R2 Performance Leases for Model Y Money, Full Breakdown

Rivian posted lease numbers for the R2 Performance Launch Edition and it lands right where the Tesla Model Y Performance does. Both start at $57,990. The monthly payments are within about $60 of each other. This is the first time you can lease a new Rivian for what a Model Y costs.

The $57,990 on the R2 is the real number, not a stripped config. It includes Esker Silver paint, the 21 inch Liquid Tungsten All-Season wheels, and the Black Crater Signature interior. Those are the free options. Anything else moves the price up.

The 36 month lease at 10,000 miles a year runs $829 a month. You put $3,500 down plus a $500 deposit, pay the $895 acquisition fee and the first payment, and it all adds up to $5,724 due at signing before tax. Residual is $38,070. The 24 month is $949 a month with a $42,829 residual. Shorter term, higher payment, more value left in the car at the end. Standard stuff.

Tesla starts at the same $57,990 and gives you every paint and interior color for free, which Rivian does not. The 36 month Model Y is $769 a month, $4,000 down, a lower $695 acquisition fee, and $5,465 due at signing. The 24 month is $836. So the Tesla is cheaper. About $60 a month on the longer lease, a little over $100 on the shorter one.

The residuals split depending on what you do at the end. The R2 holds $38,070 on the 36 month against Tesla’s $34,440, roughly two thirds of sticker versus closer to 60%. The higher number is part of why Rivian can keep the payment competitive, since a stronger residual props up the monthly. But if you want to buy the car out when the lease is up, the lower residual is the cheaper one, so Tesla’s $34,440 is actually the better deal to keep. For a straight lease where you hand it back, none of this touches you.

For context on the lineup, the cheapest R1S you can lease right now is the Dual Large at $83,990, and it runs $1,229 a month on the 36 month. I am using the Dual Large and not the Dual Standard because the Standard is going away soon. That puts the R2 Performance about $400 a month under the entry R1S.

The R2 competes on payment now, which is something Rivian has not really had before. I do not think it pulls a ton of people out of the Model Y, the Tesla is still cheaper and those owners are a dedicated base. But it is close enough to be a real cross shop. Opening lease numbers usually shift once cars are actually being delivered, so do not treat any of this as locked.