Rivian taps ex-Porsche and Apple vet to lead R2, R3 EV platform development
Rivian (RIVN) is adding an industry vet to its team with the launch of its next-gen electric models coming up. With experience at Apple and Porsche, Jonas Reinke joins Rivian to help launch its new EV platforms, including R2 and R3.
Attracting industry talent ahead of R2 launch
As Rivian looks to expand into new markets, the EV maker is adding industry talent from top-tier companies.
Rivian hired former Mercedes-Benz exec Arnehelm Mittelbach in November as its first plant manager for its new Georgia facility, where R2 will be built.
Mittelbach brings over 20 years of experience from Mercedes, serving as plant manager in East London and South Africa. He was also president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Vans in Charleston, SC, in addition to several roles in Germany.
Less than two weeks later, Rivian brought on former Stellantis North America exec Carlo Materazzo.
Before joining Rivian, Materazzo was VP of manufacturing at Stellantis North America. Rivian’s COO, Frank Klein, described Materazzo’s experience in auto manufacturing as “second to none.”
Rivian adds ex-Apple, Porsche vet for R2 development
Rivian announced it had hired Reinke as VP of product development on Monday. Reinke joins Rivian after serving as Apple’s head of product, mobility and auto services for the past four years.
Before that, he spent over a decade with Porsche, holding several product and digital innovation development positions.
After climbing his way to product management lead for Porsche’s digital in-car experience, Reinke jumped to principal product manager before becoming product and innovation manager at Porsche Digital in Silicon Valley.
Rivian’s CEO RJ Scaringe said Reinke’s experience will help “launch new platforms like the R2 and R3.” He will also help improve the existing R1T and R1S electric models.
Scaringe explains the new hire will help “tackle the next wave of product launches.” Rivian’s leader said R2 will be Rivian’s version of the Tesla Model 3.
Rivian’s R2 will start at around $40K to $50K. The first model based on the new platform is expected to be a mid-size electric SUV and will be revealed later this year. However, it isn’t planned to launch until 2026.
The upcoming EV will be built at Rivian’s new $5B Georgia manufacturing plant. Rivian is expected to break ground on the new facility any day, with an official groundbreaking ceremony planned in early 2024. Once the first stage is complete, Rivian aims to build 200,000 EVs annually. By 2030, the EV maker looks to double it.
Electrek’s Take
After outpacing rival EV startups last year in deliveries and production, Rivian looks to keep the momentum going with its next wave of EVs.
Rivian’s R2 will help the brand expand and attract new buyers. The EV maker expects to slash production costs drastically with new tech and methods to improve efficiency.
With industry talent from top-tier companies, Rivian aims to avoid running into hurdles like it did with the flagship R1 models last year.
Rivian delivered over 50K EVs last year, more than double the 24,337 handed over in 2022. The growth comes despite Rivian’s R1T and R1S costing upwards of $80,000. A more affordable model will likely help Rivian expand, like the Model 3 did for Tesla.
Source: Rivian
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Environment
Toyota the EV battery supplier? Honda will use them to power up its 400,000 hybrids in the US
Toyota is now a battery supplier? That’s the plan. Honda will use Toyota’s batteries to power up its around 400,000 hybrids sold in the US.
Toyota will supply batteries for Honda hybrids in the US
Toyota’s $14 billion battery plant in North Carolina is ready for business. The facility will begin shipping out batteries next month, and it looks like Toyota already has its first customer.
According to a new Nikkei report, starting in fiscal 2025, Toyota will supply batteries for the roughly 400,000 Honda hybrids sold in the US.
Honda currently uses batteries from China and Japan for vehicles sold in the US, but the company is (like most) preparing for changes under Trump.
Honda’s electrified vehicles, including EVs and hybrids, accounted for over a quarter of US sales last year. The company sold over 308,500 hybrids and 40,400 electric vehicles in the US in 2024. The batteries will likely be used in the CR-V and other Honda hybrid vehicles.
Earlier this month, an extra 10% tariff on imports from China took effect. And that’s on top of the 10% imposed in February.
With more expected, including a 25% increase in vehicles imported from Japan, automakers are tightening up their supply chains.
A 25% tariff on Japanese vehicles, up from 2.5% currently, is estimated to cost the six major Japanese automakers about $20 billion in the US.
Tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada could cost Honda roughly $4.7 billion alone. Teaming up with Toyota to use its batteries for its hybrids is part of Japan’s broader global plans to ween off dependence on China and others for batteries and other emerging tech.
The new US plant, Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina (TBMC), is over seven million square feet, or about the size of 121 football fields.
As Toyota’s first in-house battery factory outside of Japan, the plant could be a game changer as Trump’s tariffs take effect. Securing Honda as a buyer will already help Toyota cut costs as it ramps up output.
Toyota plans to ramp up electrified vehicle (EV, PHEV, and hybrid) sales in North America from around 40% last year to 80% by 2030.
Electrek’s Take
Trump’s tariffs are already causing havoc, with nearly every automaker warning that they put the US further behind. Overseas automakers are not the only ones feeling the heat, either.
The “Big Three,” GM, Ford, and Jeep maker Stellantis all build vehicles in Canada and Mexico. GM cut output at its plant in Mexico in January, where the electric Chevy Equinox, Blazer, and Honda Prologue are made. Stellantis halted operations at its Brampton Assembly Plant in Canada last month, where it was expected to launch the Jeep Compass EV production. What’s next?
For Toyota, it looks like its $14 billion bet to build batteries in the US is already paying off. Now, we just need it to introduce more EVs.
After unveiling three new electric SUVs in Europe last week, including the updated bZ4X, Toyota hinted more is on the way for the US. Check back soon for updates.
What do you think? Do you want to see more Toyota EVs in the US, like the new C-HR+? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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Environment
If Musk wants to sell Tesla cars to conservatives, Tesla needs stores and service in red states
Elon Musk wants to sell Tesla cars to conservatives, but if that’s the strategy, the automaker should start with having stores and service centers in red states and rural areas.
It’s no secret that Elon Musk’s approval ratings with progressives have been plummeting over the last few years and even more so in the previous few months.
Since he has control over Tesla and he is the only official spokesperson since he let go of the PR department in 2020, the CEO is dragging the automaker along for the ride.
This is a problem for Tesla as Democrats are much more likely to buy electric vehicles than Republicans:
Tesla’s sales have been crumbling over the last few months, and after the stock crashed 15% last Monday, President Trump held a controversial commercial for Tesla with Musk on the steps of the White House on Tuesday.
A day later, it was reported that Musk plans to give Trump another $100 million in political donations.
It was an apparent attempt to try to promote Tesla to Trump’s fans: conservatives.
Based on a Tesla inventory check and new order delivery timeline, we reported that the Trump ad appeared to have little to no impact on the demand for Tesla vehicles.
It could be that people see through Musk and Trump’s quid pro quo and, therefore, don’t value Trump’s “Tessler” endorsement seriously. Still, there’s also a more practical reason why Trump’s fans and conservatives generally don’t buy more Tesla vehicles: the locations of Tesla’s stores and service centers (hat tip to Ben).
Even if some Trump fans were interested in buying a Tesla after the White House commercial last week, they might have been turned off by the idea of having to drive several hours to a store or service center.
Tesla does not have stores or service centers in Alabama, Arkansas, North and South Dakota, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, or Wyoming.
In some cases, it’s not entirely Tesla’s fault, as some of these states have laws against Tesla’s direct sale models. They force automakers to go through third-party franchise dealerships. This is an abuse of old state laws aimed at protecting dealers against unfair competition from the automakers they represent.
Car dealer lobbies use their influence on state legislatures to use these laws to block Tesla, Rivian, Lucid, and other automakers who never had franchise dealerships from operating their own stores and service centers.
But on top of not having locations in several red states, Tesla also primarily has locations in urban areas, whereas conservatives disproportionally live in rural areas.
The automaker has several dead zones and doesn’t operate locations in smaller cities and towns where there are several Ford, GM, Toyota, and other car dealers:
While it certainly does happen, it’s hard to convince someone to buy a car if they have to drive several hours to pick it up and have it serviced.
Electrek’s Take
In short, it’s not only harder to convince conservatives, on average, to buy an electric vehicle, but Tesla is also not correctly set up to sell and service cars in conservative regions of the US.
Though, I think that’s a small part of the problem.
Cars are not supposed to be political.
Even if Tesla successfully converted a significant percentage of conservatives to electric vehicles, it wouldn’t stop the company’s brand destruction.
Tesla’s reputation amongst Democrats and independents has sharply decreased over the last few years, and especially over the last few months, and that’s thanks to Elon Musk alienating them.
It’s tough to be a successful consumer product company when you have alienated 50% or so of your market.
Tesla is basically becoming the MyPillow of Trump’s second term.
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