Rivian's R2 is the most exciting alternative to Tesla, but probably not for the reasons you think

If you want a truly modern electric vehicle in the US right now, your choice is between Tesla and Rivian. There are some fine EVs, but none that come close to those in terms of understanding the future of cars at an approachable price.

I've felt this way for a while, having driven an EV since 2018 and driven a dozen other ones over the years. Most recently, I spent a week with a Rivian R2 and came away with the feeling that Tesla finally has a formidable competitor. Rivian is the only other car company that's building a practical future-forward vehicle right now.

The Rivian R2 is fun to drive, but the reasons it's a great car go way beyond how it accelerates or handles the dirt.

The car of the future has been here since the Model 3

The crux of what makes the R2 so great is its app and its constant connection. This is the same thing that convinced me the Tesla Model 3 was the future back in 2018. An EV is nothing if not a big battery. It's always on and connected, so it should be treated that way.

For Tesla, it was things like Summon and being able to literally drive the car forward and backward with the mobile app, while I was next to it. But it was also smaller features like sending an address to the car and directions showing on the screen when I got in later. It's being able to view the Sentry cameras remotely, and honk the horn if need be.

Rivian might not be all the way there yet, but it's very clear that the R2 is driving down that path. The app is the key. The app can also manage directions and charging from your phone, without needing to be in the car.

I'm pretty sure every EV I've driven has a mobile app. But most of them feel like an afterthought. Rivian's app is a critical piece of driving an R2. It even has Gear Guard Live Cam, so you can check on your car remotely in the app, viewing the different angles with all the cameras it has.

Inside the R2, there may not be many physical buttons, but the Haptic Halo Wheels, the two knobs on the steering wheel, unlock most of the functionality you want while driving.

I was impressed that I could activate the temperature, fan speed, and other controls without removing my hands from the wheel. You can customize that smaller driver screen to show surrounding traffic and maps or several other bits of information all from the two wheels.

The biggest factor that the R2 is future-looking is having meaningful over-the-air software updates. Even in the time since my loaner was picked up, there have been features added, like being able to enable Pet Mode from the Rivian app. For fun, Rivian rolled out a Ghostbusters theme with new animations and sounds for Halloween.

The R2 drives differently than a Model Y, but also kind of the same

The Rivian R2 feels big and spacious inside, despite being roughly the same size as a Tesla Model Y. The Model Y is longer, but the R2 is taller. So, driving the R2 feels different because of its shape. For me, the R2 was noticeably smoother and more comfortable than my 2021 Model Y or a 2019 Model 3.

On the R2 Launch Edition Performance model, you can change the driving modes between all-purpose, conserve, sport, and snow. You can also put it into a couple of off-road-specific modes. Being in Southern California, I stuck to the all-purpose and sport with a little of the conserve thrown in during my testing. 

The different modes activate either a single motor or both. Tesla has standard and chill drive modes to switch between acceleration modes. The R2's modes weren't really a one-to-one comparison, but there was a noticeable difference in how the accelerator felt when pushing it down.

Since the regenerative braking, stability, and firmness are all adjustable on the R2, I wasn't able to find my perfect mix of driving settings in the week I had the car. Figuring out some of the nuances will probably take a couple of weeks to get it dialed in.

It’s worth noting that self-driving is not on the R2 in any real way yet. Launch vehicles all come with Autonomy+, so they will continue to get these point-to-point driving advancements as they’re developed and released. I didn’t miss Tesla’s self-driving because I don’t use it. Paying $99 a month or $1,200 a year isn’t worth it for me. But if you do use Tesla’s self-driving tech, then this may be the one deal breaker for switching to an R2 in 2026.

The interior is thoughtful and clever, but not overly impressive

The R2 is filled with clever design elements inside. I genuinely love the dual gloveboxes. Having extra storage there makes the open area between the front seats feel less wasted and more practical. After a week with the R2, I was much more bullish on having the front console area open and free for a purse, backpack, or grocery bag.

The retractable cup holders also save space. The magnetic wireless phone chargers are nice. They certainly keep iPhones from sliding around.

All around the interior are clever uses of space. That’s probably one reason that the inside feels so roomy. The back seat in particular feels enormous compared to a Model Y. The usable room inside the R2 might lowkey be its best feature.

Of course, the interior isn’t luxurious. After a couple of demos to friends and refining my speech to them about the main features, it became clear that the R2 isn’t overly impressive in the traditional sense. This isn’t a vehicle competing with BMW or Lucid on materials or screen resolution.

Charging is fast, even though it's not the fastest

The hardcore EV fans will say that because the R2 isn't on an 800-volt architecture that it isn't as future-proof. It would have been nice to have that higher power ceiling, but that decision revolves around cost and overall range.

Compared to a Model Y, the charging I experienced in the R2 was competitive. Depending on certain circumstances, you can still expect to charge from 10% to 80% in under 30 minutes. People have been able to hit over 200kW in peak charging.

For me, the key point is that the R2 has an NACS port. When considering other EVs, the type of charging port has long been the sticking point for me. You can use adapters, but that shouldn't be a daily occurrence. It should be for emergencies.

I think it's also a game-changer that the charging port on the R2 is in the same place that it is on Tesla cars. Using a Supercharger was anxiety-free compared to the R1S, which has its port in the front.

I used several pubic chargers with the R2, and it performed the same as a Model Y. The manual charge port door is another weak point on the R2. It feels cheap.

I didn't set out to do a comprehensive range test. I also drove a lot slower and faster than I normally would as I played with the different driving modes. You probably won't get the full 330 ideal range unless you work at it. However, I was happy to see very little to no phantom power drain.

Is the Rivian R2 worth buying?

After spending a week with a Rivian R2, it's become clearer that no other EV is primed to take on Tesla quite the way Rivian is. That's because no other vehicles have the same modern tendencies as Tesla, which was built from the ground up to be a completely new car company.

The R2 will especially appeal to people seeking a new electric 4Runner or Jeep. Who doesn’t love a back window that rolls down? I think the R2 is full of character and style without being pretentious or taking itself too seriously.

Buying advice for any car is hard to generalize. For example, if you need or want an R2 right now, the only option available is the Launch Edition Performance model. It’s nice with lots of power. But that power comes at a price of $57,990.

I do think by the summer of 2027, with more trim levels available to buy, this will be a tempting option for a lot of people.