A few days ago, Lucid revealed its first model to the world, the Air electric saloon. This avant-garde sedan has managed to capture the specialized media’s attention thanks, among other things, to its high autonomy of 832 km, homologated under the strict American EPA cycle, known for its realism. And all with a battery of “only” 113 kWh, which shows its work efficiency.
During the model presentation, Lucid specified the launch of four versions: Air, Air Touring, Air Grand Touring, and Air Dream Edition. While the launch of the first is scheduled for 2022 and the second for the fourth quarter of 2021, the last two will be available from the second quarter of that year in the United States.
The Air will have a starting price of less than $80,000, while the Touring will go to $95,000. The Grand Touring will be around $139,000, and the Dream Edition will reach $169,000.
While the technical specifications of the Access Air for the moment remain a mystery, Lucid did give details of the other three, confirming that the Touring would have a power of 629 hp and a range of 405 miles EPA, the Grand Touring 811 hp and 516 miles EPA, and the Dream Edition 1,095 CV and 502 miles EPA. In all three cases, we will find a powertrain made up of two electric motors (one on each axle, which will give them real traction).
However, during the launch event, Lucid also confirmed the existence of a fifth variant called Performance. The main difference between this model and the rest of the Air range will be three electric motors (one on the front axle and two on the rear), with the combined power of the rear thrusters being 1,300 hp.
On paper, the Performance should far exceed the Dream Edition performance, which is capable of doing 0 to 60 miles per hour in just 2.5 seconds, with a top speed of 270 km/h. Possibly the sportiest variant can lower this time to less than 2 seconds, increasing the top speed to more than 350 km/h (Lucid has already reached 378 km/h with a prototype).
This future version’s power has now been demonstrated during its development tests at the Laguna Seca circuit, where it has been able to exceed the record achieved by the Model S Plaid. While the Tesla completed a lap in 1:41.670, the Lucid was able to stop the clock in just 1:36.555. Suppose we consider that the absolute record for road cars is held by the radical supercar McLaren Senna with a 1:27.620 and that the Lucid Air is still a massive luxury saloon. In that case, its monstrous figures become even more significant.