R2 Launch Will Be Missing Several R1 Software Features
At the R2 First Drive event we learned that the R2 will arrive without a handful of software features that current R1 owners use regularly, and Rivian has indicated several of them will not be available for at least the first month of ownership.
The features missing at launch include Rivian Assistant, Climate Hold, and Pet Mode. Gear Guard will be present but with limited functionality. The SiriusXM app will not be available at launch, and neither will Google Casting or YouTube. And if you like camping, there’s no Camp Mode app either.
Most of these are features R1 owners use day to day. Pet Mode and Climate Hold both tie into the climate system, and the in-vehicle media apps have become a regular part of how a lot of people use their Rivian.
Rivian has described these as features arriving after launch rather than ones being dropped, with roughly the first month of ownership being the rough window before the gaps begin to close. Specific dates for each feature were not provided.
More clarity on the timeline should come once R2 deliveries begin and the software starts updating in customer vehicles.
It’s concerning that the software stack would already be so bifurcated. Not having Climate Hold, Pet Mode, or Camping Mode is a big miss imo. These are features that set EVs apart from their ICE counterparts.