Lucid Air is a luxury electric sedan with speed and power to compete with Tesla

Lucid Motors unveiled its first vehicle, the Lucid Air Electric sedan, at a virtual event from the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters. The sedan will get a range of 517 miles, can hit a quarter-mile in less than 10 seconds, pack up to 1,000 horsepower, and will have a base price of “less than $ 80,000” (give EV buyers a tax credit as long as the federal government deems it appropriate to continue). .

Lucid Air has been in production for over a decade. Founded as Ativa in 2007, the company began building high-performance batteries for Formula E racing teams. It was renamed Lucid Motors in 2016 with the promise of making a mid-sized sedan that would look like a larger, larger flagship vehicle. The vehicle was expected to be unveiled at the New York Auto Toe Show earlier this year, but was delayed by a coronavirus epidemic.

Formerly under the direction of Tesla Model S lead engineer Peter Rawlinson – then CTO of Lucid Motors, now its CEO – in an automotive world one means that Lucid has the inner knowledge and technical know-how to tease Tesla’s grip as the ultimate electric maker. Luxury sedan.

Now we will finally find out if it is true or not. It seems like every electric vehicle out there these days has inevitably caught up against Tesla for comparison. But in a few electric vehicles, Tesla DNA is flowing in their bloodstream. Lucid Air is one of those vehicles.

That is not to say that Lucid Air is a model of some models. Far from it, as the Air seems to have surpassed the Model S in a variety of categories (range, acceleration, charging time). This means that the Air was designed by people who claim to have a close knowledge of Tesla’s path to global EV domination. It’s an identity that is sure to envision customers with large bank accounts and extra space in their driveways – just as much as it seems to annoy Tesla CEO Elon Musk. (Musk huffed up on Twitter Late Tuesday that “Rawlins didn’t create the Model S.”)

Unlike other so-called “Tesla assassins”, Lucid Motors has rich supporters and a global reach to successfully challenge Musk. And now, with its first production car coming out in the open and announcing that it is officially working as a follow-up on the SUV, Rawlinson’s plan to steal customers from his former employer will finally be put to the test.

Most specs of the Lucid Air have been announced. The company’s media strategy has been to release a new Tidbit every week since last month that will lead to real unveiling. This way, instead of a story about a new car with all the relevant information, you will find about a dozen, each about its own special feature.

It seems like we already know a lot about this car, even though today is its official public launch. Heck Edge Went back in 2017 for a ride on an engineering prototype.

But if you don’t follow it closely, here’s a walk:

• Battery pack of 113 kWh
• Range of 517 miles under perfect conditions
• 20-mile range per minute of charging (DC fast charger)
• About 60 percent range in 20 minutes of charging
• 1,080 horsepower
• 0-60 miles per hour in 2.5 seconds
• A quarter-mile in 9.9 seconds
• Price range of 80,000-9169,000 before incentives based on configuration
• 280-liter frank (front trunk)
• 32-sensor advanced driving assistance system including camera, radar, ultrasonic and LIDAR

Trim level and pricing are some new bits of information, so let’s dive into that for a moment. There will be four versions of the Lucid Air: Base Air (minus tax credits) for Air 80,000; , Air touring for 95,000; Grand Air Touring at 139,000; And the Air Dream Edition mostly 9169,000 – each with its own range, performance specs and charging estimates.

Like many EV manufacturers, Lucid hopes to mimic Tesla’s strategy of selling a lot of expensive cars in the hopes of making enough money to eventually produce something more mass-marketable.

Another new feature is Amazon’s Alexa and voice support which will be integrated into the original Air. This means that drivers will be able to use Alexa to control the vehicle’s navigation, answer calls, change radio stations and link to their echo device at home.

The recognition of loud sound is more than just innovation. It can be a key element in reducing driver disruption. Being able to gulp between directions, temperature and spotty while keeping an eye on the road, made me a better driver and less likely that I would get lost or lose my focus. Smartphones and digital infotainment systems that invite a lot of scrolling or tapping are obvious barriers, and tech companies need to come up with better ways to overcome that problem.

The most surprising thing about the Air is that it is a sedan. U.S. The auto market is currently engulfed in large, hulking vehicles, with SUV sales accounting for 50 percent of all vehicles purchased in 2019. By 2025, experts predict that U.S. Light trucks and SUVs make up three-quarters of the market. But Lucid isn’t going after those car buyers – at least not yet. (More on that later.)

Lucid is not the only EV manufacturer to lead with a sedan. Volvo sh Fushut Polyester recently began delivering its impressive minimalist Polystar 2 sedan to U.S. customers. But most of the new electric vehicles released are in the light truck and SUV segment, with new players ranging from legacy automakers like Nissan and Cadillac to Revion.

Lucid will obviously compete with the Model S, but to hear Rilinson say that is not the Tesla company’s primary goal. The Lucid Air “is for someone who owns an S-Class Mercedes that says: ‘Ten years ago, I wasn’t so interested in electric. Tesla has expressed my interest, I like what Tesla does with electric, but I’m not getting out of my Mercedes for a Model S, “he said Bloomberg In a recent interview.

Mercedes has recently released an updated version of its flagship S-Class, with updated technology, including more advanced versions of its voice assistants and partial auto-automated driving systems. But the S-Class still runs on good old-fashioned dinosaur mud, and Mercedes notes that S-Class customers are in a hurry for an electric drivetrain. So it remains to be seen whether Rawlinson’s bid for the Mercedes crown will be successful.

Like many electric vehicle startups, Lucid Motors has experienced ups and downs. Lucid Air was expected to go into production in 2018, but the company struggled to raise the funds needed to build its planned $ 700 million factory in Arizona. He spent a lot of time in 2017-2018 until Saudi Arabia’s public investment came with funding.

To help with the cash crunch, Lucid Motors entered into two separate agreements in 2017, where it used its intellectual property as collateral for loans, such as Edge Original report. The company has since demolished land in Arizona over the next few months.

Most media outlets note Saudi Arabia’s $ 1 billion investment in Lucid Motors. But the full extent of the state’s involvement is often inadvisable. Reported by Edge, In return for an investment of 1. 1.3 billion, which closed last year, the company acquired a majority stake in Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund. It is not yet clear what kind of voting rights the various shareholders of the company have, he said.

Saudi Arabia first announced the deal in September 2018 – weeks before Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Washington Post Journalist Jamal Khashogi was killed. Khashoggi’s death caused an international outcry and forced some companies (such as Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic and Virgin Orbit) to withdraw from taking state money.

But Lucid Motors has since partnered with Saudi Arabia, the U.S. It was not officially approved by the government until April 2019 by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States. Edge Last year, Rawlinson said he believes the nation can successfully navigate the partnership despite its record of human rights violations.

“I think we can be part of a movement that can change for the better. That’s what I see, “said Rollins. “We have a partnership – which is very organized – a partnership with PIF. It is a strategic partnership. They are committed to helping to benefit all mankind in making this change. And it will benefit Saudi society. ”

It is unclear whether Lucid Motors’ alliance with Saudi Arabia will help or hurt sales. Elon Musk’s long history of clearly controversial actions and statements does not negate his company’s financial success.

Lucid will now accept refundable reservations for the Air – $ 1000 for the base model Dell, 7 7,500 for the Dream Edition – and will begin delivery in the spring of 2021. The vehicles will roll the assembly into Lucid’s still under construction 820,000 square feet factory at Casa Grande, Ariz.

But the company is already working on its next vehicle, the SUV. (Edge Last year was the first to report this possibility.) According to people familiar with the company’s plans, the pressure to develop another car is coming in part from Saudi Arabia. Big cars and trucks are sold through the roof, and big car manufacturers like Auto D, Mercedes Benz, follow Tesla’s lead in developing all-electric SUVs.

The SUV is probably the least shocking next step for Luc Lucid. Depending on its price, the Lucid Air is bound to be a specialized vehicle, sought after by customers who already have an electric vehicle (or two). To break and achieve the true Tesla-level of success, the company must focus on bringing its prices down to make its vehicles accessible to a wider group of customers.

One takes Lucid Motors 3 model … now it will be something to watch.