A LinkedIn post from a newly promoted R2 Group Leader is the first employee-level signal that Rivian is already staffing the night shift at Normal, just over a week after R2 saleable production officially kicked off on April 22.

Rivian confirmed today that Borealis won't be available on the R2 Launch Edition and will instead show up later on the R2 Performance trim. Forest Green is still coming to Launch Edition later this year, Coastal Cloud Signature might join the list too, and Esker Silver will be the only no-cost color on R2.

The first video of the production R2's rear wiper is here, and it works exactly like you'd hope it would. Whether that hidden pocket holds up against snow, mud, and trail debris is the real test, and that one is still ahead.

R2 is launching as a Performance Launch Edition only, and a chunk of what got shown at SXSW isn't available at launch. Some configurations are coming later in 2026, others slip into 2027, and a few combos like Borealis on the single motor Standard aren't ever going to exist.

R2 production is officially rolling at the Normal plant and customer deliveries are coming later this spring. CFO Claire McDonough confirmed the news in a Reuters interview this morning, along with some pretty wild cost numbers on what R2 is actually going to cost Rivian to build compared to the R1.