Picture it now. You wake up on the morning of October 9th, there’s something strange in your garage. It does look pretty good though, Rivian does a decent job designing vehicles. Anyway, who are you gonna call?
The 2026 Rivian Halloween update is here, and this year the theme is “Ghostbusters.” The mode, which features plenty of green and the fictional phantom hunting company’s classic logo, and an interactive game you can play while parked.
Previous themes have included pop culture icons like Knight Rider and Back to the Future, but this may well be the furthest they’ve gone with a Halloween update. They’ve even partnered with Gil Kenan, Co-Writer of Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Director/Co-Writer of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, to shoot a spot starring legendary Ghostbuster Bill Murray.
If you want to join in the celebrations, Rivian has Ecto-R1s on display at its dealerships in Laguna Beach, Austin, Venice, Miami Brickell, San Francisco, and the New York City Meatpacking District. Other events Rivian will be popping up at include NYC Village Halloween Parade and the Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt popup in Los Angeles. In addition to the Ecto-R1, these events feature limited-edition merch and themed refreshments.
What do you get with this year’s Rivian Halloween update?
As with all Rivian Halloween updates, the temporary mode totally transforms the inside of your vehicle. In this case users can choose between several packs, each of which modify the vehicle’s lighting and sounds.
The choices this year are: Ecto-1, Proton Pack, Slimer, Ghost Trap, Peter Venkman, or Random. You can also trigger a show on demand, or if you want to spook members of the public enable “motion mode” which makes the vehicle react to random passers by. Rivian’s voice assistant, which has also been spookified for the rest of October, can be told to play specific sound effects and launch an exterior light show.
Custom lock sounds are also part of the package, with the Rivian R1 Gen 1 playing an “Ecto-1” sound and both the R1 Gen 2 and R2 coming with a choice of Ecto-1, Proton Pack, or Chant
Rivian has also added a “scavenger hunt” mode which has you reading clue cards and scouring the infotainment menu for hidden characters. If you spot a ghost guide or Slimer in the drive modes menu, gear guard settings, side cameras, or the energy app you’ll get a unique animation and some audio to go with it. The voice assistant will also provide some extra clues should you need them.
Finally, Rivian has added ‘Mallow Mash, a new arcade experience you can play on the vehicle’s center screen. In the game, you pop “Mini-Puft” marshmallow men against the clock. If you feel bad for the little fellows, remember a giant version of them did attempt to eat Manhattan before the Ghostbusters got in the way. Like several of the interactive elements, the game only works while you’re parked. So there’s no chance of playing it while zipping down a high way, you’ll have to wait until Rivian gets to Level 3 Self Driving for that.
How do you get Rivian’s Halloween Update on your vehicle?
Rivian’s Halloween pack comes as a free over the air update which should land on October 9, 2026. Unfortunately, it is only temporary, so you probably won’t be taking an electric Ecto-1 to Thanksgiving dinner. Another update set to land around November 2.
If your vehicle is set to update automatically, and your app is up to date, you shouldn’t really have to do anything. You’ll just get into the vehicle and notice something strange is going on and see a popup asking if you’d like to “hunt some ghosts.” After that the Ghostbusters app should be available on your display. Inside that app is a red toggle switch, which controls the whole experience.
If it’s November 9, and your vehicle is still looking as normal as ever, you should probably check for updates and run any that are available manually.
