No real AM or FM radio in the R2

[rfkxyz]

It has a GPS receiver. Rivians have never had satellite radio.

Yep, no fishtail antenna, bummer as their whole sales pitch is mostly to get away from the cities and off the beaten path.

Oh man… love listening to a game via satellite while camping far away from anywhere.

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[Thebandit]

Correct. You are not seeing the issue.
There is no option to stream NPR in the R2. When my wife is driving she listens to NPR. You want her to lug along a portable radio in a $67K car?

Just stream from your phone.

 

[SwampNut]

There is no option to stream NPR in the R2.

I can’t imagine that’s true. And dont they also have a ton of podcasts? Those are another one of the great solutions I use in the middle of nowhere. There are so many options.

 

[Jccoryell]

Insane. Luxury vehicle lacking basic things the cheapest cars come with. This is a deal breaker for me. I live on LI and have NYC radio stations. The best around. I travel frequently to the Adirondacks with most areas lacking cell phone service.
This continues the pattern of Rivian penny pinching on basics. The R1 lacks AM radio, glove box, adjustable headrests, satellite radio, camera rearview mirror, working charge pads, Apple Car Play and much more. These are basics that the cheapest EV (Chevy Bolt) has.

 

[SwampNut]

These are basics that the cheapest EV (Chevy Bolt) has.

The Bolt also allows you to disable one pedal driving. You should go join that thread.

 

[Jccoryell]

The Bolt also allows you to disable one pedal driving. You should go join that thread.

My wife and I own both. Are you saying I should go away because I have a criticism of my own vehicle and compare the two?

 

[SwampNut]

My wife and I own both. Are you saying I should go away because I have a criticism of my own vehicle and compare the two?

I have no idea why you chose to reword what I said.

You pointed out some of the reasons that I don’t understand why anyone buys SUV Rivians though. I have the R1T because I need a truck, the other EV trucks are a joke, and I won’t drive ICE.

The radio thing is hilarious though in 2026.

I bet the Lightning has a radio, maybe an 8 track too, as old tech as it feels.

 

[TexasBob]

That’s kind of the point. The cost to include it in the vehicle would’ve been minuscule, along with grab handles in the cabin. Both things that are actually useful when on “adventures.”

I agree with you that some of the money saving choices Rivian has made leave me scratching my head. For example I asked Gemini to do a bottom up build on the total cost of having an 800V architecture vs a 400V architecture. Total savings: $400. Four hundred dollars!

Each of us must decide if the place where Rivian cut costs is a good trade for us. But, yeah, you could probably have your radio for the cost of a door flashlight delete. We could have 800V for the cost 4 kwh of battery. A 315 mile range and 800V or a 330 mi range and 400V.

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

Correct. You are not seeing the issue.
There is no option to stream NPR in the R2. When my wife is driving she listens to NPR. You want her to lug along a portable radio in a $67K car?

I think you are conflating cost with demand. Just because a car is expensive, doesn’t mean it will have everything possible included, even options only 1% of buyers want.

The R1 and R2 also do not have cigarette lighters.

The one nit would be that this is an off road car, so you would think you would have options to stay connected via satellite. That said, it’s obvious from this forum and the real world that these cars are not really used for off roading.

 

[oregonridet]

I can’t imagine that’s true. And dont they also have a ton of podcasts? Those are another one of the great solutions I use in the middle of nowhere. There are so many options.

Install the TuneIn and iHeart apps and search for any NPR station. Specifically look for KLCC 89.7. These apps don’t stream live NPR radio; they stream specific programs and podcasts only.
KLCC & NPR have their own streaming apps but Rivian would only play them via BT from your phone.
Now pretend that you have a driver in your household that is not comfortable with technology. They jump in and turn on the radio and tap a preset. Voilà. Live radio. No can do in the R2.

 

[oregonridet]

Besides, Rivian is not going to start putting radios in their vehicles. We are pissing in the wind.

 

[sparked]

I agree with you that some of the money saving choices Rivian has made leave me scratching my head. For example I asked Gemini to do a bottom up build on the total cost of having an 800V architecture vs a 400V architecture. Total savings: $400. Four hundred dollars!

So development costs to change from 400v to 800v are zero? Seems like a huge change that they obviously didn't plan from the beginning without an existing 800v platform to even go off of. Rivian obviously prioritized other items like autonomy too.

 

[Dustyshades]

Lotta weird people in this thread getting upset about a really outdated piece of technology…

 

[SteveInBend]

Install the TuneIn and iHeart apps and search for any NPR station. Specifically look for KLCC 89.7. These apps don’t stream live NPR radio; they stream specific programs and podcasts only.
KLCC & NPR have their own streaming apps but Rivian would only play them via BT from your phone.
Now pretend that you have a driver in your household that is not comfortable with technology. They jump in and turn on the radio and tap a preset. Voilà. Live radio. No can do in the R2.

Not true. I just streamed KLCC on my Android tablet using TuneIn radio and KLCC on my phone using their web interface (recommended per their web site) and heard identical streams. So I assume I hearing the live stream on both devices.

 

[RivianRocks25]

Lotta weird people in this thread getting upset about a really outdated piece of technology…

But 2025 study says 56% of all car drivers use radio, so NOT obsolete.

Just because you have moved to a different deliver method, Radio is still the choice for over 1/2 the drivers. For some of us, cell based really sucks.

Sure Rivian saves $25 bucks (est) on radio hardware and loose sales. That's your choice. My choice it to tell people about this and spend my money somewhere else.

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