R2 Highway Efficiency Test: Uphill at 75–80 mph, Then a More Civilized 70 mph Run

[ksurfier]

I did a two-part highway-efficiency test (both round trip) in the Rivian R2 (21”) to get a better feel for how it performs both in real-world Los Angeles freeway conditions and during a more controlled 70 mph cruise.

Phase 1 - 12.5 miles - 63 - 3.17

Phase 2 - 10.1 - 62 - 2.86

Total

22.6 miles - 62.5 mph - 3.0 MPK

Phase 1: Rivian Van Nuys to Skirball Center Drive

The first portion was designed to reflect normal LA freeway driving—which, of course, means a mix of high speeds, sudden congestion, elevation changes, and at least a little chaos.

I started at Rivian Van Nuys and headed south toward Skirball Center Drive. The route includes a meaningful climb through the Sepulveda Pass. I drove approximately 75–80 mph whenever traffic allowed, but traffic slowed to around 30 mph for roughly a mile while climbing the grade.

Because of the uphill climb, changing speeds, congestion, and repeated acceleration, this was not intended to be a precise constant-speed test. It was more of a real-world highway-efficiency check under relatively demanding conditions.

Despite the elevation gain and faster cruising speeds, the R2 returned approximately 2.85 mi/kWh over the roughly 10-mile segment.

The lower average speed shown for the trip reflects the traffic slowdown and should not be mistaken for a steady 62 mph test. The R2 was not quietly loafing along in the slow lane.

Phase 2: Controlled 70 mph Test

For the second phase, I tried to isolate efficiency at a true 70 mph.

I used a freeway segment on the 118, made a quick off-and-on turnaround at Woodley Avenue, and returned in the opposite direction. The goal was to reduce the effects of elevation, wind, and any suspiciously helpful downhill advantage.

The most representative 70 mph segment was:

• 6.0 miles
• 70 mph average speed
• 2.61 mi/kWh
• Approximately 84°F

Because the average speed for the entire segment was 70 mph, the vehicle was traveling very close to the target speed for nearly the whole run. The turnaround also helped balance out one-way grade and wind effects.

Takeaway

The first test suggests that the R2 can produce surprisingly strong efficiency during a mixed, uphill freeway run, even at 75–80 mph when traffic permits.

The more representative steady-speed result, however, appears to be approximately 2.6 mi/kWh at a true 70 mph in warm-weather conditions.

With an assumed 88-kWh usable battery, that would translate to approximately:

• 230 miles of theoretical 100–0% highway range
• 160 miles between charging stops using a 10–80% window

More testing over longer distances and in both directions would improve confidence, but for now, 2.6 mi/kWh looks like a reasonable working estimate for R2 efficiency at a genuine 70 mph—not “70 mph except for the downhill parts.”

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[asellus]

pretty much all of these real world usages are in wild disagreement with the 2.2 mi/kwh that OOS reported recently that upset everyone and it's honestly pretty fun to watch.

--

edit - I am conflating their 70mph and 80mph tests! the 2.2 was at 80mph.

the point remains that EPA highway testing is not done at 70mph. it never even reaches that speed at any point during the test.

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

Thank you. The R2 simply isn't (at this point) a road trip vehicle. 160 miles on the 10-80 window will be ballpark for most every R2 (It may be 110ish in the winter?.). As other's have pointed out, that is pretty poor given the battery size. My 10-80 window on my R1 is 210 miles on 34" A/T's.

 

[DuoRivian]

pretty much all of these real world usages are in wild disagreement with the 2.2 mi/kwh that OOS reported recently that upset everyone and it's honestly pretty fun to watch.

These results are comparable to OoS - that had 253 miles at 70mph and these results are even worse at 230 miles. Efficiency being 2.6 to 2.8 miles per kWh. EPA highway range was 303 miles.

 

[asellus]

These results are comparable to OoS - that had 253 miles at 70mph and these results are even worse at 230 miles. Efficiency being 2.6 to 2.8 miles per kWh. EPA highway range was 303 miles.

interesting, am I misremembering OOS's video then? I thought they clearly stated it was 2.2 mi/kwh in their constant 70mph test in the "10% challenge"

 

[DuoRivian]

interesting, am I misremembering OOS's video then? I thought they clearly stated it was 2.2 mi/kwh in their constant 70mph test in the "10% challenge"

I was going off their 100 to zero consistent 70mph range test which everyone was talking about where the Model Y Performance had over 300 miles range (beating EPA) and R2 Performance had 253 (50 miles below EPA highway).

 

[asellus]

Oh shit, that's right. I'm conflating two videos -- the 10% was at 80mph. Ignore me!

 

[caffeinated]

Maybe giving OOS some credit, it's sounding like 250 +/- 20 miles is looking like an okay estimate for generic highway driving. I really want to take this thing out for a drive on 280 between SF and San Jose.

 

[mkhuffman]

The drives are too short to draw any meaningful conclusions. Try doing a 100 mile drive - that will be more helpful.

 

[renderpaz]

Guys, we've now stooped to caring about a few < 10 mile freeway trips?

I get it, the R2 does not defy the laws of physics, but we have people in here proclaiming the R2 is not road trippable because someone recorded a drive shorter than I walk in a day?

 

[ksurfier]

Added the detailed mileage:

Phase 1 - 12.5 miles - 63 - 3.17

Phase 2 - 10.1 - 62 - 2.8

Total

22.6 miles - 62.5 mph - 3.0 MPK

 

[mkhuffman]

Guys, we've now stooped to caring about a few < 10 mile freeway trips?

I get it, the R2 does not defy the laws of physics, but we have people in here proclaiming the R2 is not road trippable because someone recorded a drive shorter than I walk in a day?

It isn't meaningful because on a long drive, efficiency takes a while to settle in. The first 10 minutes can be vastly different than the next 60. That's due to many factors, including battery condition, BMS inaccuracies, traffic and weather.

 

[ksurfier]

Thank you. The R2 simply isn't (at this point) a road trip vehicle. 160 miles on the 10-80 window will be ballpark for most every R2 (It may be 110ish in the winter?.). As other's have pointed out, that is pretty poor given the battery size. My 10-80 window on my R1 is 210 miles on 34" A/T's.

Yep, a working range is 150 miles between stops, this would not be great except that it will charge really quickly (maybe too quick for some)…

 

[savethemanual]

Maybe giving OOS some credit, it's sounding like 250 +/- 20 miles is looking like an okay estimate for generic highway driving. I really want to take this thing out for a drive on 280 between SF and San Jose.

Car and Driver got 260 miles of range at 75 mph on the 21’s which is 5 mph faster than Out of Specs speed. This vehicle will be fine for longer trips.

 

[tivoboy]

If someone is in the Bay Area and wants to loan me an R2 for a day, I’ll do the driving test!

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