How's everyone's experience been with direct-to-consumer EV buying vs. a dealership?

They're usually handled as two separate transactions rather than one negotiation. The new car's price is fixed either way, but most of the direct-to-consumer brands still let you get a trade-in appraisal through their own online tool — it's just a quoted number, not something you're haggling over across the table like the old dealership dance. You're also free to skip their appraisal entirely and sell the trade-in separately to whoever gives you the best number, which sometimes beats what the manufacturer's own tool offers. So no, you're not losing the ability to get value for your trade-in — you're mostly losing the ability to use it as leverage against the new car's price, since that price isn't moving regardless of what you're trading in.

That's a good point I hadn't thought about — direct-to-consumer is great once you know what you want, worse for actually comparing options in person.

Rivian isn't the only one doing that hybrid model now — a couple of the newer DTC brands have added small mall or shopping-center 'gallery' locations specifically so people can sit in the car before ordering online, no negotiation happening on-site, it's purely a look-and-feel stop. Worth checking if the brand you're considering has one near you before assuming direct-only means zero in-person option. Not the same as a full dealership lot, but it closes the gap twigcoral's describing.

duskbutton's service point is fair, that was my worry too. Turned out my brand's mobile service came to my house twice already, never had to find their actual service center. Didn't expect that going in.

Service access worries me more than which way you buy. Nearest dealer of any brand is forty minutes for me, the specific brand's service center over an hour. Doesn't matter if I bought direct or through a lot — if something goes wrong on a farm-stand delivery day, that's the number I actually think about.