Rivian notified R2 order-holders that their vehicles have entered pre-production, the latest step before the EV maker attributes a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) to each unit.
The emails, confirmed by several reservation holders, went out on Saturday to buyers who had already converted reservations into firm orders.
Titled “Your R2 is in pre-production” and headlined “Congrats on your R2 order,” the notice tells customers their vehicle is being readied for the assembly line.
“We are getting your vehicle ready for production,” the email reads.
“When your R2 is assigned a vehicle identification number (VIN), you’ll be able to complete the purchasing experience and schedule your delivery,” it adds.
The Ordering Window
The pre-production emails follow a broader commitment from the Irvine-headquartered EV maker.
Rivian guaranteed earlier this week that all US-based R2 reservation holders would be able to see an “ordering window” in their account by the end of June.
Its website AI assistant gives the same timing, describing the feature as an estimate of when to expect an order invitation.
A reservation holds a place in line with a refundable deposit.
An order invitation unlocks the configurator, the step that converts a reservation into a firm order, after which buyers choose trim, paint and options and confirm in their account.
Once confirmed, an order enters the build queue, the stage that precedes the pre-production notice now landing in inboxes.
Under that label, Rivian has not defined the ordering window, and framed the end-of-June item as an estimate of when an invitation should arrive.
What the Rollout Covers
Rivian began sending R2 order invitations on June 9, the same day it started customer deliveries with the $57,990 Performance trim.
Invitations are going out in batches, with timing that depends mainly on when a customer reserved and where they will take delivery, according to the company’s assistant.
R1 owners and customers with expiring leases have been receiving priority, a sequencing that favors buyers already in the system.
Built at the company’s plant in Normal, Illinois, the R2 is a five-seat midsize SUV that Rivian has called its highest-volume future product.
The company assembles it alongside the R1 at the same plant.
US prices run from $48,490 for the rear-wheel-drive Standard model to $57,990 for the Performance version, with a longer-term target near $45,000.
A dual-motor prototype produced 656 horsepower, with more than 300 miles of range from an 87.4 kWh battery.
Performance was the launch trim, and Rivian will add the lower-priced versions over the next 18 months.
Pressure From Reservation Holders
Priority for R1 owners and customers with expiring leases means some day-one reservation holders have watched others receive invitations first.
For some buyers, Saturday’s pre-production email was the first direct word since they ordered.
One R2 order-holder wrote on X that it was “good to have something come from them,” adding it had been more than a week since ordering with no word.
Several recipients said on the R2 owners’ forum that they were leasing current R1s with terms expiring in mid-July and were watching for the R2 to arrive in time.
Another forum member, who ordered on June 17, called it “good to see some progress though the message is fairly vague.”
R2 reservations opened when Rivian unveiled the model in March 2024, leaving the earliest holders waiting more than two years.
About half of early R2 buyers chose to lease in the opening days, Rivian has said, and the company has assigned VINs to more than 2,000 R2s within weeks of the first orders.
In Canada and Europe, Rivian has delayed the R2 to 2027.
A Quarter-End Push
Rivian is on track to deliver more than 1,100 R2s in the quarter, its first with the model on sale.
Moving every reservation holder into an ordering window before June 30 supports conversion as the company closes the period.
Production and delivery figures for the second quarter are due in the first few days of July, ahead of the full quarterly results.
A single delivery total will not break out the R2 from the R1T pickup, the R1S SUV or the electric delivery vans Rivian builds with Amazon.
Under a 2019 deal, Rivian and Amazon set an order of 100,000 vans, and Amazon remains the main buyer, taking about 99% of those vehicles.
Van sales opened to other businesses in 2024, though those orders remain a small share of Rivian volume.
That leaves R2 numbers to be inferred from indicators such as VIN assignments and order activity rather than read directly from the quarterly total.
Demand and Software
Interest in the model has run ahead of its launch.
A showcase tour for the R2 drew long queues in May, which the company read as a sign of strong demand.
On the software side, Rivian has told R2 buyers that early models will not miss out on self-driving features, addressing a common worry among first-wave customers.
The maker also plans a single operating system across its R1 and R2 lineups by year-end, software chief Wassym Bensaid has said.
Rivian has also said its in-car AI assistant gains a major upgrade moving from the R1 to the R2, part of a software push tied to the new model.
The R2 is entering a US market that is cooling for electric vehicles.
Volvo has opened US orders for the EX60, an SUV it has positioned as an R2 rival, with prices starting from $58,400.
Tesla continues to dominate the segment that the R2 is designed to contest.
