Rivian started handing over the cheap one. Sort of. Public deliveries of the mid-size R2 began June 9 from Normal, Illinois. The SUV you can actually order is Performance with Launch Package, $57,990. Rivian’s June 9 release is the source. Premium is late 2026. The $44,990 Standard is Summer 2027. Employees got theirs in April. Customers are next.
The price ladder, in order of when you can have it
Official U.S. prices. Taxes and fees extra. Rivian did not print destination in the June release.
- Performance with Launch Package: $57,990. On sale now. Dual-motor AWD, 656 hp, 609 lb-ft, 0–60 in 3.6 seconds, EPA-estimated range up to 330 miles.
- Premium: $53,990. Late 2026. Dual-motor AWD, 450 hp, 537 lb-ft, 4.6 seconds, EPA up to 330.
- Standard RWD Long Range: $48,490. Early 2027. 350 hp, 355 lb-ft, 5.9 seconds, Rivian-estimated range up to 345 miles.
- Standard: $44,990. Summer 2027. rivian.com/r2 lists 275 miles, the same 350 hp and 5.9 seconds.
That is the usual EV launch. Sell the expensive one first. Promise the cheap one later. Rivian floated the $45,000 number when it unveiled R2 in Laguna Beach on March 7, 2024. Two years later the driveway price is $57,990, and Autonomy+ is included so the Launch Package feels like a gift. Rivian values that software at $2,500. On every other trim it is a 60-day trial, then $49.99 a month or $2,500 once.
Launch Package, limited time: Autonomy+, the tow hitch, a Rivian Green anodized key fob, and the option to pay extra for Launch Green paint. Semi-active suspension is Performance-only. So are the Compass Yellow calipers in the official photos.
88 kWh, NACS, 4,400 pounds
Rivian Support lists 88 kWh usable on Standard Long Range, Premium, and Performance. The June release does not print a pack size. The support page does.
Every R2 has a native NACS port. Superchargers are on the map. rivian.com says 10 to 80 percent in under 30 minutes and 150 miles in 15. No peak-kW number in the official copy. We are not inventing one.
Towing is 4,400 pounds on Performance and Premium with the hitch. Standard is 3,500 on the product page. Launch Package includes the 2-inch receiver.
It is a mid-size SUV, not an R1S that went on a diet in the brochure only. Official compare numbers: 185.9 inches long, 115.6-inch wheelbase, 66.9 inches tall. The R1S is 200.8, 121.1, and 77.3. Rivian says the R2 is nearly 2,000 pounds lighter. Ground clearance is 9.6 inches. Approach 25 degrees, departure 26. That is the leftover adventure DNA after they cut a foot and a half off the flagship.
Five seats. 40.9 inches of front headroom, 40.4 of rear legroom, a 40/20/40 rear seat. 90.1 cubic feet of total storage with the seats down, frunk included. Rear drop glass is on Premium and Performance, the party trick that lets you poke skis out the back without opening the hatch.
Built in Normal. The cheap one is the company.
R2 comes off a new dedicated line at the same Illinois plant that builds the R1S and R1T. Rivian is also building a Georgia plant it says will start assembling vehicles in late 2028. That one is for more R2s, a robotaxi, and whatever comes after. The car that has to work is already leaving Normal.
This is not the 2027 R1 refresh. That SUV starts at $83,990 and finally got captain’s chairs. The R2 is the other bet: a mid-size SUV priced like the thing people actually buy, built in Illinois, delivering now if you want 656 hp and later if you want $44,990. Rivian has been talking about a Model Y fighter since Laguna Beach. Two years of testing from −45°F to 122°F. The one in driveways is the $57,990 Performance. The volume car is still a calendar invite.
Rivian needs this one. The R1 made the brand. The R2 has to make the company. $57,990 for the one you can buy. $44,990 for the one you can wait for. The plant in Normal is already running.
Images courtesy of Rivian. Specs from Rivian’s June 9, 2026 Business Wire release “Rivian Begins R2 Public Customer Deliveries,” the March 12, 2026 lineup and pricing release, rivian.com/r2, and Rivian Support’s usable-battery page.
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