The Lucid Air, the first car produced by Lucid Motors, is expected to have an EPA range of 517 miles. This is not a lucid dream – you have read that correctly. The new luxury EV sedan will have an astonishing range that is even better than most internal combustion engine models. It is also 100 more than its direct rival Tesla, which we reported has just achieved 402 miles with the Model S long-range plus.
The average range for electric cars released in 2019 was around 183 miles, according to BloombergNEF, and is due to rise to around 235 miles for this year’s models. This data just puts in perspective how incredible this milestone is.
The more details are revealed about this long-awaited model, the more it is becoming clear that this company is coming to dominate the electric vehicle market. A few weeks ago we reported that Lucid will also offer autonomous driving abilities as it will be one of the first production vehicles to be equipped with standard lidar, a laser-based sensor that detects obstacles and objects, including pedestrians, as part of the vehicle’s collision avoidance system.
Lucid’s Air is clearly taking aim at Tesla’s crown, which is also illustrated by the subtle dig in the company’s announcement video, This shows an odometer slow down at 402, the official range of the Tesla Model S, and then quickly accelerate.
It is well-known that Tesla and Lucid are two heavyweights in the EV market that are just waiting to clash. It is not a coincidence that the CEO of Lucid is Peter Rawlinson, who is the former chief engineer of the Tesla Model S.
It was previously reported that the new luxury sedan would have a range of 400 miles, which is already an outstanding result given the low average of the market. However, breaking through the wall of 500 could benefit the entire segment.
Elon Musk has also argued that his product can achieve over 500 miles but believed that other problems would incur.
“[We] could make the 500-range car right now, but it would increase costs and reduce cargo capability,” He said. “But now people probably want about 300 miles over time.”
Lucid says the Air’s 900-volt battery system and electric motors will make the car capable of doing zero to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds and give it a power output of 450 kilowatts which equates to 600 horsepower.
The new Air not only will have more range than a Tesla, but it also will be way more expensive than Musk’s product. A basic Model S starts at around $74,990 while the Lucid is expected to be around $150,000 – definitely not a cheap product.
Lucid is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which provided $1 billion for the Silicon Valley startup in 2018 and it is ready to become the undisputed champion of electric vehicles.
Lucid is currently taking reservations for the Air through $1,000 refundable deposits. The company declined to disclose how many reservations have been made.
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