R2 vs Model Y 70-MPH Highway Range Test (by Out of Spec)

[TexasBob]

It's the RAV4/Camry of EVs. To say that most won't care is a bit of a misnomer

• To say that most of us here with an R2 reservation won't care... sure.
• To say that most of the U.S. buying public won't care... not sure where you're getting that angle.

Best-selling vehicles in the U.S. for 2025:

#3) RAV4 (479,288 units)
#4) CRV (403,768 units)
#8) Model Y (317,800 units)
#9) Camry (316,185 units)

People like boring and soulless. Just like they buy up soulless and boring-ass colors like black, grey, white, and silver. They just want something that's reliable and works. That was me for a long time. But I'm ready for something with a bit more vigor now

The entire world likes boring. From CleanTechnica link
First interesting thing on the list is #9

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[Virtio]

"...Model Y can't go anywhere but concrete jungle." Well, I have the 2026 Model Y Juniper and was attracted to the Rivian first and foremost b/c I saw a 330-mile range vs my 327-mile range on the Juniper. I have taken several cross-country trips from east to west and back, and thought the Rivian would be an excellent choice over the Juniper, especially since the mileage was comparable, most of all. What's not to like with more storage in the Rivian, allowing for more stuff for a long trip? I was all set for Launch Green and 20-inch all-terrain tires for my Dec order date, and I could hit the road for a cross-country trip in late March, 2027.

Then I saw the mileage results - ugh! 250-mile range, and while empty, running the 21-in higher-rolling-resistance tires! What happens when I put 500+ pounds of gear inside by folding down the middle seats? The 80 mph test results from Rivian were even worse than the 70 mph results, yet many highways on cross-country trips are 70-75 mph with a few at 80 mph. Going with the flow of traffic, I usually end up above 80 mph in many areas. The Tesla still gets good mileage #s at 70-80+ mph! Going 75-80 mph in the R2 I am concerned I will be stopping every 2 to 2 1/2 hrs to recharge with the range the R2 is producing in real-world tests I have been observing! That is a time and cost issue!

The concrete jungle you say Tesla is relegated to is reality on cross-country trips. What will happen to R2's distance when weighted down with lots of gear, in extreme heat and bitter cold conditions, rather than the more ideal conditions the R2 was tested at with the vehicle empty, driven in Conserve Mode with higher-roll tires?

I know the R2 can offer off-road capabilities, and I was excited about that right after hearing the 330 mileage results. But I think off-roading would be no more than 1-2% of my total mileage. So what am I buying - a brick going down the concrete jungle that I drive 98-99% of the time? Rivian should update the 330-mile range prediction, imo, if they know that is bogus. Failure to do so leads me to question why they won't, and if it's because they want to blame it on the EPA, which is more important in the long run. To be honest with customers and explain that the 330-mile range is probably not doable under most conditions, or let it ride b/c orders are flowing in and who wants to disrupt that? That concerns me as a potential buyer. I know what my Tesla Juniper can do, and I have had no unpleasant surprises in the 14 months of ownership. Certainly not with mileage range, first and foremost.

For me, the only range that matters is when I'm driving in remote areas far away from fast chargers. There my speed will be 50-60 MPH so I expect to get pretty decent range. When I'm on the highway going 70 MPH there will be plenty of high speed chargers available so a range of 250 miles is fine. Basically, if you want an EV with the ability to do some off-road driving the R2 is the best for it's price. If you don't need to go off road then there's more options available and it's a matter of which fits better with your lifestyle. I wish Rivian would provide a graph of speed vs. range so we can clearly see the impact that speed has and make a more informed decision. I know that's tough since there are so many factors that effect range like ambient temp, elevation and HVAC usage.

 

[tivoboy]

As others have said, for ppl on this forum and early reservations holders it’s probably not going to be that big of a deal. Not what was expected (I NEVER expected 330 miles of 70 mph highway, but I DID sort of expect 285-300 miles of 70 mph highway range).

for anyone here with an R1S, or maybe even R1T, it’s a bit more of a disappointment because they know what those larger battery Rivian can do, ~ 300-320 highway miles sometimes, and they figured smaller vehicle, TWO THOUSAND POUNDS LESS WEIGHT!, 3-4 YEARS of additional engineering evolution if not revolution should be possible.. so It’s certainly plausible that they should be able to mirror they USE CASE experience of their current vehicle (R1S or maybe R1T) and travel the same way, same stops, same speeds, etc..

But, alas it’s not going to be same same.

But, for a new buyer to EV (which Rivian is 100% counting on to make target sales figures of 200-300K PER YEAR for this vehicle) their number one issue for new buyers is RANGE ANXIETY.. (ok, it could be price, but price aside just a bit).

They don’t know what it’s like to drive an EV, stop maybe more frequently than with an ICE vehicle. How good charging CAN be in most of the country highways, etc..

They look at 330 and think “that’s pretty acceptable, I can make the jump”: but when it’s 20-25% LESS Than that they might just reconsider a different vehicle altogether.

So I’m not totally surprised, but it’s arguably less than I realistically expected.. and Im really just MORE surprised that my 8+ year old TM3LR, can do at least this range, and certainly better efficiency at LEAST 3.5M/kw, if not most of the time 4-4.2m/kw even when highway driving.

I sort of thought that we really would get a bigger evolutionary leap for overall EV engineering.

 

[NinjaWrap]

Hey - with a little modding anything is possible.

and the highway range is suddenly worse than R2

 

[sparked]

But, for a new buyer to EV (which Rivian is 100% counting on to make target sales figures of 200-300K PER YEAR for this vehicle) their number one issue for new buyers is RANGE ANXIETY.. (ok, it could be price, but price aside just a bit).

They don’t know what it’s like to drive an EV, stop maybe more frequently than with an ICE vehicle. How good charging CAN be in most of the country highways, etc..

They look at 330 and think “that’s pretty acceptable, I can make the jump”: but when it’s 20-25% LESS Than that they might just reconsider a different vehicle altogether.

and cold weather climates compound this for new EV buyers. Some of us may end up buying an R2 without knowing exactly the impact on this specific car.

 

[Kidentist]

Wow....long thread! So Tesla wins? Shocker !!! They are light years ahead of Rivian. Still I did sit inside and R2 and it was pretty nice TBH. Only time will tell.......

 

[Mos Eisley]

I drove a MY Performance for 90 minutes today. Have to say, if Elon hadn’t become Elon, I’d likely have bought one by now.

 

[TexasBob]

for anyone here with an R1S, or maybe even R1T, it’s a bit more of a disappointment because they know what those larger battery Rivian can do, ~ 300-320 highway miles sometimes, and they figured smaller vehicle, TWO THOUSAND POUNDS LESS WEIGHT!, 3-4 YEARS of additional engineering evolution if not revolution should be possible.. so It’s certainly plausible that they should be able to mirror they USE CASE experience of their current vehicle (R1S or maybe R1T) and travel the same way, same stops, same speeds, etc..

I drove 580 miles yesterday with my Gen 1 2024 DM R1T Large. The first leg on 100% charge was 255 miles with a 12% arriving SOC. Call it 290 miles of total range on an average speed of 70.8 mph with a clear day 84 degrees no wind michelin LTX 21" tires and with a rated range of 352.

I would expect the R2 to get something like 260/270

 

[RedScare]

24 pages of bots and Tesla fanbois desparately trying to convince us that the R2 is trash! HaHaHa! I think my favorite posts are the ones from fanboi/bots that assure me that they are adventurous cross country jetsetters who suddenly cannot adventure because the R2 ONLY gets 254 miles on a full charge (according to the chubby youtuber). Oh NO!!! No more adventures!!!

What a bunch of pansies. It wasn't that long ago that some of us drove to beaches and deserts and mountains in 20 year old deathtraps on bald tires. Did we call off our adventures because all four wheels had less than the legally allowable tread? Hell no! that was half the fun, betting on whether this would be the greatest Spring Break ever or the last 24 hours of our lives.

R2 highway range is acceptable, not great. I recognize that most of these complaints are bots, but for the few posts made by human members of the Andrew Tate fan club I will just say that I now understand why y'all bought Teslas. And for the real Rivian fans, welcome to the adventure!

 

[wahoo1]

I have 2020 Tesla MY LR and it's been the best car I've ever had (I've had many cars). It doesn't get any more than 240 miles on the highway and it's not an issue. I was going to get Juniper then realized the CEO doesn't care at all about his customers, so I will never buy anything Tesla again.

So I was planning on the R2 or BMW iX3. Drove the iX3 at BMW Autocross last week, it was awesome! I've also test driven the R2 which is also awesome (in different ways than the iX3). Although I'm disappointed in the R2 highway range, I'm still leaning R2 but the ix3 is still in play.

I will be waiting for the R2 Premium version with the 20" Bicolor wheels with all-season tires. Hoping that maybe the Premium version with 20" wheels w/all season tires will possibly get a little more range (similar to Tesla Performance vs LR-Premium range).

 

[Bullwinkle]

24 pages of bots and Tesla fanbois desparately trying to convince us that the R2 is trash! HaHaHa! I think my favorite posts are the ones from fanboi/bots that assure me that they are adventurous cross country jetsetters who suddenly cannot adventure because the R2 ONLY gets 254 miles on a full charge (according to the chubby youtuber). Oh NO!!! No more adventures!!!

What a bunch of pansies. It wasn't that long ago that some of us drove to beaches and deserts and mountains in 20 year old deathtraps on bald tires. Did we call off our adventures because all four wheels had less than the legally allowable tread? Hell no! that was half the fun, betting on whether this would be the greatest Spring Break ever or the last 24 hours of our lives.

R2 highway range is acceptable, not great. I recognize that most of these complaints are bots, but for the few posts made by human members of the Andrew Tate fan club I will just say that I now understand why y'all bought Teslas. And for the real Rivian fans, welcome to the adventure!

Fanbois? French bots? Pot Kettle Black

 

[DuoRivian]

24 pages of bots and Tesla fanbois desparately trying to convince us that the R2 is trash! HaHaHa! I think my favorite posts are the ones from fanboi/bots that assure me that they are adventurous cross country jetsetters who suddenly cannot adventure because the R2 ONLY gets 254 miles on a full charge (according to the chubby youtuber). Oh NO!!! No more adventures!!!

What a bunch of pansies. It wasn't that long ago that some of us drove to beaches and deserts and mountains in 20 year old deathtraps on bald tires. Did we call off our adventures because all four wheels had less than the legally allowable tread? Hell no! that was half the fun, betting on whether this would be the greatest Spring Break ever or the last 24 hours of our lives.

R2 highway range is acceptable, not great. I recognize that most of these complaints are bots, but for the few posts made by human members of the Andrew Tate fan club I will just say that I now understand why y'all bought Teslas. And for the real Rivian fans, welcome to the adventure!

No need to fat shame people or make false assertions.

 

[racekarl]

24 pages of bots and Tesla fanbois desparately trying to convince us that the R2 is trash! HaHaHa! I think my favorite posts are the ones from fanboi/bots that assure me that they are adventurous cross country jetsetters who suddenly cannot adventure because the R2 ONLY gets 254 miles on a full charge (according to the chubby youtuber). Oh NO!!! No more adventures!!!

What a bunch of pansies. It wasn't that long ago that some of us drove to beaches and deserts and mountains in 20 year old deathtraps on bald tires. Did we call off our adventures because all four wheels had less than the legally allowable tread? Hell no! that was half the fun, betting on whether this would be the greatest Spring Break ever or the last 24 hours of our lives.

R2 highway range is acceptable, not great. I recognize that most of these complaints are bots, but for the few posts made by human members of the Andrew Tate fan club I will just say that I now understand why y'all bought Teslas. And for the real Rivian fans, welcome to the adventure!

This is the most boomer thing I have read in a while - I am disappointed it was not posted over an image of a minion, though.

 

[Deleted member 30372]

Results:

Test Overview & Methodology [00:22]

• Standard Test Protocol: Both vehicles were charged to 100%, set to recommended cold tire pressures (42 psi), put in their most efficient driving modes (Conserve Mode for R2; Chill Mode for Model Y), and driven at a constant 70-mph GPS speed along a flat, tree-lined highway (US-64) until they could no longer maintain 70 mph [00:29], [12:04], [18:28].
• Distance Accuracy: Because both vehicles’ odometers were slightly optimistic, the team calibrated the final mileage figures using a ground-truth reference vehicle (Porsche Cayenne) [01:02:20].

Detailed Behavior & Key Findings
1. Rivian R2 Performance

• Performance Curve: Maintained speed normally down to 5% battery, at which point power output began derating slightly [41:58].
• Shutdown: Reached 0% range display at ~250 miles [44:06]. It ran an additional ~5 miles into its bottom buffer before entering "Turtle Mode" and dropping below 70 mph at 253 real-world miles [46:13].
• Battery Discharge: Outputted 89.3 kWh, which is slightly higher than Rivian's official claim of 87.9 kWh usable capacity [01:01:17].

2. Tesla Model Y Performance

• Performance Curve: Drove roughly 18 miles past the point where the R2 ran out of battery [41:00]. It hit 0% range display right at 300 miles [54:12].
• Shutdown: At 317.8 miles indicated (310.1 miles adjusted), the vehicle displayed a sudden "Unable to drive" warning and cut motive power directly while maintaining 70 mph [55:44], [57:37].
• Efficiency: Achieved an impressive 3.77 mi/kWh despite having wider 275 mm rear tires [01:06:28].

3. Rivian R1S (Dual Motor Max Pack Benchmark)

• Travelled 358.6 miles—over 100 miles farther than the R2—due to its significantly larger battery pack [01:08:38].
• Efficiency was fairly close to the R2 (2.62 mi/kWh vs. 2.83 mi/kWh), showing that the smaller R2 is not substantially more aerodynamic or energy-efficient than its larger sibling at 70 mph highway speeds [01:09:19].

Main Takeaways & Discrepancies [01:07:04]

• The EPA Gap: On paper, the Rivian R2 advertises 24 miles more range than the Tesla Model Y (330 mi vs. 306 mi). In real-world 70-mph testing, the Tesla went 57 miles farther than the Rivian R2 [01:07:19].
• Manufacturer Calibration Differences: The hosts emphasized that this discrepancy stems from how manufacturers run EPA test cycles. Tesla tends to voluntarily under-rate or choose cycles that reflect highway cruising, while Rivian chose a cycle setting (and conserve mode offsets) that maximizes the advertised EPA sticker number [01:04:51].
• Aerodynamics: The R2's boxier "brick-like" body shape creates higher wind resistance at 70 mph compared to the streamlined shape of the Model Y [01:01:48].

 

[Deleted member 30372]

As others have said, for ppl on this forum and early reservations holders it’s probably not going to be that big of a deal. Not what was expected (I NEVER expected 330 miles of 70 mph highway, but I DID sort of expect 285-300 miles of 70 mph highway range).

for anyone here with an R1S, or maybe even R1T, it’s a bit more of a disappointment because they know what those larger battery Rivian can do, ~ 300-320 highway miles sometimes, and they figured smaller vehicle, TWO THOUSAND POUNDS LESS WEIGHT!, 3-4 YEARS of additional engineering evolution if not revolution should be possible.. so It’s certainly plausible that they should be able to mirror they USE CASE experience of their current vehicle (R1S or maybe R1T) and travel the same way, same stops, same speeds, etc..

But, alas it’s not going to be same same.

But, for a new buyer to EV (which Rivian is 100% counting on to make target sales figures of 200-300K PER YEAR for this vehicle) their number one issue for new buyers is RANGE ANXIETY.. (ok, it could be price, but price aside just a bit).

They don’t know what it’s like to drive an EV, stop maybe more frequently than with an ICE vehicle. How good charging CAN be in most of the country highways, etc..

They look at 330 and think “that’s pretty acceptable, I can make the jump”: but when it’s 20-25% LESS Than that they might just reconsider a different vehicle altogether.

So I’m not totally surprised, but it’s arguably less than I realistically expected.. and Im really just MORE surprised that my 8+ year old TM3LR, can do at least this range, and certainly better efficiency at LEAST 3.5M/kw, if not most of the time 4-4.2m/kw even when highway driving.

I sort of thought that we really would get a bigger evolutionary leap for overall EV engineering.

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