2027 Rivian R2 First Drive: Time to Trade in Your Tesla
What SUV Shoppers Need to Know
- Rivian’s second SUV, the 2027 R2, is a five-seat, all-electric mid-size SUV that slots below the brand’s R1S in size and price but still comes with most of the bigger SUV’s features.
- Unlike its rivals, it is capable both on- and off-road, featuring all-terrain options and impressive ground clearance.
- The R2’s combination of equipment, space, function and luxury for a competitive price instantly makes it a compelling choice in the mid-size electric luxury SUV class.
Rivian has done something incredibly difficult — it’s survived long enough to produce its second big product, something a lot of upstart automakers struggle to do. Launching now is the 2027 R2, a critical new SUV from the American electric-vehicle manufacturer that aims to dramatically expand Rivian’s appeal into the heart of the U.S. market: mid-size SUVs. But the R2 is most emphatically not a decontented, stripped-down model that’s been built to a price point. This is a more advanced, more efficient, more appropriately sized and more affordably priced model than the existing R1S SUV and R1T pickup truck. If that sounds like a winning combination, that’s because it is.
Related: Rivian Announces R2 First Delivery, Test-Drive Dates
How Much Does the Rivian R2 Cost?
Over the next year or so, four trim levels of the R2 will be offered. First out of the gate is the loaded Performance dual-motor with Launch Package, arriving to customers now, to be followed later this year by the Premium dual-motor trim. Both feature twin motors for standard all-wheel drive and an 88-kilowatt-hour battery pack for a rated 330 miles of max range. In 2027, the Standard Long Range version arrives with a single-motor rear-wheel-drive setup and 345-mile driving range. And then the true base model will show up in the summer of ‘27 with a smaller battery pack, roughly 275-mile range and even lower base price. (All prices shown in the chart below include the $1,495 destination fee.)
| Trim | Propulsion | Horsepower | Torque (Pounds-Feet) | 0-60 MPH (Seconds) | Range (Miles) | Starting Price | On Sale |
| Performance (with Launch Package) | Dual-motor AWD | 656 | 609 | 3.6 | 330 | $59,485 | Spring 2026 |
| Premium | Dual-motor AWD | 450 | 537 | 4.6 | 330 | $55,485 | Late 2026 |
| Standard Long Range | Long Range RWD | 350 | 355 | 5.9 | 345 | $49,985 | Early 2027 |
| Standard | RWD | 350 | 355 | 5.9 | 275+ (estimated) | $46,485 | Summer 2027 |
Does a Lower Price Mean a Lesser Vehicle?
Not in the slightest. As said before, despite the R2 costing considerably less than an R1S, it still comes well equipped with nearly everything the R1 has. The styling is clearly similar to the R1S, but park them next to each other and you’ll quickly realize just how much more tidy and compact the R2 is. It’s a five-seat, two-row SUV instead of the seven-seat three-row the R1S is. But despite sharing a number of styling cues, the R2 has some subtly different details, most notably a powered rear window that slides down into the liftgate, much like an old American station wagon from the 1970s or the current Toyota 4Runner. With a touch of an overhead console button, the side and rear windows in the R2 can be automatically lowered to provide an instant burst of fresh air to the cabin.
Speaking of the cabin, it’s an impressive place whether you’re sitting in the basic Standard variant or the fully loaded Performance trim. Front-seat comfort is excellent, with plenty of room in every dimension, and while it’s not as wide as an R1, there’s still plenty of elbow room for two. The second row is impressively sized considering the R2’s overall footprint, a testament to Rivian’s attention to packaging components like the battery pack, which is a structural part of the vehicle’s chassis. Since there’s no driveshaft, there’s no hump in the floor of the second row, meaning true three-across seating is easily and comfortably achieved. More remarkable, the second row of the R2 is a more comfortable place to be than the second row of the bigger R1 due to the ability to place your toes under the front seats (something you can’t do in an R1S). This makes for more usable legroom and greater comfort.
There are only two areas where I’m going to ding the R2: The standard panoramic roof panel has no sunshade, and the front climate-control vents are adjusted using the touchscreen. The first is a trend that needs to die — glass roofs that have no shade, just tint, are awful, especially when you live somewhere that has lots of sun. I felt the heat radiating from it on the top of my head the entire time I was seated in the vehicle. The second one is a bizarre affectation used by some automakers that only serves to distract and confuse. There is no reason I can think of to put the vent directional controls behind touchscreen menus when a simple physical knob would do.
New, More Usable Onboard Tech
From the driver’s seat, the new screens and multimedia system in the R2 are a big improvement over the already impressive setup in the R1. Most of the changes in the system revolve around how it’s laid out and come from customer feedback. For instance, the selection panel is now along the left side of the screen (as are most of the functions), putting it within much easier reach of the driver. There’s still no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, but Rivian’s in-house software development is so good that this is the first time I’ve ever used a native automaker’s multimedia system where I didn’t really miss it. That’s how well integrated all the various popular apps are in Rivian’s latest software.
What may take a bit more getting used to are the new haptic Halo click wheels on the steering wheel. Replacing traditional buttons on each side of the steering wheel are two rotating wheels. They’re remarkable in that they don’t actually move, only rotate, but if you push them left or right or pull them forward or backward, they feel like they’re moving due to the haptic vibrating “bump” that they deliver. There’s a very helpful onboard tutorial to help you learn how to use them, and I suspect owners will pick up on it pretty quickly. They have a quality feel to them that was described to me as aiming for the same kind of tactile feedback one would get from a high-quality 1980s audio component deck, and I think Rivian’s succeeded in matching that.
Other technology you’ll find in the R2 (and I mean every R2, not just the top trims) includes the Autonomy+ hands-free driving system ($49.99 a month or a $2,500 one-time fee), which operates “anywhere the R2 can see painted lines” but does not recognize or respond to traffic signals or signs, so this is not like Tesla’s Full Self-Driving feature (although Rivian says it’s working on its own point-to-point system).
What’s the R2 Like to Drive?
Driving the R2 feels remarkably like driving the R1, but with tidier dimensions and not quite the same level of mass and heft that the bigger R1 brings. Rivian claims that the R2 is nearly 2,000 pounds lighter than the R1 (the R1S has a curb weight approaching 7,000 pounds), but that means it’s still a heavy mid-size SUV, and you do feel it in corners and around town. I drove the Performance dual-motor variant, and it exhibits the same excellent stability, solidity and directional control as its big brother. It comes with an adaptive suspension that you feel working when you pop it into Sport mode for more aggressive driving — the body feels more level in tight corners, but the R2 Performance doesn’t quite feel like it has the sporting tune of the high-performance tri- or quad-motor versions of the R1.
The ride quality is a bit on the firm side, even with the adaptive suspension set to “Soft” mode, but I attribute this to the test vehicle’s 21-inch wheels and lower-profile tires. The Standard trim gets 19-inch rims with high-sidewall tires, and I’m betting it’s the ride quality champ. The steering feel is acceptable, and braking feel is good. The regenerative braking is quite strong, but it’s also adjustable to suit the driver’s preference. The silence with which the R2 operates is the selling point, however — no weird spaceship-inspired powertrain noises, no unusual whirs or whines. That silence is what truly sells the luxury aspect of the R2 experience. On pavement, the R2 gives the impression of a solidly constructed, stable and decidedly quick SUV that inspires confidence, but I wouldn’t call it overly sporty aside from its acceleration.
That’s OK, though, as the vast majority of drivers aren’t going to be flinging this thing through back-road twisties, but rather driving it to supermarkets and shopping malls — or perhaps to their favorite campsite, as Rivian is quick to point out that the R2 has serious off-road driving capabilities, with 9.6 inches of ground clearance (no need to worry about banging any driveshafts, differential pumpkins or exhaust bits!) and several off-road modes to carry you to out-of-the-way campsites. It can then power your campsite with vehicle-to-load capability by plugging an adaptor into the North American Charging Standard (Tesla-style) charging port for 11 kilowatts of available power for your site or home.
All-Terrain drive mode plus all-terrain tires proved to be capable of scaling proper obstacles on the trails around Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest near Park City, Utah. Between all of the external cameras, the impressive speed modulation and the high ground clearance, the R2 is indeed a formidable off-road adventure vehicle. Where you might find charging out in the boonies is another matter, but Rivian is trying to build out its infrastructure with an eye toward how a lot of its owners use their vehicles, and trailheads and similar areas are on its list. Personally, I found Rally mode to be the most entertaining, offering impressive levels of damping for higher-speed runs on dirt roads. It’s not a Ford Bronco Raptor, but it is impressively tuned and does things a Tesla Model Y, BMW iX3 or Volvo EX60 can’t.
More Rivian News From Cars.com:
- BMW iX3, Rivian R2, Volvo EX60: How Do These Next-Gen Electric SUVs Compare?
- The Next Big Thing? Rivian’s R2 Vs. Similar Electric SUVs
- How the 2026 Jeep Recon and 2026 Rivian R2 Stack Up Against Each Other
- Is the 2025 Rivian R1S a Good 3-Row Electric SUV? 5 Pros, 2 Cons
- 2025 Rivian R1T Quad Motor Review: Why Get Four When Three is So Good?
- Add Cars.com as a Preferred Source on Google
Should You Get a Rivian R2?
In a word: Yes. The 2027 Rivian R2 is one of the most compelling electric SUVs I’ve driven in a long while. It combines a beautifully crafted interior clad in high-quality materials with a spacious, comfortable cabin featuring plenty of passenger and cargo room. Then it adds excellent performance on- or off-road and all of the latest connected technology (that actually works well) at a reasonable price.
Other electric SUVs do one or two things well but are usually compromised in some way. The Tesla Model Y has impressive performance and charging, but a cheapo interior. The Genesis Electrified GV70 has a lovely interior and sexy styling, but no off-road capability. Same with the upcoming BMW iX3 and Volvo EX60. The R2 feels like the first electric SUV that doesn’t come with a compromise in any area. If Rivian can nail the quality and delivery experience, the R2 might just be the model that secures its future.
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