Rivian's Most Important EV Yet Is One Crucial Step Closer To Production

"Rivian started producing "manufacturing validation builds" of the R2 at its plant in Normal, Illinois, on Thursday. It's a big step toward full-scale production. The R2 will start around $45,000, and Rivian reiterated plans for customer deliveries to start in the first half of this year. The Rivian R2 is one of the most anticipated electric vehicles of 2026 and a make-or-break product for the startup."

""A Manufacturing Validation Build (MVB) is a phase in vehicle development where an automaker builds near-production vehicles using production-intent tooling and processes to validate that the factory can reliably make the car at scale," Rivian spokesperson Courtney Richardson said in an email. "Think of it as the moment where the question shifts from 'Can we build the vehicle?' to 'Can we build it correctly, repeatedly, and at volume?'""

"On Thursday, Rivian said it had completed the first R2 "manufacturing validation builds" at its factory in Normal, Illinois. These pre-production vehicles are meant to test factory equipment and manufacturing processes to ensure the company is ready for mass production with minimal hiccups. The early builds will help Rivian polish its manufacturing processes for the R2. The company also reaffirmed plans to start delivering R2s to customers in the first half of 2026."

Rivian completed its first manufacturing validation builds (MVBs) of the R2 at the Normal, Illinois assembly plant to exercise production-intent tooling, equipment, and factory processes. These pre-production vehicles exist to validate that the factory can consistently produce near-production R2s and to identify and resolve manufacturing issues before ramping to volume. The early builds will help refine assembly steps and quality controls so mass production proceeds with minimal hiccups. The R2 is a compact crossover targeted at roughly $45,000 and positioned against the Tesla Model Y. Successful R2 volume production is central to Rivian's plan to scale, lower average prices, and pursue profitability with deliveries slated for H1 2026.

Read at insideevs.com