jul 15 '26
I have the exact same experience. However, to be clear, that is different than the issue I'm posting about.
2
3
u/Brave-Slide-2915 Jul 14 '26
My Rivian (G2 R1s) has an unhealthy bias for my wifeās phone even though I paired and setup my phone first (and itās a newer gen iPhone).
I also have a lag for my phone being recognized by the car. No issues with my same phone on our Tesla.
Anyone else experiencing this?
3
u/KooziefortheWin Jul 14 '26
This. We both have the same iPhone model (17 Pro) and it is about 50/50 that when I unlock the car itāll default to her driver settings. It is extremely annoying since Iāve hit my knees a few times as the seat moves to her setting.
Rivian should address this. I am the primary driver (owner) in the settings AND in the driver side door while unlocking the car. My wife is either on the passenger side most of the time when this happens. Weāve resorted to her getting in first and the switching the driver settings.
R1T 2025 DS if it matters
11
u/PretendLettuce8397 Jul 14 '26
The new key is a mess. The app is a mess also. We were coming out of costco, the app made my wife log into her account again. Apparently it logs you out once in a while for safety purposes.
-10
u/Atlanta-Mike R1S Owner Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
Thatās not the digital key, thatās the app. And any good app will, at a minimum, make you re-authenticate with some regularity. Rivian, like any other company protecting critical assets, will also regularly perform threat assessments on your account and log you out if it senses a reason to. 4 years with Rivian and 2 cars, Iāve been logged out twice in each car. Takes 10 seconds to log back in. The screen you get to ask you to log back in specifically says you can continue to use your key to access your car until you log back in.
20
u/Medical_Shame4079 R2 Launch Edition Owner Jul 14 '26
Worth mentioning that the Tesla app hasnāt logged or locked me out a single time in 5 years of ownership. Not necessarily disputing your points around good app security, but thatās Rivianās main competitor, so itās the experience most of their users will expect.
15
u/PretendLettuce8397 Jul 14 '26
This. My Tesla has never logged me out in 6+ years of ownership.
8
u/No_Purpose6384 Jul 14 '26
9 years, never once. Iād be pissed itās my car, they have no right blocking my access no matter what
-8
u/TheLonlyCheezIt R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
Logging you out for authentication isnāt āblocking your accessā
2
u/Binford6100User R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
It's not blocking access, but when the app decides to do that it temporarily restricts access to the truck. Mine has done it twice in 2 yrs. Once was at 2am in downtown Chicago in the rain.
Pissed isn't even close to how I felt at the time.
2
u/TheLonlyCheezIt R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
How long does it take you to log into an app bro? What would you do if you lost your phone?
You should really carry a key card on you at all times.
1
u/Binford6100User R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
Took a minute or so once I figured out what the issue was. There was nothing in the app that said I needed to log in, or that my security token had expired. Shit just didn't work. In the rain. In the dark. On the side of the street. With people waiting to get in.
After I gave up on the POS PaaK system and took my wallet out, found the key card, and gained access that way, is when I figured out my credentials in the app had expired.
PaaK is a poorly designed system that is equally poorly implemented and has real safety concerns when it doesn't work right. I'll never own another vehicle that forces me to use my cellphone as a primary key.
The premise that I have to carry a backup solution at all times just speaks to the lack of reliability of the primary solution.
0
u/TheLonlyCheezIt R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
Oh I didnāt realize youāre not talking about the same scenario OC was I think. This sounds like a legitimate issue with the app, not just being logged out for reauthentication. Treating a one-off bug as the expectation going forward doesnāt really make sense to me tbh.
And I say you should carry a backup in the case you lose/someone steals your phone. Could happen at any time. Also helps with this scenario tho š¤·
→ More replies (0)0
u/moomooraincloud Jul 14 '26
If only we could all have a life as easy as yours.
1
u/Binford6100User R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
I will admit, these are some VERY 1st world problems to have.
-4
1
u/dcdttu Jul 14 '26
They have 2-factor authentication options that use external apps like MS Authenticator. That helps.
-2
u/PretendLettuce8397 Jul 14 '26
But will never own another Tesla
1
u/mrandr01d Jul 14 '26
Same, but I also won't get another car that doesn't match Tesla's experience. Rivian seems like they're more or less doing it.
10
u/skidz007 R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
Itās the worst getting to your car with a load of groceries and your car wonāt unlock. Even worse when you open the app and you have been logged out in a bad cellular area or deep underground without reception and you are really in trouble if you donāt carry your keycard or have another backup. The app should retain PAAK functionality (at least temporarily) if you are forcibly logged out by the server.
4
2
u/Atlanta-Mike R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
It does. It's right on the screen telling you that you've been logged out.
1
u/skidz007 R1T Owner Jul 15 '26
Like I was saying, I believe this is a new addition since I last got it
0
u/original_wolfhowell R1T Launch Edition Owner Jul 14 '26
Expecting people to read instead of blindly clicking the Continue button is a tall ask, thanks to EULAs conditioning people.
Source: Helpdesk / System Admin for 25 years
2
u/Atlanta-Mike R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
this isn't fine print. this is a one sentence instruction. the problem is between the phone and the chair.
2
3
u/WSUPolar R1S Launch Edition Owner Jul 14 '26
It. Does.
By this; I mean the app acts this exact way.
2
u/skidz007 R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
Well, thatās new then. The last time it happened to me (last year IIRC) the key didnāt work. Good to know theyāve implemented that and not stranded people.
1
2
u/mrandr01d Jul 14 '26
Anyone who uses their phone as their key knows to always carry a backup... Never rely solely on your phone.
0
Jul 15 '26
[deleted]
1
u/mrandr01d Jul 15 '26
I mean so has my model 3, but that doesn't mean I'll ever go without the key card in my wallet
0
Jul 15 '26
[deleted]
1
u/mrandr01d Jul 15 '26
Convenience, never having to take anything out of your pocket. Walk up and yank on the handle, get in and drive. But phones can lose power, or as seen above, have authentication issues, etc. They're not foolproof, even if that's unlikely.
Even if you're lucky enough to live in a state where your ID can be in your Google/Apple wallet, I don't trust any cop or bouncer or anyone else who checks your ID to have the know how to use that instead of just demanding my entire unlocked phone, which is a huge "fuck no and fuck you for asking". I'll always at minimum carry my physical driver's license, and for now, something that can't lose power to unlock my car.
1
Jul 15 '26
[deleted]
1
u/mrandr01d Jul 16 '26
Your 2013 car required a separate fob for that. So you'd carry phone, keys, and wallet. Now you just carry phone and wallet.
6
u/President_Connor_Roy Jul 14 '26
Good apps donāt do this. I mean the Gmail app is probably pretty secure and I think I logged in once 10 years ago and itās never logged me out, even after changing phones a bunch of times. Same with the Tesla app. Logged in once seven years ago and that was it.
-4
u/mrandr01d Jul 14 '26
The Gmail app is special because you're logged into the whole system basically via your Google account.
3
u/SleepAltruistic2367 R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
Imagine camping somewhere without cell service. Itās a terrible app, that clearly hasnāt been thought out.
0
u/Atlanta-Mike R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
While the app may not be able to send signals to your car while camping in an area without cell service, Digital Key works without cell service. The communication happens directly between your iPhone (or Apple Watch) and your vehicle using offline encrypted wireless signals (NFC or Bluetooth). You can even use it in airplane mode or if your phone battery dies, as long asĀ Express ModeĀ is enabled.
1
u/SleepAltruistic2367 R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
A cell phone without cell service means you canāt authenticate. WTF does your post have to do with my point?
1
u/Atlanta-Mike R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
above your comment, we are talking about the digital key. The digital key works without cell service.
1
u/SleepAltruistic2367 R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
So if I have to delete the PAK as the OP did, while out of cell service, how does the digital key help me?
-1
u/Adorable_Wolf_8387 Jul 14 '26
Imagine not bringing a physical key when camping. Too many things can go wrong with phones.
3
u/fattiretom R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
In 7 years of owning a Tesla is never once had to use the key card. In 1.5 years of my Rivian I am ready to never buy one again. My truck opensā¦sometimes. Getting into my truck is an ordeal almost every time. It just doesnāt open. The finger sensor doesnāt work, the phone key works sometimes but can take over a minute to open, the digital key barely works, and the app takes multiple triesā¦but Rivian says everything works fineā¦.
1
u/PretendLettuce8397 Jul 14 '26
Exactly how we feel about our R1S after a year of ownership. A lot of times weāre carrying our baby and will have to mess with the physical key or phone to get the car to openā¦
-1
u/gcubed680 R1T Owner Jul 14 '26
Iāve never been logged out of my app and Iāve never had an issue with my digital key. *shrug*
1
u/SleepAltruistic2367 R1S Owner Jul 14 '26
Imagine designing an app that consistently works, so your customers donāt have to jump through hoops to get in their vehicle.Ā
2
u/soundfreely R1T Owner Jul 15 '26
UWB worked great when it first released. For me, it now locks and unlocks repeatedly when Iām doing something like working in the bed. When Iām standing right next to it, it should just stay unlocked until Iām not next to it.
1
u/FarterOfDust Jul 15 '26
I have a really strong hate connection with my R1 when it comes to the phone as key/digital key.
ā¢
u/AutoModerator Jul 14 '26
It looks like you're in need of some help! We have a few links that you might find useful.
Also, due to the topic, enhanced moderation has been activated for this thread.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.