Is This The Rivian R2 SUV?

Is This The Rivian R2 SUV?

A patent filing for an adaptive lighting system aimed at making hill descents easier and safer may have leaked the design of the baby R1S.

We have more exciting news regarding Rivian, specifically its R2 compact SUV. In a patent filing with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, sketches help to explain a new off-road lighting technology, and among them is a depiction of an SUV that could be the R2S.

In a nutshell, the patent discusses how factory headlights are mounted too low to provide a distant look down the trail, and this shortcoming is especially apparent when descending into a valley. The solution? Sensors that detect the vehicle’s orientation and can activate a roof-mounted lighting accessory to provide a clear view up and down hills being clambered up and down. The advantage is that the sensors can automatically switch off the light when no longer needed, preventing the blinding of others and the waste of precious electricity.

But we don’t really care about that too much right now.

While everything else appears to be the same as it is with the existing R1S – from the shape of the glasshouse to the curve of the wheel arches and even the design of the wing mirrors – the fascia is certainly unique, with the elongated cylindrical headlight surrounds now becoming rounded and far more compact.

Rivian CFO Claire McDonough has previously confirmed that the design of the R2 will “maintain some of that adventure aesthetic,” which seems to mean that the visual changes between R1 and R2 vehicles will be very slight. Hopefully, the differences between these and the other vehicles that Rivian has planned (and there are several) will be greater.

Whatever the truth of the R2’s design, we’ll know all before long. Rivian has confirmed on multiple occasions that the new EV will be revealed sometime early in 2024, and recent Laguna Beach city agenda reports suggest a March 7 reveal may be in the cards. We expect something in the $40,000-$60,000 range, with a greater focus on features that customers can and will buy and use.

Speaking of which, is this patent any good; will it see production? Well, it’s the sort of thing that Ford has been pursuing, so there must be market research that suggests it’s worth at least considering. It looks simple enough to enable and can’t have many drawbacks; we think it’s worth keeping an eye out for.

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