How hard is it to design a car as a new company, and not one that's been around for 100 years? Just ask Rivian, which had to recall nearly 100,000 vehicles over a camera problem that practically takes a Konami secret code to trigger.It's not just the software that's a problem here, but also some of the intricate federal motor vehicle safety standards rules and their requirements. It all combines to create one of the strangest recalls we've ever seen. Rear Camera Display Could End Up Hidden. Briefly Rivian Rivian's recall affects 62,259 R1S SUVs from 2022-2027 and 34,008 R1T pickups from 2022-2026. There are also 2,481 2027 R2 SUVs covered under the campaign.The automaker says the problem is that the rearview camera display might not pop up quickly enough in certain situations. Not that it won't appear, just not quickly enough. And the certain situations are not easy to replicate.To experience the glitch, a driver would have to have stability control off and be in a particular drive mode or modes, Rivian didn't say which. Then, the driver would have to walk away from the vehicle.When the driver gets back, they might get a safety alert on the center display to tell them that the stability control is off and asking if they want to turn it on. In this Rube Goldberg sequence, we still haven't reached the problem with the camera.At this point, the driver can climb in and put the car in reverse without choosing a new drive mode. The vehicle will go into reverse, and the camera view will pop up immediately. But the drive mode selection notification may stay on the screen until the vehicle first moves, at which point it will disappear. So the camera actually works. But the warning message for stability control might block some of it. How Will Rivian Solve This Most Curious Problem? Rivian The law (FMVSS 111) says the camera display has to come up within two seconds of "the start of a backing event." That means within 2.0 seconds of putting the vehicle in reverse. The overlap before the vehicle moves means the system doesn't meet that part of the law.Is this an incredibly obscure and low-risk issue? It might be, but the law is the law. So Rivian has issued a software update to fix it. Fortunately for owners, the fix is already available and out. Rivian says that more than 95% of vehicles impacted have already been updated over the air to a version of the software that fixes the problem. Those who don't have it can get it now.Rivian will send a letter to owners of all involved vehicles starting November 9. Owners won't be able to search to see if their VIN is involved until that date, but if they have the latest software update they should be fine. CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters: Rivian The NHTSA put backup cameras in cars to save lives. Safety advocate Kids and Car Safety says that 50 kids are backed over every week in the US because a driver couldn't see them, resulting in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries annually.That's why the camera image has to be on the screen so quickly. Normally, it appears before you start moving. Blocking the view of what's behind the vehicle until after it is moving defeats the purpose of the safety feature. So it might seem pretty ridiculous, but these cameras are making a difference.