Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 111 says a rearview image has to be on the screen within 2.0 seconds of the start of a backing event and has to stay there until the driver changes the view or takes the vehicle out of reverse. Rivian Automotive told NHTSA on September 16, 2026 that 98,828 of its vehicles may not always meet that rule, because a notification can land on top of the camera picture.
The recall, FSAM-1866 at Rivian and 26V597 at NHTSA, covers every R1T, R1S and R2 sold to date.
The rule a pop-up can break
The requirement is in 49 CFR 571.111, section S5.5. Section S5.5 gives the rearview image 2.0 seconds from the moment backing begins to appear, requires it to show the full width and height of the test objects placed directly behind the vehicle, and must remain visible during the backing event until the driver modifies the view or the direction selector leaves reverse. Passenger cars of 4,536 kilograms or less built on or after May 1, 2018 have to comply. The standard says nothing about what may share the display, but an image that is covered is not visible, so a camera that works as designed can still fail the test if software places something on top of it. Rivian’s own filing frames the problem in the same terms, as a potential noncompliance with the rear visibility standard rather than a hardware malfunction, and the NHTSA record lists the same consequence: a reduced view to the rear that makes a crash more likely.
Software releases 2026.23 and 2026.31.40
The NHTSA campaign record says the rearview camera image may be obstructed by a notification when in reverse, and that this can reduce the driver’s view behind the vehicle, making a crash more likely. Rivian’s Part 573 safety recall report is more specific. As summarized from the filing, it says the image may not display for the required time period in certain rare circumstances when shifting to reverse, and that a stability control notification can overlay the camera feed before the vehicle starts moving backward.
The report ties the fault to software versions in a precise way. R1 vehicles running a release earlier than 2026.23 and R2 vehicles running a release earlier than 2026.31.40 contain the condition, and the report says it takes a specific sequence of operations to trigger it. The company’s estimate is that 100 percent of the recalled vehicles carry the software and therefore the defect.
The mechanism makes this a different kind of recall from the others in the September cluster. No part is worn, mis-torqued or counterfeit, and the screen and camera hardware are not in question. The cause is a rule in the software that decides what to draw on the display, and when, which is why the repair can be a file that arrives over the air instead of a part that has to be shipped to a dealer.
R1T, R1S and R2 counts
The population runs across three vehicles. The 2022 to 2026 R1T pickup accounts for 34,088 units built from August 23, 2021 to July 6, 2026. The 2022 to 2027 R1S SUV accounts for 62,259, built from March 30, 2022 to August 6, 2026. The 2027 R2, the newest of the three, accounts for 2,481, built between April 23 and August 10, 2026. Together they add up to 98,828.
The dates in the chronology are the notable part. The report records a production correction on August 10, 2026, when updated software went into vehicles on the line, a month before Rivian confirmed the potential noncompliance with the safety standard on September 10. The recall population therefore consists of vehicles built before the corrected software and, in the R2 case, those built in the weeks leading up to it.
An over-the-air remedy and a November letter
Rivian’s remedy is a free over-the-air software update, and the report says it had already reached about 95 percent of R1 vehicles and 96 percent of R2 vehicles by the time of filing. The company does not plan dealer or interim owner notifications. The formal owner notification letter is due by November 9, 2026, which is also when affected VINs become searchable at NHTSA, according to the agency’s acknowledgement letter. Cars.com’s coverage of the recall notes that owners can contact Rivian at 888-748-4261.
NHTSA’s recall lookup will also turn up the campaign for any owner who enters a VIN. The report documents no customer reports, accidents, injuries or fatalities.
The filing does not say how many of the 98,828 vehicles still ran an earlier software release on the day it was filed. The 95 percent and 96 percent completion figures put the remainder at a few thousand vehicles that had not yet received the update, which is the group the November 9 letter is aimed at most directly.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.
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