2027 Rivian R2 first drive: Rivian's second SUV is its best yet
It's not perfect, but Rivian's latest shows this company is playing for keeps.
The R2's interior is quite nice, not feeling low rent in the slightest compared to the far pricier R1 family. Just like in those models, the car's interface is almost built around a single, 15.6-inch touchscreen, but Rivian's engineers made a concession to tactility in the R2. Well, two concessions, really.
There is a pair of comically oversized scroll wheels on the R2's steering wheel, knobs the company calls Haptic Halos. Each wheel has dynamic feedback, meaning it can simulate notches as you spin or even lock itself out as you get to the end of a list. You can not only spin them, but push, pull and nudge them left and right.
Through these, you can change everything from side-view mirror positions to the volume of Apple Music playing back through the 13-speaker Dolby Atmos sound system (which is quite good, by the way). In concept, the double spinny wheels are interesting, and they're occasionally brilliant to use. However, they can be a bit clumsy, with just enough lag in the haptic feedback to occasionally break the effect.
Other than those two wheels and the controls for the windows and seats, everything else must be controlled through the touchscreen. Thankfully, the software seemed solid already, Rivian retooling things yet again to make controls easier to reach from the driver's seat.
Everything is snappy and responsive, but also incomplete. Despite talking up the presence of a high-power Qualcomm SoC and the ability to do edge AI computing onboard, as it stands, the R2 doesn't even have the most basic of voice recognition. Want to find the closest Starbucks? You'll need to type in "Starbucks" using an on-screen keyboard. Need a hospital? Start typing. Rivian assured me that the voice assistant will be provided in a software update within a few months, but this feels like a big missing piece.
Another missing piece? Smartphone projection. Whether you prefer the taste of Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, you're going to go unfulfilled here. Rivian's interface has quite a few integrated media apps, but nowhere near as many as your phone, and having to pair your device over Bluetooth just to listen to your favorite podcast or playlist is nothing short of archaic.
Originally published on Engadget
