Stephen Edelstein / Digital Trends
If you ’re only going to sell one car , you ’d better make it look .
The Lucid Air electric carfinally took flying in 2020after yr in fiscal oblivion . While Lucid plans to set up anSUV call in the Gravityand a line of smaller , more mainstream models , the Air remains Lucid ’s sole product virtually four years after its launching . The Air has evolved in that time , adding multiple configurations that allow this one cable car to fill several niches .
Stephen Edelstein/Digital Trends
Lucid has change the Air lineup multiple times since the car ’s launching , and is doing it again for the 2024 model year . The batting order now lie of the theme fundament - wheel drive saturated , all - wheel effort Touring , maximal - range Grand Touring , and maximal - public presentation Sapphire .
This reshuffling was as dear of an excuse as any to revisit the Air and see how the four version compare . Digital Trends latterly had the chance to do precisely that , driving all four melody models back - to - back on scenic route and highways in the Hudson Valley just outside New York City .
Pure enjoyment
If you ’re look for a fast and luxurious EV with road - trip worthy range , the Lucid Air Pure base model may be all the auto you need . The Pure loses its all - wheel drive option for the 2024 , but the remaining rearward - steering wheel drive reading set off at $ 71,400 and extracts 419 mile of range from its 88 - kilowatt - minute battery pack . That ’s telling take that a Tesla Model S requires most 100 kWh of electric battery capacity for 402 miles of range .
The individual - motor Pure is the least - brawny air travel model , but still give 430 horsepower and 406 pound - foot of torque . That will get this 4,564 - Sudanese pound saloon from zero to 60 mph in a Lucid - figure 4.5 seconds , It has a top pep pill of 124 mph . We also think the Pure is a lot more merriment than its more powerful Touring and Grand Touring siblings .
We head the Pure with the precision of Rebel pilots on the Death Star oceanic abyss run .
This rear - wheel drive manikin feels more eager to assail corners , in part because the unpowered front axle really made the direction come in alert . This is n’t a little car , but we were able-bodied to guide it down twisting road with the precision of Rebel pilot film on the Death Star trench running game . We did n’t exactly miss the superfluous mogul of the other Air variate when the route straightened out , either . The Pure is plenty flying .
The Pure also does n’t give up much when it comes to animate being comforts and tech . It has the same 34.0 - column inch presentation as more expensive Air models , with most controls routed through a low touchscreen that Lucid call the Pilot Panel . WirelessApple CarPlayis patronize , but Lucid still does n’t offerAndroid Autoconnectivity . Synthetic upholstery is standard alternatively of real leather , but that ’s for reasons of sustainability rather than monetary value .
More power, less urgency
The Touring is another carryover simulation , but with the deletion of the double - motor Pure from the card for 2024 , it ’s now the least - expensive way to get an all - wheel drive powertrain in an Air . Rather than just a standing operating procedure for snowbelt customers , though , the Touring is more about splitting the unlike between the stark and Grand Touring modeling .
The Mary Leontyne Price increase to $ 79,400 while turnout jumps to 620 hp and 885 lb - ft of torque , getting the Touring from zero to 60 miles per hour in 3.4 seconds and on to a 140 mph top upper . The Touring has a with child 92 - kWh battery pack , but range drop somewhat compared to the Pure , to 411 Roman mile .
The Air Touring accentuate smoothness and serenity rather than sportiness .
Despite being nimble than a Porsche 911 Carrera , this is a place - back car . On the highway , it dwell up to its Touring name with drive quality that makes exploiting this EV ’s generous kitchen stove an attractive prospect . The Touring was n’t caught out by twisty roads , either , but the emphasis seemed to be more on smoothness and serenity than sportiness .
In addition to feeling less lively than the Pure , the Touring demand emptor to accept that they ’re mostly paying for all - steering wheel drive and immediate acceleration . We did n’t see the Touring cockpit as a huge rise over the Pure cockpit , and equipment levels are fairly close between the two . The interface and list of stock gadget driver - assist features are essentially the same . The latter covers the Qaeda , with expected feature like adaptive sail restraint and unreasoning - billet monitoring , but Lucid leave behind more advanced features on the option inclination .
Reputation maker
TheLucid Air Grand Touringis a gondola that newspaper headline are made of . With 516 mile of mountain chain from a 112 - kWh assault and battery pack , it is the longest - range EV currently on sales agreement . It ’s also the quickest - level Air strain , capable to recover 200 Admiralty mile of range in just 12 moment of charging at a befittingly powerful DC tight - consign place , agree to Lucid . However , the cost climbs steeply to $ 111,400 .
For 2024 , Lucid eliminate the previous 1,050 - hpGrand Touring Performance , leaving the standard Grand Touring with “ only ” 819 H.P. and 885 lb - ft of torsion , enable a zero to 60 mph time of 3.0 endorsement and a 168 miles per hour top speed . That ’s probably just as well . The 0.4 second difference in zero to 60 miles per hour acceleration between the Touring and Grand Touring is hard to notice without a stop watch .
The Grand Touring is the most user - friendly 819 - hp auto you ’re probable to run into .
There is n’t much to distinguish the Touring and Grand Touring models when it come to handling , either . The Grand Touring sweep up the same laid - back attitude as the less - herculean Touring model , which is really a bit funny considering how much great power is on rap . The specification say Ferrari , but the driving experience says Rolls - Royce . The form seems limit up to get by the power rather than exploit it . That does make the Grand tour the most drug user - well-disposed 819 - horsepower car you ’re ever likely to encounter .
Inside , the Grand Touring did n’t palpate very different from the Pure and Touring models , although that ’s largely because Lucid opt to keep interior fittings consistent throughout , rather than cheap out on the lower - story grades . The Grand Touring ’s 516 miles of range is its raison d’etre . It ’s a showcase for Lucid ’s ability to engineer an efficient electron volt , and a powerful argument against EV naysayer fixated on range anxiety .
A gem of a performance car
The Sapphire is Lucid ’s answer to the Tesla Model S Plaid , and like the Plaid , it uses a tri - motor powertrain . A single front motor and dual rearward motor fuse for a numerically meet 1,234 horsepower , as well as 1,430 lb - ft of torque . The operation figures are predictably impressive : zero to 60 miles per hour in 1.8 seconds , a one-fourth - mil fourth dimension of 8.9 endorsement at 158 miles per hour , and a 205 mph top speed . A 118 - kWh bombardment pack furnish 427 Swedish mile of orbit — but belike less if you beat back the Sapphire as mean .
This is more than just an Air Grand Touring with an extra motor , though . upgrade like alone suspension tuning , carbon ceramic brake system , and staggered wheels ( 20 - in in front and 21 - in in back ) with Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summertime public presentation tires make the Sapphire a complete performance car that ’s both competent and entertaining .
The Sapphire is impressive in part for what it is n’t . Cars with vaporing - rights power turnout can still be thudding to drive when you ’re not using all of that power . And the drama of quick acceleration can swim out other aspects of the car , like food drenched in too much hot sauce . That is n’t the case here . The Sapphire feel as straightaway as the specs evoke , but the steering and suspension are as much a part of the experience . You get all of the flavors , not just the heating .
That ’s because the Sapphire is n’t just about what happens when you push the correct foot pedal . It feels remarkably delicate and precise for a big sedan , flow through corners in a way that always makes you finger affiliated to the railroad car ’s movements . It ’s also decently comfortable , and still has more orbit than any other EV presently uncommitted . The only snatch is that the Sapphire costs $ 250,500 . At that monetary value , it needs to be this beneficial .
Force multiplier
The Lucid Air has grabbed headlines with its world - beating range of a function and charging speeds , but the full card shows that the basic Air weapons platform has unbelievable bandwidth . The reshuffled lineup also provides a clearer distinction between model than the currentBMW i7orMercedes - Benz EQSlineups , while giving customers more choices than Tesla , which has whittled down the Model S lineup to two variants . The current Air card acts as a force multiplier , leave Lucid to fill as many niche as it can with just one vehicle .
Some issues ca n’t be deal by tweaking power output , battery size , or price . The Air ’s styling may not be for everyone , and the same buy the farm for its touchscreen - laborious interface , which requires use of goods and services of a screen to adjust the mirrors and direction wheel . The Air Touring seems to live mostly to fill a price gap , and even the cheapest Air Pure stay firmly in opulence - car dominion at a time when high Price are one of the principal factors hold back EV adoption . But untilmore fashion model make it , the Air should be more than able to hold the line against Lucid ’s rivals .
