We could get our first glimpse of Rivian's next vehicle as soon as March 7, documents out of a Laguna Beach City Council meeting suggest.
A document linked in the group's Jan. 23 meeting agenda and spotted by local outlet Stu News Laguna revealed that Rivian had sought approval to use part of a public park for a "worldwide product launch event." Which product could that be? A diagram of the proposed event was labeled "Rivian R2 Launch," which clears things up. (For the uninitiated: The EV startup is gearing up to launch an R2 platform to follow up its R1S SUV and R1T pickup truck.)
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Rivian's Long-Awaited R2
EV startup Rivian made a splash in 2021 with its R1T pickup truck and followed that up with its R1S SUV. It's planning to follow that up with smaller R2 vehicles that haven't broken cover yet, but could soon.
According to the document, city staff recommended that the body approve Rivian's proposal. But the EV maker ended up withdrawing its request ahead of the meeting.
It's unclear if Rivian bailed on the request because the news got out. And while it isn't official that the company will take the wraps off of something big in March, that seems to be a good bet. A Rivian spokesperson told InsideEVs they had nothing to share about the R2's potential reveal.
Rivian founder and CEO R.J. Scaringe has said that Rivian plans to launch an R2 SUV in 2026 and that it will cost around $50,000. Importantly, the SUV will be smaller and less expensive than the upstart's current lineup. It'll be built at Rivian's new plant in Georgia.
Contact the author: tim.levin@insideevs.com
