2026 Tesla Model Y Performance vs. 2027 Rivian R2 Performance Comparison Test
“You come at the king, you best not miss.” That line, uttered menacingly by Michael K. Williams as Omar Little in The Wire, sums up the situation Rivian finds itself in as it launches the R2. The California-based startup broke onto the scene in 2021 with the excellent R1T pickup, and soon after the R1S SUV, but the R2, with its more affordable price point, is the product that could truly solidify Rivian’s place in the market.
To do that, though, Rivian is taking aim at the undisputed king of EVs, the Tesla Model Y, which is the bestselling EV in the United States. Rivian obviously doesn’t expect to overtake the Model Y on the sales charts overnight, but the R2 had better land at least a few punches, because a swing and a miss in the crucial compact SUV segment could see Rivian wind up like Fisker. To assess Rivian’s latest effort, we lined up a 2027 Rivian R2 Performance against a Tesla Model Y Performance in a battle of high-tech, superquick electric SUVs.
What We Tested
While Rivian plans to sell a $46,485 base model starting next year, the R2 launched for the 2027 model year exclusively in the punchy Performance trim. Initial versions come standard with the Launch package, which includes the hands-free driving assistance system and a 4400-pound tow package, which on later R2s will cost $2500 and $950, respectively. The example we drove had the standard setup of all-season tires wrapped around 21-inch wheels, with the only option, $2000 Launch Green paint, bringing the total to $61,485. The boxy newcomer faces off against an EV mainstay in the Model Y. The Performance model we tested had but one option, Full Self-Driving (Supervised), so we tacked on three years’ worth of the $99-per-month subscription, $3564, to come in at $63,194. Tesla fits the Model Y Performance with a trailer hitch as standard, and the sporty SUV can tow up to 3500 pounds.
Exterior and Interior
The R2 and Model Y may be direct competitors, but they take on drastically different shapes. The Model Y features Tesla’s signature egg-like silhouette, and while lesser Model Ys are fairly anonymous looking, the Performance looks pretty sharp in Ultra Red paint with black wheels and trim. The Performance also sports a reshaped front bumper and a small rear lip spoiler.
The R2 is more rectangular, essentially looking like a shrunken version of the R1S. Rivian’s ovoid headlights are more distinctive and affable than the Tesla’s front light bar, which has the menacing look of the eyes on Iron Man’s mask. The R2’s front bumper, with an integrated silver skid plate and tow hooks, hints at the Rivian’s more outdoorsy aura.
The different vibes continue inside, despite both automakers heavily favoring screens over physical controls. In typical Tesla fashion, the Model Y’s interior feels bare, centered around the 16-inch touchscreen. The dashboard, door panels, and center console all have a simple, bland design, although ambient lighting injects a bit of pizzazz. The Performance model’s front seats get more substantial bolstering and a fun “warp speed” badge nestled in below the headrest. Build quality and materials quality have improved greatly since the Model Y’s early days, and carbon-fiber inserts imbue the Performance with a sporty feel. But the materials still aren’t as rich as those in the Rivian—Tesla’s vegan faux leather feels slightly plasticky, and the soft-touch surfaces aren’t as plush.
The R2 looks and feels far more upscale, with a more modern and purposeful design than the austere Tesla. The layered dashboard design is particularly rich: The synthetic leather upper feels like the real deal, tactile wood trim serves as a platform for the touchscreen, and a textured fabric resides below. Hard plastics are well hidden, confined to the lower reaches of the door panels and center console.
In the Tesla, nearly every function, from the climate controls to simply putting the car in drive, is done on the touchscreen, so it’s a relief that Tesla’s display is among the best in the game. The screen is responsive, with an easy-to-read interface. The number of tasks it handles and the amount of information it displays is overwhelming at first, but you quickly learn where the most important functions reside. Still, we prefer physical buttons for things like climate controls, drive modes, and regenerative-braking settings. Shifting between drive and reverse on a screen will always feel a bit odd, and sometimes the Model Y can even shift automatically without any driver input, which is both cool and a little freaky.
Tesla’s infotainment system is absolutely loaded with features, from a built-in dash cam to a web browser and arcade games to pass the time while charging. There’s even Zoom, should you need to pull over to take a meeting, and a Theater app that lets you stream shows and movies while parked. The Model Y also comes with Grok, Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence assistant, and the Toybox, which allows for shenanigans such as turning the seats into whoopee cushions, using the interior camera to transform the car into a photo booth and the exterior speakers to play silly sounds, or making the screen into a virtual sketchpad.
Tesla Model Y
Rivian is also reliant on screens but takes a more traditional approach, complementing the 15.6-inch center touchscreen with an 11.5-inch digital gauge cluster. Rivian’s infotainment is clear and responsive, and the interface feels friendlier than Tesla’s slightly cold digital environment, with a furry, cheerful mascot for the Gear Guard security system and each drive mode accompanied by vivid illustrations. Neither Tesla nor Rivian permit phone mirroring, and while Rivian’s navigation system is beautifully rendered, the map didn’t seem as up to date as the applications we normally use via Apple CarPlay; for example, it thought a recently reopened highway exit was still closed, which Apple Maps and Waze had updated on the day of.
We found Rivian’s dual-screen setup more intuitive. The Model Y’s single-screen approach requires you to glance to the right to check your speed, which doesn’t feel as natural as a quick peek down at the Rivian’s speedometer. Both cars also show a camera view along the side of the car when you activate the turn signal, and once again the Tesla’s setup makes you look away from the road for longer.
The Rivian’s digital controls are joined by unique multifunction thumbwheels on the steering wheel. They can be pushed in and to either side, as well as scrolled, to control a vast array of functions from volume and drive modes to fan speed and temperature. The breadth of functionality is initially daunting, but using the thumbwheels is pretty intuitive, and we only needed a weekend to memorize the controls.
Marc Urbano|Car and Driver
Moving to the rear, the Rivian’s back seat is palatial. The tall roof and flat floor combine for oodles of space for your head and legs, and the low beltline and glass roof create an open, airy feeling. The Tesla, by comparison, feels a bit cramped for taller adults, with notably less legroom. The sloping roofline cuts into headroom an
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