Rivian US sales fell in the first quarter — the last full period before the company begins delivering its more affordable R2 SUV — according to estimates published by Motor Intelligence on Wednesday.
The figures include Rivian‘s fully electric commercial vans, which were co-developed with Amazon and opened to third-party customers a year ago.
A model breakdown, splitting the vans and the R1S/R1T models, will only be disclosed by the Cox Automotive data set to be released later this month.
The EV maker sold 8,141 vehicles in the quarter, a 26.5% decline from the 11,070 units delivered in the same period of 2025, when the $7,500 federal EV tax credit was still in effect.
The decline comes as Rivian prepares to begin R2 deliveries to employees this month, with customer handovers expected by late spring.
The mid-size SUV, priced from $45,000 for the entry-level trim, is designed to expand the company’s addressable market well beyond its current premium R1 lineup.
March marked the third consecutive month of year-over-year sales drop — with 2,925 vehicles sold, compared to last year’s 3,910 units.
The Irvine-based EV maker sold 2,700 vehicles in February, a 7.3% increase from the 2,516 units registered in January but a 34.1% drop from the 4,100 vehicles sold a year ago.
In the first month of the year, Rivian‘s registrations had dropped to a new three-year low, partly reflecting the usual seasonal weakness at the start of each year.
The figures extended the year-over-year decline that started in December, which followed positive results in both October and November — despite the EV tax credit termination on September 30 that led the overall EV industry to decline.
Motor Intelligence only reports sales by vehicle type — ‘cars’ and ‘trucks’ — and does not break down sales by individual model.
Cox Automotive, which typically provides quarterly data for each model, is expected to release the figures later this month.
R1 Models
The company’s portfolio currently includes the R1S SUV, priced from $76,990, and the R1T pickup truck, which begins at $72,990.
On March 4, the company cut the Dual Standard lease rate to $749 per month on any contract signed until March 20 — announcing that production of the entry-level variant of the R1 models will end as Rivian approaches the release of the smaller R2 SUV.
After the deal expired, the company raised the Dual Standard lease rate to $899 per month — splitting the difference between the previous R1S and R1T rates.
Once the Dual Standard trim is phased out, the entry prices for R1 models will rise to $83,990 for the R1S and $79,990 for the R1T — a $7,000 difference considering the Dual variants.
In the first two months of the year, Rivian ran a 0% APR offer on 60-month financing contracts for the 2026 Dual Performance, with Large or Max batteries, and all Tri-motor variants of both R1 models.
The discount also applied to the Quad trims — marking the first time the EV maker introduced the offer for its flagship quad-motor vehicles.
From March 4 onward, the financing rate increased to 1.99%, with customers required to obtain approval by March 19 and take delivery by March 31.
EDV
Additionally, the EV maker has offered an electric delivery van to fleet customers for a year now, after previously co-developing it with Amazon, to which it committed to deliver 30,000 units by 2030.
The company is preparing to launch new van variants, featuring options like All-Wheel Drive and extended battery range.
Earlier this week, Rivian rehired Aaron Hensler as chief engineer for its commercial van platform, after the engineer left in mid-2025 to join General Motors.
R2 SUV
Details for the more affordable model were revealed on March 12 at the SXSW Festival.
The model will debut with a Performance Dual Motor variant, with a price point of $57,990.
Deliveries will go to Rivian employees before external customers in late June. Additionally, the first customer deliveries will go to existing R1 owners.
Production is set to begin over the next few weeks at Rivian‘s plant in Normal, Illinois, starting on one shift before adding a second later in the year.
Last week, Rivian updated its R2 webpage to announce that demo drives are “coming soon.”
Over the weekend, the company announced that the model will go on a cross-country tour over the next two months — starting in California and ending in Tennessee.
Sales Guidance
Rivian — currently only present in North America — sold a total of 42,247 vehicles in 2025, a decline of 12.5% from 2024, when 51,579 units were registered.
This year, the company expects to deliver between 62,000 and 67,000 vehicles, driven in part by the introduction of the R2 mid-size SUV.
Management has indicated that sales of the R1 and the electric delivery van are expected to remain flat compared to last year.
Based on the information provided, the R2 is projected to account for roughly 20,000 to 25,000 of this year’s vehicle deliveries.
The company’s CEO told CNBC that the upcoming model will make up the “majority” of Rivian‘s volume by the end of 2027.
