A Tempered Analysis Of The $60k Rivian R2

Rivian just released final specs for its slightly cheaper luxury electric crossover. Let’s cut through the hype.

A bunch of years ago, I wrote a piece titled, “A Tempered Analysis Of Rivian’s Electric Trucks.” And whoa boy did that kick off years of trouble, culminating in one of the reasons Outside eventually fired me. Because it’s my apparently-radical belief that journalism needs to be objective in order to justify its existence, let’s take a look at Rivian’s latest luxury electric crossover, and see how it actually stacks up in the real world.

Me, Journalism And EVs

I should probably get this out of the way right from the start, since expressing any skepticism around EVs is a one-way ticket to getting labeled an anti-environment luddite.

I’ve worked as a journalist for 24 years now. It is the express job of a journalist to be skeptical. Especially when writing about consumer products, especially when dealing with marketing claims. I do not understand why this is controversial. If we are not skeptical, then what are we doing? Simply working directly in marketing would pay much better.

I am not “anti” electric vehicles. I’ve been writing about devices with wheels long enough that I’ve gotten the chance to cover the development of modern EV technology since its beginning. That means I understand its potential and, as an enthusiast, am excited for it.

As a journalist who understands technology and who cares about the continued ability for our planet to support populations of polar bears (I could honestly care less about humans), I feel it is my express job to communicate the realities around the environmental impacts of a product category that expressly claims to be “good” for the environment.

Phew. Now that’s out of the way, let’s talk about Rivians.

What Is A Luxury Crossover?

I’ve explored my derision for crossovers at length before. The short synopsis is that they do everything worse than normal sedans, hatchbacks, wagons and minivans, but there’s an emissions loophole that makes them cheaper to produce than those, so automakers have spent billions of dollars convincing you to want one. And that’s worked. Crossovers are now, by far, the most popular category of vehicle.

But wait, it gets worse. It’s fashionable in America right now to try and demonstrate your ability to out-consume your peers. So, a new category of vehicle was created to enable you to flex your credit score to your neighbors. The luxury crossover is even worse than a regular crossover in that zero functional benefit is added in pursuit of the highest price tag possible.

The existence of the crossover acknowledges that the vast majority of people are morons. The luxury crossover exists to take as much money as possible out of the pockets of those morons.

Hope you hate the ability to see out of your windscreen in the dark!

What Is The Benefit Of EVs?

Cradle to grave, accounting even for emissions produced by coal-fired power plants, an EV produces around half the total emissions of an equivalent internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. The hook there is the word “equivalent.”

What is this new R2 equivalent to? For right now, let’s talk about the Performance model, since that’s what’s being released this year. With a $60,000 price tag, 656 horsepower, a claimed 0-60 time of 3.6 seconds, and equivalently compact dimensions, the first ICE luxury crossover equivalent that pops into my head is the Porsche Macan GTS.

The advantage here actually goes to the Rivian. That Porsche starts at an eye-watering $94,000, and only has 434 horsepower. 0-60 times are in the low 4s.

Cheaper, faster, and around half as damaging to the environment?! Sign me up for monthly payments!

Trouble arises if you choose to accept that luxury crossovers are stupid. Accelerating fast in a straight line, at moderate speeds, is fun once or twice. But, once you’ve floored your new car a couple of times, the appeal will wear off, and you’ll get back to the humdrum reality of traffic jams and speeding tickets. A luxury crossover is not a sports car. They are too heavy, too tall, and too dull to produce any sort of driving enjoyment.

And once you accept that luxury crossovers are stupid, you can go in search of parameters for their actual function. With five seats, reasonable cargo space, and again about the same dimensions, the R2 is functionally equivalent to something like a Toyota RAV4. You won’t notice the performance difference while you sit in traffic listening to your favorite podcast.

All versions of the RAV4 are now gasoline-electric hybrids that return about 40 MPG, with prices starting at about $31,000. At twice the price, can the R2 Performance at least cause half the environmental harm? I don’t think so. It might be a little better, but I doubt it’s by much.

One of the potential benefits of EVs is that, free of the defined mechanical layout of an ICE powertrain, they’re free to pursue space-efficient packaging. That is an enormous missed opportunity with the R2, which takes up much space that could have accommodated an extra row of seats with a phallic, extended-length hood. Again, fashion is dumb.

That tiny frunk is not worth sacrificing an extra row of passenger seats. Yet again, Rivian chooses frivolity over function.

EVs Versus America

The other problem with crossovers, be they luxury or plebeian, is that despite their marketing, they offer none of the easily defined mechanical specifications that make off-road travel possible. The fact that they look kind of off-roady has to do with those emissions loopholes for ICE crossovers, and a desire to translate that appeal to low-information EV buyers.

And this abject lack of off-roadiness applies across the Rivian lineup, despite the marketing. Everything Rivian currently produces, or has announced plans to produce, is a luxury crossover. And while the sophisticated software controlling their multiple motors does handle traction pretty well, they cannot take advantage of that traction because they cannot keep their tires in contact with the ground over uneven terrain. This is a mechanical feature of their fully-independent suspension, which lacks the articulation potential of the live rear axles used on actual trucks.

This problem is made worse on the larger, more expensive R1T and R1S because Rivian decided to fit those with height-adjustable air suspension. Push the button to enter one of the “off-road” modes and those springs inflate, the ride grows worse, the suspension is pushed downwards, and that added height ends up coming at the expense of wheel travel. That’s right, put one of the big Rivians in “off-road” mode and its “off-road” capabilities actually get worse.

Conversely, lower the suspension on one of the R1s, and wheel camber is borked (the wheels lean inwards), which leads to accelerated tire wear, something that’s already a huge problem both for your wallet and the environment. Heavy, powerful vehicles like these just chew through tires, and there is no good recycling infrastructure for those.

And while the R2 is thankfully equipped with hydraulic dampers and coil springs, making it the superior dynamic choice if you care about ride quality, it still has no more wheel travel than, say, a Subaru Crosstrek ($27,000, 30 MPG). And the R2’s capability will actually be substantially lower than the Subaru thanks to its additional 1,500 pounds in weight.

Ok, most people don’t actually go off-road, they just buy into off-roady marketing. But it seems like the promise of the roadtrip is inherent in that marketing. After all, there’s pictures of dogs and surfboards and Yeti coolers!

Can you take an R2 Performance on a road trip, given its 330 miles of EPA estimated range? Sure, if you stick to major highway corridors on either coast. This is where the reality of limited EV adoption begins to come into play.

In China, where 12 percent of the total vehicle fleet is electric, more charging stations are built each month than the total number that currently exist in our entire country, where only 8 percent or so of new vehicle sales are electric. Venture off those major highway corridors, and it’s not a question of whether or not you will find a charging station, you will not. Pete Buttigieg tried to fix that, but his plan to build $5 billion of rural charging stations was undone by all the fascism.

I am a sucker for a drop-down rear window.

The other thing that was eliminated in order to gorge Pete Hegseth with lobster tail was the $7,500 federal tax credits you could deduct if you earn enough money to afford one of these things. And this is where I’m actually going to complement Rivian on a job well done.

Way back when America still believed in its future (2024), Rivian announced that the R2 would start at just $45,000. Sometime in late 2027 when the base version eventually goes on-sale, Rivian currently says that price stands at $47,000 (single motor, 275-mile range). That is directly in line with Trumpflation. Most EV makers were quoting prices inclusive of that tax credit right up until it was killed last September. That Rivian is currently able to meet its pricing target amid significant economic headwinds is very impressive.

But still, even at $47,000, you have a lot of choice in the not-quite-as-good-as-a-regular-car (sometimes abbreviated “crossover”) space. Want 40 MPG along with a truck bed, and the ability to drive in places other than a major highway corridor? Hybrid Ford Mavericks start at $28k. Want a luxury badge? The Lexus UX300h starts at $38,250, returns 45 MPG, and will be just as disappointing to drive. Do you really need an EV to complement your Patagonia puffy? The new Chevy Bolt EV is just $29k and comes with 262 miles of range. Want to actually take your dog surf camping in Mexico with your Yeti cooler? A 4x4 Ford Fuckin’ Ranger is only $38k.

Most problematically though, even the base Rivian R2 is substantially more expensive than its direct competition. The Tesla Model Y starts at just $40,000, and is available right now, not in two year’s time.

Spend the money you save planting trees, or otherwise pointlessly signaling virtue. Humanity won’t consume its way out of climate change. Especially not with 600 horsepower luxury cars.

But I bet Saudi Arabia’s rulers are feeling pretty good about the diversification of their sovereign wealth fund right now.

A journalist with more than two decades of experience working around the world, Wes Siler is here to cut through the outrage and disinformation to bring you the factual, insightful, actionable reporting you need to understand what’s going on. Upgrading to a paid subscription supports this reporting, and buys personal access to Wes, who will help you save money on gear, and prepare for real life.