Jen Pereira and her husband have owned EVs in Seminole County, Florida for years. Before buying their Rivian R1S, they owned a Tesla, but when they decided a bigger vehicle was for them, a Rivian fit their bill.

“My husband and I have been EV owners for three years, so that’s not new to us,” she told WFTV.

A month into their ownership, Pereira had a terrifying experience in her luxury EV SUV. She said the Rivian suddenly shut down and rolled to a stop.

“The car started braking very rapidly, and then the dashboard started basically, like flashing,” said Pereria.

Then she smelled smoke. While trying to get out of the car, she noticed smoke coming in through the air conditioning vents. But she couldn’t get out. Thinking on her feet, she called Rivian’s customer service line through an app. A representative advised her to utilize the car’s SOS button, but it didn’t work.

Pereira was then told to call 911. When reporters heard the 911 call recording, she sounded panicked. She said she was trapped in the EV while smoke continued to come into the cabin.

There was smoke without fire, and she was trapped

“It started smoking, and the brakes, it started like vibrating, and I am actually locked in the vehicle, and I cannot get out,” said Pereira on the recording. Rescuers showed up promptly, though they didn’t report smoke in the vehicle. While there wasn’t a fire to extinguish, first responders encountered a different problem.

“They kept pounding on the car and trying to figure out a way to get in it to get me out. So, it was just super scary. I was in the car for about 45 minutes,” she recalled.

The outlet reported that the fire department’s report indicated they used an emergency EV plug to demobilize the Rivian, but they couldn’t figure out how to get her out of the car. Multiple firefighters were researching a way to free her.

Rivian responded quickly

First responders worked with Rivian, who told them about a quick-release manual lever she could pull to get out of the car. It was illustrated in the owner’s manual. The company determined an electrical issue caused her car to stop and start smoking.

When investigators contacted Rivian for comment, the company issued a full statement promptly.

We take the safety of our customers very seriously. Our investigation into this incident indicates a short in an electrical system caused the contained smoke issue the customer experienced. We have also confirmed that the interior manual door handle was working properly at the time. All Rivian vehicles are equipped with front row manual release handles which allow occupants a means to exit the vehicle, even in the event of power loss. This feature requires a simple handle pull. A description of this feature is included in our owners’ manuals.

We are currently investigating our customer service response to the incident and are ensuring all of our customer service team members are instructed on the proper way to respond to such a situation. Meantime we have offered the customer a full refund on her vehicle.

For Pereira, the experience was enough for her to leave Rivian in the rearview.

“It was just really scary, because you know, I don’t feel safe being in that car. I don’t feel like it will be a safe automobile to have in my garage with my family,” she said.