As we all are aware, mainstream electric mobility was given life by Tesla over the past few years and various contenders like Rivian, Nikola, Bolinger, and Lucid along with others have had intentions to topple the tyrant of the EV world. While the products do seem intriguing, it is Lucid with their wildly capable proposition that piqued our interest.
Although the company is largely in its infancy, Lucid has made a lot of progress in an increasingly competitive segment. With the advent of saving the polar bears initiative and Global warming becoming a serious agenda; many have favored the notion of electric mobility and went as far as to accept it as the future of transport.
Lucid has been in the news for quite some time. Initially, Lucid was a component manufacturer that focused on building electric vehicle batteries and powertrains. Starting its journey back in 2007 under the name ‘Atieva’, the company has then rebranded itself to Lucid Motors in 2016 while expressing interest in developing high-performance luxury vehicles.
Lucid Motors has a promising lineup of cars consisting of their flagship sedan, the Air alongside the recently hinted SUV, Project Gravity. Does it hold up against its greatest competitor, Tesla? Read on to find out.
Lucid's EV lineup
Being fairly new to the world of electric cars, Lucid currently has a luxury sedan under its name. Dubbed Lucid Air, this high-performance luxury sedan can be had in a total of 4 trims namely; Air, Air Touring, Air Grand Touring, and Air Dream Edition. In addition to this, Lucid has a new SUV called Project Gravity in the pipeline which is scheduled for 2023.
Built from a clean sheet, their highly compact Electric Advanced Platform (LEAP) is capable of housing all the componentry without compromising interior comfort and space. With its Space Concept philosophy, Lucid Air offers a full-size luxury-class interior while maintaining a sporty appeal.
Performance And Luxury
Being an exclusive in-house design, Lucid Air is the world's most aerodynamically efficient luxury car with a coefficient of drag of 0.21. Coupled that with its mind-popping power figures and you have an ultra-high-performance wafter at your disposal.
On the performance side of things, Lucid offers a variety of powertrain options to choose from. In the Touring spec, the Air manages to output 620 horsepower for a 0-60 mph sprint in 3.2 seconds and a quarter-mile dash in 11.4 seconds. Going further up the trim ladder, the Grand Touring offers 800 horsepower from the highly efficient BLDC motors. The Grand Touring can manage to hit 60 mph two-tenths of a second quicker than its 620-horsepower sibling while quarter-mile times stand in at 10.8 seconds.
The range-topping Dream Edition will offer a colossal 1,080 horsepower which decimates the figures posted by a Porsche Taycan Turbo S but stands on par with the recently announced Tesla Model S Paid. According to Lucid, the Air Dream Edition will go for 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds and covers the quarter-mile in a blistering 9.9 seconds, that’s hypercar levels of performance!
In terms of luxury, the Lucid Air is filled to the brim with state-of-the-art luxury features that are on par, if not better than most of its rivals. The interior is dominated by a massive 34-inch 5K-resolution curved display that floats above the dashboard, contributing to a minimalistic space-conscious layout. Furthermore, the dash incorporates high-quality machined physical buttons for temperature settings and volume adjustments.
Its interior offers a rich and airy feel with most of its canopy being made of glass. Extensive use of premium leather and effective space management ensures the cabin remains opulent and luxurious. Apart from this, all Lucid vehicles are capable of level 3 autonomy alongside offering advanced driver assistance features.
Pioneering Battery Tech
Thanks to its LEAP architecture, there is enough space to store a massive 113 kWh battery pack underneath. With extensive testing and development, the battery pack is one of the best when it comes to energy density. With a clever battery management system, the Lucid Air offers a range from 406 miles (in Touring spec) to 517 miles (in Grand Touring spec). The Dream Edition, whilst offering 1,080 horsepower gets a range of up to 503 miles.
As per Lucid's press release, the Air is the fastest charging EV capable of charging speeds up to 1200 mph. In the real world, the Lucid Air, if plugged into a DC fast charger can promise 300 miles from a 20-minute charge; a charging rate of 20 miles per minute!
Pricing And Availability
As per Lucid, the most affordable Air in its base spec will have a sticker price of around $80,000 and is expected to be available by 2022. The Air Touring gets a $95,000 sticker price with deliveries expected by the fourth quarter of 2021. The more powerful Grand Touring trim will set you back $139,000 while the range-topping Dream Edition will be priced at $169,000; with both trims expected to be available by the second quarter of 2021.
Customers can go ahead and book the Lucid Air with a $1000 deposit for all variants except the Dream Edition; which requires a $7,500 deposit, both of them being refundable. Also, the Lucid Air is entitled to a US federal tax credit of around $7,500.