Rivian announced the R3 and R3X on March 7th alongside the R2, and this is the car most people actually want. It's a midsize crossover with tighter dimensions and a lower price point than the R2—which starts at $45,000. The R3 should start around $37,000 and go up to $45,000 depending on battery and motor options. That's practical EV pricing that competes with gas-powered crossovers.

The R3X is the performance variant—Rivian's tech demonstrator meant for vehicle enthusiasts who want something capable both on and off-road. It's expected to cost between $50,000 and $60,000, similar to the current R1T or R1S Quad Max Ascend trims with everything included. These are estimates for now, but they line up with where Rivian needs to be to hit volume sales.

Battery and Performance

Rivian's launching the R2 platform with two battery packs instead of the current three-pack system on the R1S and R1T. The larger pack will deliver 300+ miles of range and hit 0-60 mph in 3 seconds on the quickest configuration. Fewer options means lower manufacturing complexity, which is how you get to affordable pricing without burning cash.

The R3 will use a structural battery based on Rivian's new 4695 cells, offering better energy density and output. Rivian's focusing all their efforts on this cell size going forward, which makes sense—standardizing battery architecture reduces costs and speeds up production scaling.

The R3X will only be available with the top-level battery pack.

Motor Configurations

Instead of the R1's dual-motor, tri-motor, and quad-motor options, the R3 will offer single-motor RWD, dual-motor AWD, and tri-motor (two rear, one front) configurations. That single-motor option is how Rivian gets the starting price as low as possible. Most buyers don't need quad-motor performance for daily driving—they need range and affordability.

The R3X will only come in tri-motor configuration, emphasizing performance and capability both on and off-road.

Charging

The R3 and R3X will include Tesla's NACS port with built-in Supercharger functionality. The charge port moves to the rear left quarter panel, matching Tesla's port location. That means the R3 will fit properly at Tesla Supercharger stalls without blocking adjacent spots—a practical detail that matters when you're actually using the charging network.

Both vehicles will support CCS with a CCS-to-NACS adapter, though Rivian doesn't plan to include one with the vehicle. You'll need a third-party adapter unless Rivian releases an OEM option.

Rivian says the R3 will charge from 10% to 80% in less than 30 minutes on the right chargers. That's reasonable, and it'll get better as Rivian improves the performance and software for the new 4695 cells.

Autonomy Hardware

Rivian built an entirely new autonomy hardware system with its second-generation R1 platform—11 cameras, 5 radars, and an updated compute unit. They haven't revealed the exact autonomy capabilities for the R2 and R3, but expect them to match or exceed the current 2025 R1 vehicles.

This is a major upgrade from the first-generation R1S and R1T MobilEye EyeQ4 "Mid" system. The new system uses MobilEye's EyeQ5 High, or "MobilEye SuperVision."

Rivian's custom compute package also includes Nvidia hardware, but that board will be in training mode and non-functional until Rivian launches its own autonomy solution. The MobilEye hardware handles Rivian's autonomy features for now—full-surround perception, autonomous lane changes, and highway and traffic jam assist, which is basically advanced highway lane-keeping.

Rivian intends to eventually phase out the MobilEye hardware, but timing is unclear. I want Rivian to succeed with this new autonomy hardware system. They're building something differentiated instead of relying on off-the-shelf solutions, and that's the right long-term play.

Release Timeline

The R3 won't start production until 2027. The R3X is expected to launch first, as early as late 2026 or early 2027. Rivian intends to launch the R2 first in mid-2026 across North America.

I'll be watching this closely. The R3 is super practical, and I love the shape. It's the right size, the right price, and the right feature set for what most people actually need in an EV. If Rivian executes on this, they'll have a real volume seller that competes with the best-selling gas crossovers in the market.

The EV market needs more vehicles like this—affordable, practical, well-designed, and capable. The R1S and R1T proved Rivian can build great vehicles, but they're expensive. The R3 proves they can bring that quality down to a price point where millions of buyers can actually afford it. That's how you accelerate EV adoption and make a real dent in gas vehicle sales.

This also positions Rivian well against competitors pushing into the affordable EV space. GM's bringing back the Chevy Bolt under $30K, and Uber's partnering with BYD to deploy 100,000 EVs globally. Rivian's R3 sits right in the middle—more premium than the Bolt, more affordable than Tesla's Model Y, and perfectly positioned for both consumers and fleet buyers looking for practical electric crossovers.