Reviews: 2026 Gen 2 Rivian QUAD R1T / R1S

[Katsudon]

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[mkhuffman]

And the consensus is....

 

[Noplacelikeloam]

Mixed.

And the consensus is....

Mixed. Gen1Quad still holds it own.

 

[DayTripping]

I think the biggest takeaway for me was MKBHD when he ran the Gen 1 vs Gen 2 and the Gen 2 wasn't in launch mode. The Gen 1 pulled it off the line and almost had it all the way through the quarter mile. So lesson is to any G2 quad owners, if you run a Gen 1 quad, you better be in launch mode or you just might get pipped 0-60.

Absolutely a hard pass for me to buy a G2 quad. This was the same thing I noticed when driving the G2 Tri, in sport mode without launch mode, it was slower than my truck just in sport until I got up to much higher speeds.

 

[Noplacelikeloam]

I think the biggest takeaway for me was MKBHD when he ran the Gen 1 vs Gen 2 and the Gen 2 wasn't in launch mode. The Gen 1 pulled it off the line and almost had it all the way through the quarter mile. So lesson is to any G2 quad owners, if you run a Gen 1 quad, you better be in launch mode or you just might get pipped 0-60.

Absolutely a hard pass for me to buy a G2 quad. This was the same thing I noticed when driving the G2 Tri, in sport mode without launch mode, it was slower than my truck just in sport until I got up to much higher speeds.

I thought I read that the 1025hp is only available in launch. Maybe that’s a hallucination, but if that’s true then G2 is really no better at all in real world use.

 

[irvineboy]

Mixed.

Mixed. Gen1Quad still holds it own.

Is that what the reviews state? I thought they said suspension improved, driving range improved and it’s faster in every way. But it’s also 30-40% more expensive.

 

[Noplacelikeloam]

Marginal gains for a material increase.

 

[SeaGeo]

Is that what the reviews state? I thought they said suspension improved, driving range improved and it’s faster in every way. But it’s also 30-40% more expensive.

It's the Gen2 suspension. So relative to the other Gen2 vehicles it... Has a fourth motor.

I drove one today. The drivetrain is night and day nicer to drive. It doesn't have gear lash. It is smooth transitioning between accel and decell. It's power delivery is really nice. I have been tempted to swap my Gen1 quad for a Gen2 tri or dual at a discount. I can't remotely rationalize it with the quad pricing. But, if I had enough money to not give a shit about spending 120k on a vehicle and was looking for a truck, I would get the quad R1T.

Otherwise it's a Gen2 with 2026 having a few super minor tweaks, like being the 3rd row arm rest cubby back and new tie down points in the R1S.

 

[Agassi]

Lucid gravity is a surprise winner in Hagerty comparison

 

[kenyee]

Lucid gravity is a surprise winner in Hagerty comparison

Not really a surprise... Much more efficient motors...better aero...700lbs lighter... No speed limiter at 130...a few more horsepower.

If anything, I was surprised how close the quad was...I thought the Lucid would easily beat it.

And the Panemera was a surprise... Didn't think an ICE car would be faster in a drag race than an EV...

 

[mkhuffman]

I think the biggest takeaway for me was MKBHD when he ran the Gen 1 vs Gen 2 and the Gen 2 wasn't in launch mode. The Gen 1 pulled it off the line and almost had it all the way through the quarter mile. So lesson is to any G2 quad owners, if you run a Gen 1 quad, you better be in launch mode or you just might get pipped 0-60.

Absolutely a hard pass for me to buy a G2 quad. This was the same thing I noticed when driving the G2 Tri, in sport mode without launch mode, it was slower than my truck just in sport until I got up to much higher speeds.

I have not driven a Gen1 Quad, but holy crap is my Tri fast in Sport mode. In All Purpose it is not. Sport is another world. While it is certainly faster in Launch, subjectively it isn't a huge difference. At least to me.

 

[opnwide]

I would use Launch Mode, like maybe once a month, if that? Only to lose to a Lucid Minivan? I use my Gen1 Meridian speakers in Tidal Dolby Atmos song-mode every drive. (And have found some truly great Atmos engineered songs that really open up the sound system). Worse speakers for $125k+? No thanks.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

It's also important to consider pre-order G1 quad pricing versus regular G1 quad pricing when comparing to the G2. That could certainly sway feelings of the value of the G2.

 

[Newtonrj]

Is that what the reviews state? I thought they said suspension improved, driving range improved and it’s faster in every way. But it’s also 30-40% more expensive.

Which is all Gen 1 Launch discounts. Reviews often said it was more truck than the cost could account for. Now Rivian is moving the price to net positive and there may be a slight performance difference but there is surely a significant cost difference.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

There's only so much you can do when you need this kind of power to put up the times Rivian does. This truck is extremely heavy and as such needs the HP to put up a 10.5 second 1/4. It doesn't surprise me that you can't get that full power without being in launch mode. People are crashing these enough as it is, and that problem would be much worse if Rivian just gave everyone that power all the time.

The Tri is the better buy IMO.

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