EV maker Rivian is having a big year as production and deliveries gain momentum. However, the company is looking toward the future with its next generation of products. In a recent interview, CEO RJ Scaringe compared buying an ICE vehicle in this day’s age to “building a horse barn in 1910.” He said Rivian’s R2 products would help pull indecisive buyers.
Rivian is on a hot streak lately as the EV maker begins to gain better visibility and control over its supply chain.
The EV startup topped expectations in the second quarter, delivering 12,640 EVs while confirming it’s on track to hit its 50,000 annual production guidance.
Despite a slow start to the year, Rivian warned it would happen as it retooled its electric delivery van (EDV) assembly line to add capacity for its in-house Enduro drive units and LFP batteries.
The first dual-motor R1T models with the Enduro drive units rolled off the assembly line at its Normal, Illinois, plant in May. Rivian says the new addition will help streamline production while lowering costs to assist its ramp-up.
Rivian also unveiled its performance dual-motor version earlier this month, giving customers three R1 powertrain options to choose from.
Rivian R1 drive system options (Source: Rivian)
In an interview with Heatmap this week, Scaringe said the objective of its R1 models “was to serve as a handshake to the world.”
He added, “And we did that at a premium price with a flagship set of products, the R1T and R1S” electric models.
However, with a starting price over $70K, the R1 series is out of reach for many customers. A problem Scaringe said will be solved with Rivian’s next-generation R2 products.
Rivian dual motor R1T (Source: Rivian)
Rivian R2 products will help pull indecisive buyers
Rivian’s CEO and founder says that although the accelerating rate of EV adoption has taken him by surprise, the company is seeing a fundamental shift in consumers’ mindsets.
The performance and drivability of an EV, Scaringe says, makes it “so much more desirable than an alternative.” He added, “Buying a non-EV just feels very old,” not only for the environmental responsibility but also because ICE cars are just plain boring.
With legacy automakers finally leaning into their EV strategies, there’s a fundamental shift underway in the industry.
Rivian R1S electric SUV (Source: Rivian)
Scaringe said the trend is “one directional,” despite varying policies, because consumers have made the switch. “I don’t think we’re going to see consumers have any reignited interest in combustion-powered vehicles,” he claimed. Although it won’t happen overnight, “the reality is consumers have made it clear that shift is going to come.”
Over the next several years, new EV models are coming out from nearly every automaker that will fit everyone’s taste. In the meantime, charging infrastructure continues rolling out at a record pace, making it easier and more accessible than ever.
As the transition unfolds, buyers won’t want to go back to ICE vehicles. It will be old technology. Scaringe describes it perfectly when he said:
I think the reality of buying a combustion powered vehicle, in light of the policy that’s coming, is sort of like building a horse barn in 1910. Like, imagine buying a Chevy Suburban in 2030. Like, what are you going to do with that, right? In 10 years? Yeah, like gas stations will be slowly disappearing. It’s just weird.
Your vehicle is often your second largest asset, and “you’re buying this thing that absolutely has no future in our society.”
Scaringe says Rivian’s next-generation R2 products will help drive demand and “pull a lot more customers across that jump” with a $40K to $45K starting price.
Rivian R1T (Source: Rivian)
Rivian’s R2 series is due out at the beginning of 2026 and will be produced at its second plant in Atlanta.
Scaringe said R2 will simplify manufacturing with fewer parts while leveraging what it has learned with the R1 ramp. It will be “a very, very different vehicle architecture than what we did in R1.”
The leader said some of the R1 team members who are already moving to or have already moved to R2 are praising the simplicity. For example, he said the team is talking about stuff like, “Hey, that was a real big challenge when we had to attach the C pillar trim on this part because the clips do this, this and this. Let’s rethink that. Heck, let’s get rid of all the clips.”
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The Dodge Charger Daytona EV made headlines when it rolled out fake engine noises as a way to make the EV appeal to muscle car drivers. As it turns out, they weren’t the right sort of fake engine noises – and now Stellantis has to recall 8,000 of them for a fix.
What’s more, the recall’s “suspect period” reportedly begins on 30APR2024, when the first 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona was produced, and ends 18MAR2025 … when the last Charger EV was produced.
RECALL CHRONOLOGY
On April 17, 2025, the FCA US LLC (“FCA US”) Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance (“TSRC”) organization opened an investigation into certain 2024–2025 model year Dodge Charger vehicles that may not emit exterior sound.
From April 17, 2025, through May 13, 2025, FCA US TSRC met with FCA US Engineering and the supplier to understand all potential failure modes associated with the issue. They also reviewed warranty data, field records, and customer assistance records to determine field occurrences.
On May 14, 2025, the FCA US TSRC organization determined that a vehicle build issue existed on certain vehicles related to a lack of EV exterior sound, potentially resulting in noncompliance with FMVSS No. 141.
Basically, if you have a Dodge Charger EV, expect to get a recall notice.
It just keeps getting funnier
My take on the Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust, via ChatGPT.
If you’re not familiar with the Charger Daytona EV’s “Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust,” it’s a system that employs a combination of digital sound synthesis and a physical tuning chamber (translation: a speaker) to produce a 126 decibel sound that approximately imitates a Hellcat Hemi V8 ICE. That’s loud enough to cause most people physical pain, according to Yale University – putting it somewhere between a loud rock concert and a passenger jet at takeoff.
While you could argue that such noises are part and parcel with powerful combustion, they’re completely irrelevant to an EV, and speak to a particular sort of infantile delusion of masculinity that I, frankly, have never been able to wrap my head around. Something akin to the, “Hey, look at me! I’m a big tough guy!” attention-whoring of a suburban Harley rider in a “Sons of Anarchy” novelty cut, without even enough courage to ride a motorcycle, you know?
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Is it an electric van or a truck? The Kia PV5 might be in a class of its own. Kia’s electric van was recently spotted charging in public with an open bed, and it looks like a real truck.
Kia’s electric van morphs into a truck with an open bed
The PV5 is the first of a series of electric vans as part of Kia’s new Platform Beyond Vehicle business (PBV). Kia claims the PBVs are more than vans, they are “total mobility solutions,” equipped with Hyundai’s advanced software.
Based on the flexible new EV platform, E-GMP.S, Kia has several new variants in the pipeline, including camper vans, refrigerated trucks, luxury “Prime” models for passenger use, and an open bed model.
Kia launched the PV5 Passenger and Cargo in the UK earlier this year for business and personal use. We knew more were coming, but now we are getting a look at a new variant in public.
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Although we got a brief glimpse of it earlier this month driving by in Korea, Kia’s electric van was spotted charging in public with an open bed.
Kia PV5 electric van open bed variant (Source: HealerTV)
The folks at HealerTV found the PV5 variant with an open bed parked in Korea, offering us a good look from all angles.
From the front, it resembles the Passenger and Cargo variants, featuring slim vertical LED headlights. However, from the side, it’s an entirely different vehicle. The truck sits low to the ground, similar to the one captured driving earlier this month.
Kia PV5 open bed teaser (Source: Kia)
When you look at it from the back, you can’t even tell it’s the PV5. It looks like any other cargo truck with an open bed.
The PV5 open bed measures 5,000 mm in length, 1,900 mm in width, and 2,000 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,000 mm. Although Kia has yet to say how big the bed will be, the reporter mentions it doesn’t look that deep, but it’s wide enough to carry a good load.
Kia PV5 Cargo electric van (Source: Kia)
The open bed will be one of several PV5 variants that Kia plans to launch in Europe and Korea later this year, alongside the Passenger, Cargo, and Chassis Cab configurations.
In Europe, the PV5 Passenger is available with two battery pack options: 51.5 kWh or 71.2 kWh, providing WLTP ranges of 179 miles and 249 miles, respectively. The Cargo variant is rated with a WLTP range of 181 miles or 247 miles.
Kia PBV models (Source: Kia)
Kia will reveal battery specs closer to launch for the open bed variant, but claims it “has the longest driving range among compact commercial EVs in its class.”
In 2027, Kia will launch the larger PV7, followed by an even bigger PV9 in 2029. There’s also a smaller PV1 in the works, which is expected to arrive sometime next year or in 2027.
What do you think of Kia’s electric van? Will it be a game changer? With plenty of variants on the way, it has a good chance. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Senate Republicans are threatening to hike taxes on clean energy projects and abruptly phase out credits that have supported the industry’s expansion in the latest version of President Donald Trump‘s big spending bill.
The measures, if enacted, would jeopardize hundreds of thousands of construction jobs, hurt the electric grid, and potentially raise electricity prices for consumers, trade groups warn.
The Senate GOP released a draft of the massive domestic spending bill over the weekend that imposes a new tax on renewable energy projects if they source components from foreign entities of concern, which basically means China. The bill also phases out the two most important tax credits for wind and solar power projects that enter service after 2027.
Republicans are racing to pass Trump’s domestic spending legislation by a self-imposed Friday deadline. The Senate is voting Monday on amendments to the latest version of the bill.
The tax on wind and solar projects surprised the renewable energy industry and feels punitive, said John Hensley, senior vice president for market analysis at the American Clean Power Association. It would increase the industry’s burden by an estimated $4 billion to $7 billion, he said.
“At the end of the day, it’s a new tax in a package that is designed to reduce the tax burden of companies across the American economy,” Hensley said. The tax hits any wind and solar project that enters service after 2027 and exceeds certain thresholds for how many components are sourced from China.
This combined with the abrupt elimination of the investment tax credit and electricity production tax credit after 2027 threatens to eliminate 300 gigawatts of wind and solar projects over the next 10 years, which is equivalent to about $450 billion worth of infrastructure investment, Hensley said.
“It is going to take a huge chunk of the development pipeline and either eliminate it completely or certainly push it down the road,” Hensley said. This will increase electricity prices for consumers and potentially strain the electric grid, he said.
The construction industry has warned that nearly 2 million jobs in the building trades are at risk if the energy tax credits are terminated and other measures in budget bill are implemented. Those credits have supported a boom in clean power installations and clean technology manufacturing.
“If enacted, this stands to be the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country,” said Sean McGarvey, president of North America’s Building Trades Unions, in a statement. “Simply put, it is the equivalent of terminating more than 1,000 Keystone XL pipeline projects.”
The Senate legislation is moving toward a “worst case outcome for solar and wind,” Morgan Stanley analyst Andrew Percoco told clients in a Sunday note.
Trump’s former advisor Elon Musk slammed the Senate legislation over the weekend.
“The latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country,” The Tesla CEO posted on X. “Utterly insane and destructive. It gives handouts to industries of the past while severely damaging industries of the future.”