R2 Charge Port Location is Moving to Driver's Side Rear (on Production Model)! - Confirms Rivian VP

[Gen(R3)Xer]

At the Rivian Space in Pasadena (where the R2 / R3X is currently being shown) one of the Vice Presidents that was there confirmed that in the production R2 they are moving the charge port to the drivers rear! Great news for usability with the current Tesla superchargers

This is great news! The only other acceptable location is the front passenger side. That way you could pull into a Supercharger without issue or plugin at a roadside charger if that ever comes to fruition.

Also having the charging port on the driver side rear makes it easier for the driver to hop out, plug in, and watch their charging port in the side view mirror.

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[Gen(R3)Xer]

I admittedly haven’t read this entire thread, but I fail to see the logic of rear driver’s side. That won’t even work with existing RAN chargers…

There are currently about 400 RAN charging locations (600 planned) that will have over 3,500+ stalls. I think they have longer cables mounted from the top of each stall, so I don’t think port location is an issue. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Tesla, on the other hand, has over 2,000 charging locations and 25,000+ charging stalls. Rviain is also one of only three companies that can access the Tesla Supercharger Network (as of Summer 2024). If you want to make your customers happy you’ll make your product compatible with the market leader (ie change your port to NACS and change its location to maximize convenience).

Rivian, like Tesla, wants EVs to be a thing.

 

[Gen(R3)Xer]

Driver rear is an excellent location for Tesla supercharger compatibility however its not a good location for folks that tow.

The long term solution lies with the location and orientation of the charging equipment. There are many vehicles out there with different charging port locations.

It would be nice to see an optional 2nd charging port for those who like to tow. The front charging ports are ideal for towing since you don't have to unhook the trailer to get a charge. Pull through sites solve this issue but those are far and few between. Very few operators actually have pull through. Most are pull up which means you need a front charge port if your towing.

Those are all good points. They should have pull through charging stalls at every charging location. In hindsight all EV charging stalls should have been constructed this way, just like gas stations.

 

[zymolysis]

If you want to make your customers happy you’ll make your product compatible with the

If you want to make your customers happy, you'll make your product compatible with the advertised uses (i.e. towing). I've seen many people on these forums who have said that they still keep an ICE vehicle for towing. Forcing your customers to drop the trailer to charge is no way to convince them that your vehicle is suitable to use for towing, which is a core capability.

 

[Gen(R3)Xer]

If you want to make your customers happy, you'll make your product compatible with the advertised uses (i.e. towing). I've seen many people on these forums who have said that they still keep an ICE vehicle for towing. Forcing your customers to drop the trailer to charge is no way to convince them that your vehicle is suitable to use for towing, which is a core capability.

Same problem with the CT. There should be pass-through stalls at every charging station.

 

[ggsmith]

I recently made a long road trip and used several different chargers. Moving the charge port to the rear would have been beneficial at some of the Tesla superchargers I used, but as they were usually more expensive I tried to use others. Having the port at the back would have made it less convenient for using EV go, Electrify America, ChargePoint, Hypercharge, Flo, Electrify Canada, PetroCanada, BCHydro, Shell recharge. Maybe if Tesla would simply make the cords about a foot or more longer and using the Supercharger would be without problems.
Having the port at the front is [probably beetter for the vast majority of home charger users.

 

[KootenayEV]

It can’t be that much more to have the port at the front - I know the goal is cutting cost, but I think this is an instance where it can go too far (ie lack of stalls in Teslas)

 

[ElEsido]

Reverse parking is the way forward.

Love that line!!

 

[Hillbilly]

I hate that charging location. That is all.

 

[Jim4]

Do we know what the max kw charging will be on the R2?

 

[TemporarilyOutofStock]

Do we know what the max kw charging will be on the R2?

I asked. They aren’t giving out deets on that right now.

 

[ModelXer]

Agreed that it's great for Supercharger compatibility. The few times I've used it, I always have to use the two end units so I don't block any Teslas. Not an issue when the chargers are mostly empty but will increasingly become an issue when there are more cars that need charging.

However, we don't back in to the garage, so that we can open the liftgate to pull stuff out. So mixed on the benefits at home vs. charging on the road.

At least it's not right rear, which would be the worst of both worlds...

As a Tesla owner, I thank you for trying to keep charger spots open for others. We appreciate you're being a good EV citizen.
There are Superchargers at which I've stopped that have a spot for those towing, but there needs to be more. We support you.

 

[richguess]

That Green R3 there was really cool. Maybe too small, but IMHO their best looking vehicle.

 

[godfodder0901]

That Green R3 there was really cool. Maybe too small, but IMHO their best looking vehicle.

That's the R3X. ?

 

[R1TS]

There are currently about 400 RAN charging locations (600 planned) that will have over 3,500+ stalls. I think they have longer cables mounted from the top of each stall, so I don’t think port location is an issue. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Tesla, on the other hand, has over 2,000 charging locations and 25,000+ charging stalls. Rviain is also one of only three companies that can access the Tesla Supercharger Network (as of Summer 2024). If you want to make your customers happy you’ll make your product compatible with the market leader (ie change your port to NACS and change its location to maximize convenience).

Rivian, like Tesla, wants EVs to be a thing.

Correction:

There are about 400 RAN charging dispensers across nearly 70 locations. Not 400 locations. The Rivian network is extremely small amongst the bigger names. Not even remotely close yet.
Check back in about 5 years. Let’s see how big they get then.

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