- Rivian has officially kicked off production of the R2 this week.
- The automaker says that deliveries will begin later this spring.
- Those who reserved an R2 will be invited to configure their vehicles starting in June.
The Rivian R2 has finally entered production. Just days after a tornado tore off part of the roof in the section of its Normal, Illinois factory that is dedicated to R2 production, the automakers has pushed ahead and given the green light on rolling its actual customer cars off the line.
CEO RJ Scaringe confirmed to Bloomberg on Wednesday that R2 deliveries will begin later this Spring. The first units are expected to go to Rivian employees, however, CFO Claire McDonough told Reuters that customers will receive their invitations to configure their R2s beginning in June—so the wait the public isn’t far behind.
Photo by: Rivian
Deliveries of the Model-Y-sized crossover will begin with the Launch Edition of the R2 Performance. This $57,990 trim packs a 3.6-second zero-to-60 MPH sprint thanks to its dual-motors pumping out 656 horsepower, and a competent 330 miles of range. It also gets semi-active suspension, rear-drop glass, dynamic lighting, and a plethora of other creature comforts that early adopters undoubtedly crave.
Rivian will launch a lower-cost Premium trim in late 2026 for $53,990, followed by its R2 Standard (priced at $48,490) in the first half of 2027. Its promised $45,000 model isn’t expected until late 2027.
By that time, Rivian’s cost savings on the R2 is expected to be substantial. In fact, McDonough says that once the R2 reaches its full production run rate, it will cost Rivian half as much to build as the R1—likely one of the many lessons Scaringe said that Rivian learned while scaling out for the crossover.
The R2 is genuinely a big deal for Rivian. This is the model that’s supposed to elevate the brand from being a niche lifestyle EV brand with expensive trucks to something that is more approaching mass-market relevance. In many ways, it feels reminiscent of Tesla during its ramp-up phase of the Model 3 and Model Y.
If Rivian can pull it off without service or quality hiccups, the brand has a very real opportunity to become the next big name in the EV space. Either way, the next few weeks will be interesting to watch as the first cars begin to land in customer driveways.
