Lucid Air: First Look Review

The Lucid Air is the first electric vehicle from California-based Lucid Motors. Former Tesla Model S chief engineer Peter Rawlinson is spearheading the brand with the goal of cementing Lucid Motors’ identity as a major EV manufacturer. The luxury sedan competes with the Mercedes EQS, Tesla Model S, Audi e-tron GT, and the Porsche Taycan. Recently, I got to experience the space, features, and technology of a Lucid Air finished in Quantum Grey Metallic color. Here are my first impressions of the electric sedan:

Design

The Lucid Air is based on the Lucid Space Concept, a design that takes advantage of the brand’s in-house developed Lucid Electric Advanced Platform (LEAP). It has a sleek design and is among the most aerodynamic cars on the market, with a drag (Cd) coefficient of 0.21. I think its exterior looks dramatic, especially at the front and on the sides.

The Air features a full-width chrome strip with the Lucid lettering embossed on the front. Below the chrome bar is a thin full-width LED DRL, and further below are slim Micro Lens Array LED headlights. The latter is my favorite feature of the Air’s exterior. The front bumper has a smooth surface, and the air intakes are located just below it to cool the battery. A vertical LED strip with small air intakes for brake cooling is on each side of the bumper. The outer edge of the hood is rounded, as is the air intake.

The side profile is tidy, with flush door handles and machine-cut wheels. Customers can choose from various 19-, 20-, and 21-inch wheels in different finishes depending on the variant and package. 21-inch ‘Aero Blade’ wheels are standard on Dream Edition. I think the most attractive feature of the Air on the sides is its beautifully designed C-pillar, finished in platinum and featuring a titanium flag.

Lucid Motors recommends using low-profile tires only on smooth surfaces. Large rims and sleek sidewalls improve handling on smooth roads, and they undeniably look fashionable, but they can damage the chassis if driven on rough roads. Larger sidewalls are more suitable as they help with bump absorption thanks to their high rubber content.

Interior

When I stepped inside the Lucid Air, I immediately felt that the interior was airy, classy, and futuristic. It looked distinctive and, in my opinion, was a step above luxury cars from established brands. The ultrawide freestanding screen in front of me and the windshield flowing as one piece of glass all the way back to the B-pillar made me feel as if I was sitting in a futuristic aircraft or a spaceship.

Lucid Motors generously uses premium materials like a wool blend textile of sustainable alpaca and recycled yarn and Silvered Eucalyptus wood trim in the Air, which gives it a rich look. The steering wheel is flat-bottomed and has two spokes. It also features capacitive touch buttons.

34-inch 5k curved screen

The Lucid Air’s cabin is a treat to the eyes and is loaded with technology. The driver’s seat is the most interesting. The main factor is the combination of the digital instrument cluster and the central infotainment screen. This is a curved floating 34-inch screen with crisp 5k resolution; even the smallest of the details appear clear and vibrant. The right side of the cockpit is touch-sensitive and contains key features such as navigation, audio, and calling systems. It also supports Alexa voice commands, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and music services like Spotify and iHeart Radio.

Another touchscreen houses the lighting, wiper, and security controls on the left side of the main driver’s cockpit. Below the center console, there is another large screen that Lucid has dubbed the ‘Pilot Panel.’ In addition to audio, navigation, and phone controls, it also controls more detailed vehicle parameters. Customers will appreciate the physical buttons for the climate control system located just above this screen. The Pilot Panel is a retractable display that glides away when not required, giving the interior a more neat look and revealing a bonus storage space behind it.

Sound tuned by Dolby Atmos

The Lucid Air is available with a ‘Surreal Sound System,’ so music lovers are in for a treat. The set-up includes 21 speakers with surround sound and 3D audio. Lucid Motors claims that the world’s first Dolby Atmos technology used in this system provides an outstanding multi-directional audio experience.

DreamDrive

DreamDrive is Lucid Motor’s ADAS suite. It includes features like Blind Spot Warning, Traffic Drive-off Alert, Lane Departure Protection, Automatic Emergency Braking, Front and Rear Cross Traffic Protection, automatic park in & out, Park Distance Warning, and Drowsy Driver Alert. It comes with OTA support, allowing customers to add new and improved features when they become available conveniently.

A DreamDrive Pro package is also available. It includes surround-view monitoring with a blind spot display feature, plus the hardware required to enable semi-autonomous driving functions when they become available.

Excellent connectivity

Customers can take advantage of the Lucid app. The smartphone application allows drivers to plan trips, transfer navigation information to the vehicle screen, find charging stations, and preheat the cabin during winter. Proximity sensors ensure that the vehicle greets the owner with a light signature, unlocks the door, and pops out the flush door handles. The vehicle can save the driver’s profile, and as soon as they enter, facial recognition identifies them and selects settings saved in the individual driver profiles.

Specifications

Dimensions

The Lucid Air measures 195.9 in. in length, 86.4 in. in width, and 55.4 in. in height and has a 116.5 in. wheelbase. It offers 739 liters (26 cu. ft.) of total luggage space. The frunk accounts for 280 liters (9.8 cu. ft.) of the total volume.

Performance & range

The Lucid Air line-up comprises Pure, Touring, Grand Touring, Dream Edition Range (sold-out), Grand Touring Performance, Dream Edition Performance (sold-out), and Sapphire trims. Its performance and range vary as per the trim and, in some cases, further with variations of the same trim. Except for Pure, all the trims have an AWD drivetrain layout as standard.

The Air Pure is available in 430-horsepower single-motor RWD and 480-horsepower dual-motor AWD variants. It has an 88 kWh battery pack that delivers an EPA-est. range of 419 miles (19-inch wheels)/394 wheels (20-inch wheels) in the former and 410 miles (19-inch wheels)/384 miles (20-inch wheels) in the latter. The Air Pure RWD takes 4.5 seconds for a 0-60 mph sprint and has a top speed of 124 mph. The Air Pure AWD can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds and keep going until 140 mph.

The Air Touring sports two motors that produce 620 horsepower and allow it to hit 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and clock 140 mph. It has a bigger, 92 kWh battery pack that gives it an EPA-est. range of 411 miles.

The Air Grand Touring also has a dual-motor powertrain, but with 819 horsepower, which allows it to speed up to 60 mph in just 3 seconds flat and keep accelerating until 168 mph. It uses a 112 kWh battery pack that gives it an EPA-est. range of 516 miles (19-inch wheels)/469 miles (20- or 21-inch wheels).

The Air Dream Edition Range sports a dual-motor powertrain that produces 933 horsepower and 1,025 lb.-ft. of torque. It takes just 2.7 seconds for a 0-60 mph sprint, but it has the same top speed as the Air Grand Touring – 168 mph. It uses a bigger, 118 kWh battery pack, which gives it a slightly higher EPA-est. range of 520 miles (19-inch wheels)/481 miles (21-inch wheels).

The Air Grand Touring Performance, with a 1,050-horsepower dual-motor powertrain, has an even lower, 2.6-second 0-60 mph acceleration time, but its top speed is the same – 168 mph. It uses the 112 kWh battery pack that gives it an EPA-est. range of 446 miles.

The Air Dream Edition Performance combines two motors that generate 1,111 horsepower and 1,025 lb.-ft. of torque. It zooms to 60 mph in just 2.4 seconds, but it, too, maxes out at 168 mph. It uses the 118 kWh battery pack that gives it an EPA-est. range of 471 miles (19-inch wheels)/451 miles (21-inch wheels) on a full charge.

The range-topping Air Sapphire has a triple-motor setup that gives it a colossal 1,234 horsepower and lets it hit 60 mph in 1.89 seconds, just a tenth of a second slower than Pininfarina’s Battista, a quad-motor hypercar. Compared to its arch-rival, Tesla’s triple-motor Model S Plaid, it is a tenth of a second quicker. With a top speed of 205 mph, it’s 5 mph faster, too. What impresses me even more is that thanks to the 118 kWh battery pack, it can travel up to 427 miles on a full charge, as per EPA.

Lucid Air	EPA-est. Range	EPA-est. Energy Consumption
Pure (430 hp)
19-inch wheels	419 miles	25 kWh/100 mi
20-inch wheels	394 miles	26 kWh/100 mi
Pure (480 hp)
19-inch wheels	410 miles	24 kWh/100 mi
20-inch wheels	384 miles	28 kWh/100 mi
Touring (620 hp)
19-inch wheels	425 miles	24 kWh/100 mi
20-inch wheels	384 miles	28 kWh/100 mi
21-inch wheels	384 miles	28 kWh/100 mi
Grand Touring (819 hp)
19-inch wheels	516 miles	26 kWh/100 mi
20-inch wheels	469 miles	28 kWh/100 mi
21-inch wheels	469 miles	28 kWh/100 mi
Grand Touring Performance (1,050 hp)
21-inch wheels	446 miles	30 kWh/100 mi
Dream Edition Range (933 hp)
19-inch wheels	520 miles	27 kWh/100 mi
21-inch wheels	481 miles	29 kWh/100 mi
Dream Edition Performance (1,111 hp)
19-inch wheels	471 miles	29 kWh/100 mi
21-inch wheels	451 miles	30 kWh/100 mi
Sapphire (1,234 hp)
20-inch (front)/21-inch (rear) wheels	427 miles	32 kWh/100 mi

Charging

The Lucid Air EV supports 300 kW peak charging speeds. This adds 300 miles in just 20 minutes. InsideEVs tried to make sense of the claims with an experiment; the Air added 208 miles in 12 minutes of DC fast charging and 312 miles in 22 minutes. The impressive charging speeds are enabled by a 900-volt battery architecture, which more than doubles the charging speeds compared to 400-volt batteries. For home charging, Lucid offers a 19.2 kW AC wallbox.

Lucid’s ‘Wunderbox’ charger works at almost all public charging stations in the United States. It has been engineered to adjust incoming voltage and adapt charging speeds for the quickest possible recharge. The brand has collaborated with Electrify America, which owns a network of 878 charging stations with more than 3,892 fast chargers across America.

In a real-world range test Lucid Motors conducted with the automotive publication Motor Trend, two Air Dream Edition Range EVs were driven from Los Angeles to San Francisco and rerouted to Lucid Motors’ headquarters in the Bay area. The cars traveled 445 miles. Upon reaching the destination, 30 miles range was left on one of the cars and 72 miles on the other. Different driving styles may have caused different energy depletion from the battery.

Production

USA

Lucid Motors manufactures the Air in Casa Grande, Arizona. The company made 8,428 cars and sold 6,001 cars in 2023. Compared to 7,180 vehicles produced and 4,369 vehicles delivered in 2022, these figures marked 17% and 37% improvements, respectively.

Saudi Arabia

Lucid Motors is the world’s first company to have a car manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia. Located in the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), the Saudi Arabian plant is the company’s second production facility.

Lucid Motors expects the KAEC factory to have an annual capacity of 5,000 vehicles, and it currently assembles the Air from semi-knocked-down (SKD) kits there. It aims to commence complete build unit (CBU) manufacturing as it does in the U.S. after the middle of the decade, with an additional annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles.

The Saudi Arabian government has committed to purchase 50,000 Lucid models with an option of extending the order book to 100,000 over ten years. The deal is a part of Saudi Vision 2030 and Saudi Green Initiative, which emphasize the incorporation of green vehicles into the government’s fleet. Lucid Motors will initially deliver 1,000 to 2,000 cars annually, scaling up to 4,000-7,000 units starting in 2025. The Saudi Arabian government’s order book includes the Air and future models like the upcoming Lucid Gravity SUV.

Price

Prices of the Lucid Air start at USD 77,400 and go up to USD 249,000 (excl. USD 1,500 destination fee & USD 75 documentation fee).

TopElectricSUV says

The sleek and powerful Lucid Air is a true competitor to Tesla’s Model S. With its elegant design and innovative features, it offers a compelling alternative for those who want a premium and luxurious experience, and a more comfy rear seat.

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