Finished R2 demo test drive? Share your review / impressions

[derekmw]

Yeah, I mentioned the same about the audio from my test drive. Being that the R2 will be for my wife, and she didn't seem that bothered by it, I guess I won't make a huge fuss either. But not being an audiophile, it was that apparent still, just how lacking the sound system was.

For me, as I got older - and coming from modified turbo cars - I stopped listening to music a long time ago. I enjoyed the turbo spool, BOV, etc...and then transitioning to EV's somehow I never replaced the lack of engine noise with anything. I guess I'm just old now...haha. So all that to say, as garbage as the R2 stereo sounded, I guess I shouldn't be bothered by it since it's not like I'd have the stereo on whenever I drive it.

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[PaganRites]

Well, I drove my next EV. WOW. So impressed. Exceptional driving experience.
I was lucky enought to get a Test Drive at the brand new Rivian Rocklin CA. Service Center. The Service Center is huge. I tried to take a photo but could not come close to capturing the expanse of this service warehouse. Good move by Rivian as this is a huge market in Sacramento suburbs in Northern California.

Between my wife and I we've owned Tesla, Volvo, Ford, Nissan and Hyundai EVs. By far the R2 interior is best in class. Solid doors, materials are nice, screens are bright, responsive, intuitive and wholly readable. Having not owned a Rivian I had zero issues navigating the menus and finding whatever I was looking for. Excellent design. The one thing I missed from Tesla in the other makes of EVs we've owned was the software, and this is easily on par with Tesla UI and software performance.

The AC is best I've experienced in an EV. Almost 100 degrees on my drive and the AC not only kept the cabin cool, but it does so quietly. You can hear it but it is a whisper compared to other HVAC systems I've used in EVs. The ventilated seats also best I've had in any vehicle, ICE or EV. CA. heat is a dry heat. I've seen reviews where people complained about the AC but they were in humid climates so I'm guessing that's the difference but it worked spectacularly for me.

Not everything is perfect. The lack of grab bars on roof above door is an odd choice. Plastic is used liberally throughout the cabin. That said the R2 still feel like a luxury vehicle. I still question the choice to not go 800v architecture. More on that below.

The car understandably has a little roll going around curves, especially at high speeds. It's fairly high off the ground and you feel that 'lean' in the driver's seat. Good thing is those seats are top tier and you don't slide around.

Especially impressed by lack of wind and road noise, even above 80 mph. Insanely quiet cabin. Our Volvo C40 would be the closest to matching the quiet, 2nd the Ioniq 5, Tesla not even close (I had a 2022 Model 3 LR I hear Juniper is improved).

I've read and watched mixed reviews on Audio. I'm really picky about audio quality. There is no lack of power in this system. You can crank music up to very high levels with no distortion. I played with the EQ a bit and good get 'ok' bass response but not what I'd expect based on the stats published about the audio system. I would say overall the audio is better than my Ioniq 5 LTD BOSE system. Good but not great. That said, I think this could be improved with software updates and more EQ experimenting. I'm not unhappy with it, just not blown away. I am disappointed that in 5 years Rivian has not figured a great audio experience out.

Navigation and the voice 10/10. Maybe best I've used in a vehicle. I got to drive for 25 minutes on freeway, rural roads, and city streets and the nav was flawless and the voice was exceptionally clear (which again may be due to the top tier cabin noise reduction Rivian has implemented in this vehicle).

The R2 is just so intuitively easy to step into and drive. Yes I have a lot of experience with EVs but still. I loved the ride height. I felt like I was in a large, high SUV or even a truck, just much easier to drive than either of those. I didn't feel that the hood visibility was a detriment in any way. I rather liked seeing the edge of the hood as it made driving the R2 and knowing exactly where my nose was easy to navigate in stop and go traffic. Loved that the turn signals give me a camera view like my Ioniq 5 and Tesla (though better implementation than Tesla).

I've seen a few comments on the turn signal noise/audio being annoying or too loud. Personally I don't understand the critque. I did not feel they were too loud at all nor did I find the sound unpleasant. Obviously subjective but that's my take on it.
I was really torn on the R2 before this drive. I actually had an order on the BMW IX3 (now cancelled, 425mile range, 800v architecture) because I was afraid going from an Ioniq 5 with above average DCFC capabilities was going to hurt. The Ioniq 5 charges so fast, I'll miss it, but not enough to deter from my enjoyment of owning an R2. It's just that good. Everything feels so good. Good job Rivian. You have a winner here.

Now the hard part. As a Day One Reservation I will be getting an email soon to go forward. Do I wait for LIDAR or not? I'm leaning towards waiting but it's going to be tough after today!

 

[SwampNut]

Well, I drove my next EV. WOW. So impressed. Exceptional driving experience.
I was lucky enought to get a Test Drive at the brand new Rivian Rocklin CA. Service Center. The Service Center is huge. I tried to take a photo but could not come close to capturing the expanse of this service warehouse. Good move by Rivian as this is a huge market in Sacramento suburbs in Northern California.

Between my wife and I we've owned Tesla, Volvo, Ford, Nissan and Hyundai EVs. By far the R2 interior is best in class. Solid doors, materials are nice, screens are bright, responsive, intuitive and wholly readable. Having not owned a Rivian I had zero issues navigating the menus and finding whatever I was looking for. Excellent design. The one thing I missed from Tesla in the other makes of EVs we've owned was the software, and this is easily on par with Tesla UI and software performance.

The AC is best I've experienced in an EV. Almost 100 degrees on my drive and the AC not only kept the cabin cool, but it does so quietly. You can hear it but it is a whisper compared to other HVAC systems I've used in EVs. The ventilated seats also best I've had in any vehicle, ICE or EV. CA. heat is a dry heat. I've seen reviews where people complained about the AC but they were in humid climates so I'm guessing that's the difference but it worked spectacularly for me.

Not everything is perfect. The lack of grab bars on roof above door is an odd choice. Plastic is used liberally throughout the cabin. That said the R2 still feel like a luxury vehicle. I still question the choice to not go 800v architecture. More on that below.

The car understandably has a little roll going around curves, especially at high speeds. It's fairly high off the ground and you feel that 'lean' in the driver's seat. Good thing is those seats are top tier and you don't slide around.

Especially impressed by lack of wind and road noise, even above 80 mph. Insanely quiet cabin. Our Volvo C40 would be the closest to matching the quiet, 2nd the Ioniq 5, Tesla not even close (I had a 2022 Model 3 LR I hear Juniper is improved).

I've read and watched mixed reviews on Audio. I'm really picky about audio quality. There is no lack of power in this system. You can crank music up to very high levels with no distortion. I played with the EQ a bit and good get 'ok' bass response but not what I'd expect based on the stats published about the audio system. I would say overall the audio is better than my Ioniq 5 LTD BOSE system. Good but not great. That said, I think this could be improved with software updates and more EQ experimenting. I'm not unhappy with it, just not blown away. I am disappointed that in 5 years Rivian has not figured a great audio experience out.

Navigation and the voice 10/10. Maybe best I've used in a vehicle. I got to drive for 25 minutes on freeway, rural roads, and city streets and the nav was flawless and the voice was exceptionally clear (which again may be due to the top tier cabin noise reduction Rivian has implemented in this vehicle).

The R2 is just so intuitively easy to step into and drive. Yes I have a lot of experience with EVs but still. I loved the ride height. I felt like I was in a large, high SUV or even a truck, just much easier to drive than either of those. I didn't feel that the hood visibility was a detriment in any way. I rather liked seeing the edge of the hood as it made driving the R2 and knowing exactly where my nose was easy to navigate in stop and go traffic. Loved that the turn signals give me a camera view like my Ioniq 5 and Tesla (though better implementation than Tesla).

I've seen a few comments on the turn signal noise/audio being annoying or too loud. Personally I don't understand the critque. I did not feel they were too loud at all nor did I find the sound unpleasant. Obviously subjective but that's my take on it.
I was really torn on the R2 before this drive. I actually had an order on the BMW IX3 (now cancelled, 425mile range, 800v architecture) because I was afraid going from an Ioniq 5 with above average DCFC capabilities was going to hurt. The Ioniq 5 charges so fast, I'll miss it, but not enough to deter from my enjoyment of owning an R2. It's just that good. Everything feels so good. Good job Rivian. You have a winner here.

Now the hard part. As a Day One Reservation I will be getting an email soon to go forward. Do I wait for LIDAR or not? I'm leaning towards waiting but it's going to be tough after today!

Sounds like a great car except no FM radio.

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

 

[Thebandit]

Sounds like a great car except no FM radio.

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

It apparently fits a golf bag with clubs, so that's a good size.

 

[Jeremy3292]

Sounds like a great car except no FM radio.

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

Negative. Full set of golf clubs so it must be 50" wide or so.

This is a big deal for me personally as it takes a set of golf clubs out of the trunk space (my wife and I both play).

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...-area-my-tested-photos-from-demo-drive.59959/

 

[R1SnTahoe]

I pulled into what I thought was going to be a new RAN charger in Rocklin, CA, yesterday en route to Tahoe. Pulling in, though, I realized it was a whole new sales space and service center. While I charged I was able to drive a white R2. I loved it! I’d seen an R2 already, but hadn’t been able to drive.

I don’t have much to add about the R2 itself. It was an absolute joy to drive. I’ll say that I was especially curious about the haptic wheels and audio. I’ve seen people complain about them in other reviews.

I thought the haptic wheels were amazing. While I agree it would take some time and experience for them to become second nature, they seem like something you’d adapt to quickly. That they deliver such pleasing physical controls to the steering wheel is brilliant.

The equalizer was tuned to heavy base with hollow mids when I turned on music. It gave a hollow muffled sound that seemed shockingly bad. But I tuned things to mirror settings in my Gen1 R1S, and I liked it much better. Rivian isn’t going to win any awards with this system, but it was decent. I enjoyed its sound, and I’m confident OTA updates will improve it with time.

One thing that really stood out to me, though, was how much it reinforced my love for R1. Where I had thought being in a smaller more nimble SUV would be appealing, it actually galvanized my love the beast of a vehicle that is my R1S. I don’t have kids, so I don’t need the third row. I’ve had that row of seats down just a handful of days. I have camped in it more often than that, LOL. I have just grown to love how high I sit. How safe I feel. The versatility of it.

There was an R1S tri-motor in Storm Blue in the show room. It had a camp stove outfitted on the tail gate. I left with an aspiration for THAT.

I’ve seen posts where some speculate R2 will take a bite out of R1. I don’t see that happening. R2 will expand the Rivian community exponentially, but I think R1 will remain aspirational. They’re substantially different despite the similarity of their shape.

 

[PaganRites]

Sounds like a great car except no FM radio.

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

It has FM radio but via app. So if you lose cell coverage you lose FM. I listened to the FM audio on my drive actually.

The frunk is not small in my opinion. Holds a golf club bag to give you an idea.

 

[PaganRites]

Yeah I don't get the Haptic Wheel hate. I had no issues with it. I thought they felt good and were intuitive.

 

[AndySTL928]

Well, I drove my next EV. WOW. So impressed. Exceptional driving experience.
I was lucky enought to get a Test Drive at the brand new Rivian Rocklin CA. Service Center. The Service Center is huge. I tried to take a photo but could not come close to capturing the expanse of this service warehouse. Good move by Rivian as this is a huge market in Sacramento suburbs in Northern California.

Between my wife and I we've owned Tesla, Volvo, Ford, Nissan and Hyundai EVs. By far the R2 interior is best in class. Solid doors, materials are nice, screens are bright, responsive, intuitive and wholly readable. Having not owned a Rivian I had zero issues navigating the menus and finding whatever I was looking for. Excellent design. The one thing I missed from Tesla in the other makes of EVs we've owned was the software, and this is easily on par with Tesla UI and software performance.

The AC is best I've experienced in an EV. Almost 100 degrees on my drive and the AC not only kept the cabin cool, but it does so quietly. You can hear it but it is a whisper compared to other HVAC systems I've used in EVs. The ventilated seats also best I've had in any vehicle, ICE or EV. CA. heat is a dry heat. I've seen reviews where people complained about the AC but they were in humid climates so I'm guessing that's the difference but it worked spectacularly for me.

Not everything is perfect. The lack of grab bars on roof above door is an odd choice. Plastic is used liberally throughout the cabin. That said the R2 still feel like a luxury vehicle. I still question the choice to not go 800v architecture. More on that below.

The car understandably has a little roll going around curves, especially at high speeds. It's fairly high off the ground and you feel that 'lean' in the driver's seat. Good thing is those seats are top tier and you don't slide around.

Especially impressed by lack of wind and road noise, even above 80 mph. Insanely quiet cabin. Our Volvo C40 would be the closest to matching the quiet, 2nd the Ioniq 5, Tesla not even close (I had a 2022 Model 3 LR I hear Juniper is improved).

I've read and watched mixed reviews on Audio. I'm really picky about audio quality. There is no lack of power in this system. You can crank music up to very high levels with no distortion. I played with the EQ a bit and good get 'ok' bass response but not what I'd expect based on the stats published about the audio system. I would say overall the audio is better than my Ioniq 5 LTD BOSE system. Good but not great. That said, I think this could be improved with software updates and more EQ experimenting. I'm not unhappy with it, just not blown away. I am disappointed that in 5 years Rivian has not figured a great audio experience out.

Navigation and the voice 10/10. Maybe best I've used in a vehicle. I got to drive for 25 minutes on freeway, rural roads, and city streets and the nav was flawless and the voice was exceptionally clear (which again may be due to the top tier cabin noise reduction Rivian has implemented in this vehicle).

The R2 is just so intuitively easy to step into and drive. Yes I have a lot of experience with EVs but still. I loved the ride height. I felt like I was in a large, high SUV or even a truck, just much easier to drive than either of those. I didn't feel that the hood visibility was a detriment in any way. I rather liked seeing the edge of the hood as it made driving the R2 and knowing exactly where my nose was easy to navigate in stop and go traffic. Loved that the turn signals give me a camera view like my Ioniq 5 and Tesla (though better implementation than Tesla).

I've seen a few comments on the turn signal noise/audio being annoying or too loud. Personally I don't understand the critque. I did not feel they were too loud at all nor did I find the sound unpleasant. Obviously subjective but that's my take on it.
I was really torn on the R2 before this drive. I actually had an order on the BMW IX3 (now cancelled, 425mile range, 800v architecture) because I was afraid going from an Ioniq 5 with above average DCFC capabilities was going to hurt. The Ioniq 5 charges so fast, I'll miss it, but not enough to deter from my enjoyment of owning an R2. It's just that good. Everything feels so good. Good job Rivian. You have a winner here.

Now the hard part. As a Day One Reservation I will be getting an email soon to go forward. Do I wait for LIDAR or not? I'm leaning towards waiting but it's going to be tough after today!

Well, I drove my next EV. WOW. So impressed. Exceptional driving experience.
I was lucky enought to get a Test Drive at the brand new Rivian Rocklin CA. Service Center. The Service Center is huge. I tried to take a photo but could not come close to capturing the expanse of this service warehouse. Good move by Rivian as this is a huge market in Sacramento suburbs in Northern California.

Between my wife and I we've owned Tesla, Volvo, Ford, Nissan and Hyundai EVs. By far the R2 interior is best in class. Solid doors, materials are nice, screens are bright, responsive, intuitive and wholly readable. Having not owned a Rivian I had zero issues navigating the menus and finding whatever I was looking for. Excellent design. The one thing I missed from Tesla in the other makes of EVs we've owned was the software, and this is easily on par with Tesla UI and software performance.

The AC is best I've experienced in an EV. Almost 100 degrees on my drive and the AC not only kept the cabin cool, but it does so quietly. You can hear it but it is a whisper compared to other HVAC systems I've used in EVs. The ventilated seats also best I've had in any vehicle, ICE or EV. CA. heat is a dry heat. I've seen reviews where people complained about the AC but they were in humid climates so I'm guessing that's the difference but it worked spectacularly for me.

Not everything is perfect. The lack of grab bars on roof above door is an odd choice. Plastic is used liberally throughout the cabin. That said the R2 still feel like a luxury vehicle. I still question the choice to not go 800v architecture. More on that below.

The car understandably has a little roll going around curves, especially at high speeds. It's fairly high off the ground and you feel that 'lean' in the driver's seat. Good thing is those seats are top tier and you don't slide around.

Especially impressed by lack of wind and road noise, even above 80 mph. Insanely quiet cabin. Our Volvo C40 would be the closest to matching the quiet, 2nd the Ioniq 5, Tesla not even close (I had a 2022 Model 3 LR I hear Juniper is improved).

I've read and watched mixed reviews on Audio. I'm really picky about audio quality. There is no lack of power in this system. You can crank music up to very high levels with no distortion. I played with the EQ a bit and good get 'ok' bass response but not what I'd expect based on the stats published about the audio system. I would say overall the audio is better than my Ioniq 5 LTD BOSE system. Good but not great. That said, I think this could be improved with software updates and more EQ experimenting. I'm not unhappy with it, just not blown away. I am disappointed that in 5 years Rivian has not figured a great audio experience out.

Navigation and the voice 10/10. Maybe best I've used in a vehicle. I got to drive for 25 minutes on freeway, rural roads, and city streets and the nav was flawless and the voice was exceptionally clear (which again may be due to the top tier cabin noise reduction Rivian has implemented in this vehicle).

The R2 is just so intuitively easy to step into and drive. Yes I have a lot of experience with EVs but still. I loved the ride height. I felt like I was in a large, high SUV or even a truck, just much easier to drive than either of those. I didn't feel that the hood visibility was a detriment in any way. I rather liked seeing the edge of the hood as it made driving the R2 and knowing exactly where my nose was easy to navigate in stop and go traffic. Loved that the turn signals give me a camera view like my Ioniq 5 and Tesla (though better implementation than Tesla).

I've seen a few comments on the turn signal noise/audio being annoying or too loud. Personally I don't understand the critque. I did not feel they were too loud at all nor did I find the sound unpleasant. Obviously subjective but that's my take on it.
I was really torn on the R2 before this drive. I actually had an order on the BMW IX3 (now cancelled, 425mile range, 800v architecture) because I was afraid going from an Ioniq 5 with above average DCFC capabilities was going to hurt. The Ioniq 5 charges so fast, I'll miss it, but not enough to deter from my enjoyment of owning an R2. It's just that good. Everything feels so good. Good job Rivian. You have a winner here.

Now the hard part. As a Day One Reservation I will be getting an email soon to go forward. Do I wait for LIDAR or not? I'm leaning towards waiting but it's going to be tough after today!

Not to harsh your buzz, but I told the sales rep at our demo that I was a day one, minute one reservation, and let's just say I left that conversation thinking there was no way I was getting a launch edition.

 

[SwampNut]

It has FM radio but via app. So if you lose cell coverage you lose FM. I listened to the FM audio on my drive actually.

I know, I'm poking fun at the 17-page thread about the lack of an actual FM receiver.

 

[Jeremy3292]

Yeah I don't get the Haptic Wheel hate. I had no issues with it. I thought they felt good and were intuitive.

No idea how old everyone is on this forum but it is likely a generational gap thing. People from age 25 to 75 could be buying this car likely.

 

[PaganRites]

Not to harsh your buzz, but I told the sales rep at our demo that I was a day one, minute one reservation, and let's just say I left that conversation thinking there was no way I was getting a launch edition.

I got an email that says 'a few weeks' to place an order, whatever that means. That said, I'm fairly confident I'm waiting on LIDAR/RAP trim.

 

[rodhx]

Not to harsh your buzz, but I told the sales rep at our demo that I was a day one, minute one reservation, and let's just say I left that conversation thinking there was no way I was getting a launch edition.

Those folks are great but they literally have no idea when someone may or may not get an invite.

 

[rodhx]

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

Note the pics with golf clubs are with stand bags, so smaller than an old school "regular" bag. At my test drive on Saturday the Franklin SC had an R2 and R1S nose-to-nose in the showroom so you could compare the frunks. R2's looks much less than 50% of the R1 capacity. Pretty sure just the stuff I keep in the lower frunk of my R1T would fill up the R2's. And R2 doesn't have the shelf like R1 so what you see is what you get. Of course it's a much smaller vehicle but frunk capacity was my biggest disappointment.

 

[Alan in Tempe]

Sounds like a great car except no FM radio.

Is the frunk as tiny as it sometimes seems in photos?

It is definitely larger than the frunk in my '21 Mach-e, but not as deep. There have been times when I wished my Mach-e frunk was even deeper, but for things not too tall, the R2 has a pretty good sized frunk, but don't compare it to the much larger R1 or the more than twice as large Lucid Gravity. I think I could fit a larger suitcase in the Mach-e, but many more smaller items in the R2 than the Mach-e, certainly more grocery bags. Note it is set back, and the hood doesn't want to raise very far without much pushing up on it after it opens, and the loading height is pretty high (probably 6" higher than the Mach-e) so loading the R2 frunk is not as easy as with the Mach-e, except the initial opening of the hood. Seems like the frunk could have been much larger, given the wide covered areas all around it and lack of depth, but it is pretty large.

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