Electric vehicle (EV) builder Rivian will reveal a smaller, less expensive electric SUV tomorrow. We expect the company’s long-planned R2 to be a 2-row SUV with a price in the mid-$40,000 range to rival the Ford Mustang Mach-E, Kia EV6, and Telsa Model Y.
The brand teased the smaller model yesterday with a post on Facebook revealing – well – very little other than an emphasis on off-road skills. We’ll learn more tomorrow.
But Rivian may have inadvertently revealed more than it planned.
Alleged Specifications Seem Plausible
Self-described Rivian “owner/fan” Chris Hilbert claims to have found the specifications for the vehicle by reading the source code on an R2 page on the brand’s website. Rivian quickly took down the information, so we can’t even verify that the website said what he claims it said. But the numbers are plausible.
Among other things, Hilbert cited a $47,500 starting price, a range of up to 330 miles, and the sort of approach and departure angles automakers aim for when designing an SUV for the trail. Rivian’s existing R1T pickup and R1S 3-row SUV have strong off-road reputations, particularly in their (expensive) quad-motor variants, which can power each wheel independently to negotiate tough obstacles.
It wouldn’t be the first time information about the R2 appeared from an unusual source. The City Council of Laguna Beach, California, scooped the company on its own reveal date.
Regardless, the speculation will end tomorrow. Should it prove to be the off-roader we’re expecting, the R2 won’t quite have completely unique appeal. Ford revealed an off-road-focused version of the Mach-E, the Mach-E Rally, last fall. Jeep plans its own answer, the electric Jeep Recon, likely due next year.
Electric off-roaders are necessarily bound by limited trail charging infrastructure. But they provide a unique experience as their near-silent operation doesn’t often scare off wildlife.
Cox Automotive, the parent company of Kelley Blue Book and Autotrader, is a minority investor in Rivian.
