Rivian delivered 12,194 vehicles in the second quarter, exceeding its own guidance, as it handed over the first units of its mass-market R2 SUV, the company said on Thursday.
The Irvine, California-based EV maker produced 12,613 vehicles at its plant in Normal, Illinois over the three months to June 30, and delivered 12,194.
Deliveries surpassed the 9,000-to-11,000 range Rivian had set for the quarter, clearing the top of that outlook by 1,194 units.
The company said the result reflected quarter-over-quarter growth in its electric delivery vans and R1 line, “coupled with the introduction of R2 deliveries.”
Shares of Rivian were trading flat just before the announcement.
A Sequential Rebound
Deliveries rose 17.6% from the 10,365 vehicles Rivian delivered in the first quarter, when it beat consensus estimates in a period that included no R2 volume.
Compared with the second quarter of 2025, when the company delivered 10,661 vehicles, deliveries increased 14.4%.
Production climbed 23.2% from the 10,236 vehicles built in the first quarter, and rose sharply against the 5,979 produced a year earlier, a period in which Rivian had deliberately curbed output while retooling for its 2026 model year.
Output exceeded deliveries by 419 units in the latest quarter, a reversal from the first quarter, when deliveries ran ahead of production by 129 vehicles.
The pattern points to a company rebuilding inventory as it scales a second vehicle line rather than drawing down stock.
R2 Reaches Customers
The quarter marked the first period in which the R2 contributed to Rivian‘s totals, a milestone for the company’s push beyond its premium R1T pickup and R1S SUV.
Rivian began volume, saleable production of the R2 in late April, then opened its internal delivery programme to employees before starting external customer handovers on June 9.
The company was on track to deliver more than 1,100 R2 units before the quarter ended, according to vehicle-identification-number data shared by early buyers, though Rivian did not disclose an R2-specific delivery figure.
Because customer deliveries began only in the final weeks of June, the R2’s contribution to the quarter was modest by design, with the bulk of its volume expected later in the year.
The mid-size SUV opens Rivian to a broader market, launching in a Performance trim at $57,990 that the company has aimed squarely at the Tesla Model Y Performance.
Mix and Backdrop
The commercial van business, built around electric delivery vehicles originally developed with Amazon, contributed to the quarter’s growth alongside the R1 line, according to the company.
The R1T and R1S, Rivian‘s established models, had weakened in the first quarter, pressured by the expiration of the $7,500 US federal electric-vehicle tax credit on September 30 and by higher interest rates that lifted financing costs.
A recovery in those lines in the second quarter, on the company’s account, helped lift the total beyond the quarterly outlook.
The figures give the clearest read yet on the early R2 ramp, the product Rivian has described as the key to reaching sustained volume and, eventually, positive automotive gross margins.
Guidance Lifted
On the strength of the quarter and its second-half outlook, Rivian raised its full-year 2026 delivery forecast to between 65,000 and 70,000 vehicles, from 62,000 to 67,000.
The company had first set the lower range in February and reaffirmed it in April, with management concentrating the delivery curve into the second half.
With 22,559 vehicles delivered through June, Rivian needs between 42,441 and 47,441 units over the remaining two quarters to meet the new target, an average of roughly 21,220 to 23,720 per quarter.
That run-rate would require close to double the pace of the first half, a ramp dependent on the R2 scaling quickly at the Normal plant.
What Comes Next
Rivian is expanding R2 output from a single shift toward a second later this year, and is building a second factory in Georgia supported by a $4.5 billion Department of Energy loan.
The company continues to draw funding from its joint venture with Volkswagen Group and has agreed a robotaxi partnership with Uber centered on the R2.
Rivian said it will report second-quarter financial results on July 30, after the market close, with a webcast at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time.
Investors will look to that report for gross-margin direction, an R2 volume breakdown, and confirmation that the ramp can support the raised full-year target.
