Bill Murray says Rivian’s Ghostbusters Ecto-R1 is “perfect” — and I’ve seen it in action

Rivian loves a seasonal update, especially its now-annual Halloween drop , which has become a treat for owners of its electric vehicles.

But for 2026, Rivian has done its best — and succeeded — to beat previous themes like Knight Rider and Back to the Future , with a pretty perfect pairing.

With the Halloween update rolling out now — R2 is the 2026.36.40 version, and R1 is 2026.36.0 — owners of the R1S, R1T, and R2 can turn their Rivian into a modern-day Ecto-1 thanks to a Ghostbusters-themed software update .

Rivian even tagged in Bill Murray — ahem, Dr.

Peter Venkman — for the spot teasing this year's update, and created a very special vehicle to celebrate: the Ecto-R1.

And if you happened to be in New York City last night and thought you spotted Mr.

Murray taking a loop around the block in what looked like an Ecto-1, I can confirm that was indeed the case.

At a special event, I saw Rivian's custom Ecto-R1 in person, with the R1S sporting a custom white paint job, Ghostbusters logos, and a full array of paranormal-fighting equipment up top.

I also got to see Bill Murray take the passenger seat for a ride before spending a bit of time with the Halloween update itself in the R2. (Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol) For the custom Rivian that pays tribute to the classic Ecto-Mobile, the design team really paid attention to the details.

Up top, you won't just find the paranormal-fighting gear, but also vintage-style police lights that do a good job of mirroring the original.

There's even more equipment tucked into the rear of the vehicle, making this feel like a proper Ghostbusters conversion rather than simply an R1S with a fresh coat of paint and a few logos.

Just technical enough, and just silly enough to be perfect Bill Murray Of course, all that extra equipment comes at a cost to the R1S's silhouette, with the roof-mounted gear and lights adding some extra height.

But that's part of the fun here: Rivian has taken its electric SUV and given it a treatment that feels right at home in the Ghostbusters universe.

Murray seemed to appreciate the attention to detail, too.