Just a little over a year ago I was in Silicon Valley to hear Lucid’s pitch for the Air and peel back the curtain a little. After sitting in a show model and hearing the engineers talk about the car as though proud parents of a bouncing baby, I was pretty well convinced that the car would be a grand slam for the luxury electric market. There was a whiff of smoke and a handful of mirrors at that event, but it didn’t smell like pure bullshit. After a handful of delays it looks like the underlying realness is finally making it out to the public.
Earlier this year Adam went for a ride in a fully fleshed out model, and I’m not sure he’s not still thinking about that car right now today some four months later. It left an impression, is what I’m saying. Everything about the Air screams good from the top of its lungs. The design is spectacular, blending art deco with creative use of space to give a light and airy feel to a car that has enough room inside to feel gigantic and luxurious. Somehow Lucid managed to cram an S-class worth of space into the footprint of an E-class. And make it look better than any Mercedes in history.
I am currently sitting in Scottsdale, Arizona waiting to drive the new production-spec Air. Apparently the freshly-built Casa Grande factory is up and running, and we’ll get an opportunity to walk around inside the facility to see what kind of quality comes from building cars in a state-of-the-art factory, you know, instead of a tent.
The Lucid Air Dream Edition, available in 1,111 horsepower “Performance” model or 520 miles of range “Range” trim are totally sold out, and deliveries should begin soon. We haven’t been told which version we’ll be driving out here in Arizona just yet, but the 800 horsepower Grand Touring is the company’s first “normal” model and would make the most logical sense. Of course that’s still a $139,000 super luxury experience, so it’s far from normal.
That’s way more money than I’ll ever spend on a car, but if you’re the kind of person who is in the market, or even if you’re hanging out waiting for the Pure model with 480 horsepower and still over 400 miles of range, maybe you have some questions you want answered. Now is your chance. Comment now or forever hold your peace.