Poll: Should Rivian Consider a 3-row R2 model?

[SlaterGS]

Oh please no. If you want a minivan just buy a minivan.

Minivan with the highest ground clearance is 6.9" (Sienna), only two with AWD (Sienna and certain Pacifica trims), and most offer around 3500 for towing.

While very few families that need more than 5 seats are actually off roading, many absolutely value the above features especially for their winter needs.

Yes, minivans can be fantastic, but they don't fulfill the needs for everyone.

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[junglebird]

I'm holding out for a 3-row R3. Might as well have all three rows be super-cramped.

 

[Mos Eisley]

Minivan with the highest ground clearance is 6.9" (Sienna), only two with AWD (Sienna and certain Pacifica trims), and most offer around 3500 for towing.

While very few families that need more than 5 seats are actually off roading, many absolutely value the above features especially for their winter needs.

Yes, minivans can be fantastic, but they don't fulfill the needs for everyone.

Those few families clearly need an Adventure Wagon.

With chassis starting around $130K and all the add-ons reaching another $70K what more could a family of five mountain climbing urban commuter glampers want? want?

 

[VSG]

Minivan with the highest ground clearance is 6.9" (Sienna), only two with AWD (Sienna and certain Pacifica trims), and most offer around 3500 for towing.

Which is better than a Model Y...
That's kind of what I'm saying. If you want a long and tall people mover for driving on pavement 100% of the time, get an appropriate vehicle for that. Not every vehicle serves or should serve every need.

There is no need to make the R2 more like a Model Y. The R2 appeals to those who are not well-served by a Model Y. And that has little to do with off-roading. The Model Y has never been under consideration for me, for the sole reason that it isn't suited to my needs, not for any other reason. Most vehicles aren't suited to my needs, whether good or bad, expensive or cheap, foreign or domestic. Watering down the R2 to make it more appealing to Model Y buyers makes it less useful to me. The market is already well-served by the "tall sedan" class of vehicles - we don't need more.

While very few families that need more than 5 seats are actually off roading, many absolutely value the above features especially for their winter needs.

Yes, minivans can be fantastic, but they don't fulfill the needs for everyone.

I think you're agreeing with me here.

 

[godfodder0901]

Those few families clearly need an Adventure Wagon.

You rang?
https://www.alphamotorinc.com/sagaestate

 

[rogersmj]

They absolutely should try to cannibalize sales. R1 costs so much more because of complexity. If that complexity isn't adding value for customers R1 can die or evolve.

Yes, absolutely. This is the point some people might be missing.

OP may have not phrased it the best way, calling it a "3 row R2"...but I do want something the size of R1 (or close to it) with three rows, still boxy and somewhat off-roady, but with less complexity. And I think the market would respond well to that. Look at the Lexus GX550...they can't build enough of them, and people are selling them 1 year old for exactly what they paid new.

The poster child of this complexity is the R1 suspension. The suspension system on the R1, while impressive in the abstract, is a nightmare in some ways. It is so expensive, and so complicated, and so problematic for a lot of people. I have had tons of issues with it in the first 8 months, and I have spent a lot of time online learning about others' problems and lots of details we don't need to bore people with. I guarantee you I am not keeping this vehicle long term because of the suspension.

Is the R1 suspension very capable off road? Yes. It's nuts how good it is. Does the extreme edge of that capability matter to me 99.8% of the time? Not a bit. Nor does it matter to 99% of buyers, I'd wager. Not only is it more expensive to build, and not only does it introduce reliability issues, but on top of all of that the R1S rides (let's be polite) not great on anything but perfect pavement.

So, what Rivian should do is: make a more on-road biased three row the size of R1 with more traditional suspension -- plus all the other parts-reduction tricks from the R2, like the combo side marker/reflector/badge -- and you can do a three row that (1) has a way more comfortable on-road ride, (2) still has decent off road capability (like R2 does) that covers 99% of people's use cases, and (3) doesn't cost Rivian and eventually the owner $4k+ every time something happens to the suspension.

You could sell that for like $70k-$80k, and actually make money on it. Reserve your crazy off-road suspension for a special model, like the Rivian equivalent of the G-Wagen.

Your lineup then looks like:

• R0X? -- the G-wagen/Bronco Raptor equivalent, hardcore off-road Rivian with air suspension, compressor, deep fording capability, winch hookups, the works... R0X = "Rocks"? Make it badass, purposeful, charge $100k+ for it
• R1 -- is now the still-capable-but-more-on-road-biased and less-complex/less-costly (aka no air suspension) 3 row SUV that will sell like hotcakes to suburban people that want a rugged look and space to haul stuff, but don't do anything tougher than a gravel road most of the time (this is me -- I'm not throwing shade). $70k-$90k.
• R2 (and R2X, a "lite" version of the hardcore R0X) -- the two row. $45k - $65k.
• R3/R3X - hot hatch. $35k - $50k.

That right there would be a solid lineup, I think.

 

[Gen(R3)Xer]

I don't know that they will have much savings in the weight department and that is what allowed them to switch to a lower cost solution. I am not aware of any 7k+ lbs car that uses tradtional suspension. The majority of the weight savings on the R2 comes directly from a smaller battery pack. the R1 is 20% larger pack vs R2.

I would love to have a standard suspension R1, I just don't see it in the cards as this adds complexity and cost to the production line.

I also believe the lower weight is what gives the R2 such a better driving feel.

Hm… Maybe they’ll do an R2T at some point, but honestly I think they’re going to wait and see what happens to the EV pickup truck market first. It hasn’t done so well overall.

Rivian sells over twice as many R1S vs. R1T. You’ve got the Slate truck coming out at the end of 2026 for under $25K and then Ford coming out with a $30K truck in 2027. Is there a place for an under $40K R2T Standard with reduced capability, or do they just keep pumping out R2 variants, like a tri-motor R2X where they don’t have to change the form factor or extend the wheel base?

So many possibilities. I’m excited to see which direction they’ll go.

 

[Gen(R3)Xer]

Haha. Alpha Motors Corp. has some really cool renderings, but they’ve only made one actual prototype of the Alpha Wolf EV truck and that was almost 5 years ago. I love their designs, but are they ever going to produce anything?

 

[gultin]

Tesla didn't have a choice after they discontinued the Model X (standard length Model Y 3rd row doesnt count, who're we kidding?). Rivian already has a choice for those needing 7 seats, and doesn't plan to discontinue it.

Choice is good for the consumer, different strokes for different folks.

What Rivian should absolutely do is to provide a captains chair 2nd row option (and charge a premium for it) for R1S. I personally know several families that dropped R1S from their shopping lists simply due to the lack of captains chairs in 2nd row. An instant demand lever.

 

[evguy]

Nope. That's what R1S is for. They'll maintain price/feature separation between R1 and R2 for as long as possible (i.e., until their automotive profits have plateaued, which I hope is many, many years from now).

 

[godfodder0901]

Haha. Alpha Motors Corp. has some really cool renderings, but they’ve only made one actual prototype of the Alpha Wolf EV truck and that was almost 5 years ago. I love their designs, but are they ever going to produce anything?

I wish. They keep coming out with new renderings all the time, but they appear to be pure vaporware.

 

[MaskedRacerX]

Yes, absolutely. This is the point some people might be missing.

OP may have not phrased it the best way, calling it a "3 row R2"...but I do want something the size of R1 (or close to it) with three rows, still boxy and somewhat off-roady, but with less complexity. And I think the market would respond well to that. Look at the Lexus GX550...they can't build enough of them, and people are selling them 1 year old for exactly what they paid new.

The poster child of this complexity is the R1 suspension. The suspension system on the R1, while impressive in the abstract, is a nightmare in some ways. It is so expensive, and so complicated, and so problematic for a lot of people. I have had tons of issues with it in the first 8 months, and I have spent a lot of time online learning about others' problems and lots of details we don't need to bore people with. I guarantee you I am not keeping this vehicle long term because of the suspension.

Is the R1 suspension very capable off road? Yes. It's nuts how good it is. Does the extreme edge of that capability matter to me 99.8% of the time? Not a bit. Nor does it matter to 99% of buyers, I'd wager. Not only is it more expensive to build, and not only does it introduce reliability issues, but on top of all of that the R1S rides (let's be polite) not great on anything but perfect pavement.

So, what Rivian should do is: make a more on-road biased three row the size of R1 with more traditional suspension -- plus all the other parts-reduction tricks from the R2, like the combo side marker/reflector/badge -- and you can do a three row that (1) has a way more comfortable on-road ride, (2) still has decent off road capability (like R2 does) that covers 99% of people's use cases, and (3) doesn't cost Rivian and eventually the owner $4k+ every time something happens to the suspension.

You could sell that for like $70k-$80k, and actually make money on it. Reserve your crazy off-road suspension for a special model, like the Rivian equivalent of the G-Wagen.

Your lineup then looks like:

• R0X? -- the G-wagen/Bronco Raptor equivalent, hardcore off-road Rivian with air suspension, compressor, deep fording capability, winch hookups, the works... R0X = "Rocks"? Make it badass, purposeful, charge $100k+ for it
• R1 -- is now the still-capable-but-more-on-road-biased and less-complex/less-costly (aka no air suspension) 3 row SUV that will sell like hotcakes to suburban people that want a rugged look and space to haul stuff, but don't do anything tougher than a gravel road most of the time (this is me -- I'm not throwing shade). $70k-$90k.
• R2 (and R2X, a "lite" version of the hardcore R0X) -- the two row. $45k - $65k.
• R3/R3X - hot hatch. $35k - $50k.

That right there would be a solid lineup, I think.

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

(Seriously the R0 is pretty compelling)

 

[ksurfier]

I'm holding out for the R2 stretch limo...party time!

 

[ndmiller]

No way.

The YL while factually having three rows, has an unusable 3rd row. A three row R2 would either be the same or the second row or cargo space would be unusable. Y and R2 are already optimized for space and the same rough length doesn't allow for a 3rd row without something else getting significantly smaller.

 

[Time2Roll]

Sure as soon as Rivian puts full size seats in the R1 then put the minis in the R2. (optional)

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