It’s a big day for Rivian. During the debut of the Tesla Model Y-fighting R2 crossover, the electric vehicle startup surprised everyone with something even smaller — the Rivian R3. Not only would this be a huge step to scaling the automaker, it’s also a compelling piece of design that’s attractive in its own right. Cooler still, it doesn’t appear to be some cost-cut special — it shares a whole lot with its incoming big brother.
Sure, it might not be a flagship R1T truck or R1S SUV, but few companies are built on flagships alone. Selling in volume is critical to the survival of just about any EV startup, as it’s a way to amortize business costs and build success. Judging by what we’re seeing here, Rivian has drive to it, even if we’ll all have to wait a few years.
Basically, the Rivian R3 is a shrunk-down R2 — same architecture, just with more compact dimensions, including a shorter 2,800 mm wheelbase. That means a choice of single-motor, dual-motor, and tri-motor layouts.
However, the R3 looks less like a traditional crossover and more like a hatchback. There’s a bit of Giugiaro to the C-pillars, greenhouse, and rear glass that’s far more subtle than the Hyundai Ioniq 5’s homage to the 1980s. Interestingly, that rear glass can be opened separately from the hatch, which may mitigate the bite the rear window rake takes out of cargo space.
On the inside of the Rivian R3, there’s a lot to talk about. Not only is a frunk on tap, the rear seats appear to fold in a 40/20/40 split for flexibility between long items and passengers. In addition, all seats fold down to facilitate car camping, the dashboard features two glove boxes, and the floor in the back looks pretty flat. Despite compact dimensions, there’s a chance the Rivian R3 could seat four adults in comfort, which is really what people are looking for in this segment.
Oh, and if you want to get a little bit rowdy, Rivian is lining something up for you. Called the R3X, it’s a tri-motor all-wheel-drive lifted hot hatch on all-terrain tires that gives off Volkswagen Golf Country vibes in the best way possible. If you want a relatively compact electric vehicle cosplaying as a rally car, the R3X holds a lot of promise.
Pricing and timing hasn’t been announced yet, but with the R2 going on sale in the first half of 2026, expect the R3 to follow along later. Is that too far out? At this point, it’s hard to say. A two-year wait for a car from a new production facility isn’t the end of the world, but it could give manufacturers a time to better position themselves to claw interest back.
Still, if Rivian plays its cards right, this could be its Tesla Model 3 moment. The Rivian R3 doesn’t have to be the greatest thing since sliced bread, it just has to have appeal. From what we’re seeing, so long as pricing and range are right, the Rivian R3 is a great-looking car that could be a winner.
(Photo credits: Rivian)
Support our mission of championing car culture by becoming an Official Autopian Member.
-
Leak Claims The Rivian R2 Electric Crossover Will Start At $47,000 And Offer Up To 330 Miles Of Range
-
How I’d Make A Camper Out Of The Rivian Van Now That It’s No Longer An Amazon Exclusive
-
Here’s All The Details About The New Renault 5 E-Tech And Yes It Has A Baguette Holder
-
The Heavily-Revamped 2024 Tesla Model 3 Gives America’s Favorite Electric Sedan A Facelift
-
The Fisker Ocean Is Way Better Than You Think It Is
Got a hot tip? Send it to us here. Or check out the stories on our homepage.
That looks great!
But I had an idea. What if a vehicle with a frunk that had a glovebox, and a hatch in the glovebox that led to the frunk, One around the size of the glovebox itself?
How high were you when you wrote that comment? 😛
Not high at all. It was just one of those random thought that actually seems like it might work in reality. Also if you were in the trunk but needed to grab something from the glovebox, it could be handy.
It looks a little like the starting vehicle for the nomad background in Cyberpunk 2077. I dig it.
Oh this is such a good looking machine, the proportions are fantastic. This deserves to be a huge success.
Would love to hear what Adrian Clarke thinks of it, specifically the rear treatment.
This has caused me great pause in terms of considering my next DD. I still think a PHEV is probably a better fit, but…
Biggest question is will it be available to buy in significant numbers. And will this happen soon enough to prevent Rivian from going under.
Electric door handles are never present in my dreams, only my nightmares.
Unless It’s stated somewhere, I’d guess these are the kind that you pop out with your thumb and then grab. Cheaper, but still have the range bump
But are they mechanical?
They’ll still be stuck frozen in ice.
like regular handle you mean?
Sorta. Except a regular handle you can get your hand behind to bust free. Something that’s flush with the surface of the door, you have no chance.
A few slight bump with your fist should do the job just fine.
This might indeed do it. Make Rivian a going concern that is.
They slapped the Rivan Corporate Face onto a Niva and called it a day. Well played. 🙂
Get rid of the stupidly large wheels and SUV pretensions and we can talk. It looks like a modern AMC eagle. That’s not a compliment (never thought I’d have to clarify that, but this is what the world has come to).
The whole point is to make a small rally hatchback you can daily drive and also take to dirt roads without holding back… If that doesn’t appeal to you, it’s just not aimed at you?
Yeah there’s a real dearth of cars with stupidly big wheels and AWD. It’s a really underserved market.
Capables ones? Which you can daily drive? That are EVs?
Fiat 127 or “127000” in this case but that hatch is painful just to look at, imagine carrying a full set of luggage in that, ouch
It’s a compact, it’s not designed for a full set of luggage.
For that you want the Rivian RDV700.
Niva??? Bite your tongue.
EV Golf Country.
https://a.allegroimg.com/s1024/0caaa5/40b58cf54eb88d492b9b6b4f9c38
It’s a tall Yugo 45.
https://static.limundoslike.com/originalslika_Yugo-45-72525593.jpg
I love it, but I have the sad feeling it’s ten years too early to be successful. I doubt we’ll ever see it, but I’d be happy to be wrong.
Lada Niva vibes
Shut up and take my money!