With Tesla dominating the world of electric vehicles, it was only a matter of time until contenders emerged on the horizon.
*Notification* Lucid Air has entered the chat.
Lucid are a Saudi backed motor company based in California. Intent on turning up the heat for Tesla, recent revelations of their flagship model have certainly got the motor industries attention. The Lucid Air, boasts some incredible practicality but also appears to be an absolute monster out on the tarmac.
Firstly, the boring bit. The Air Dream edition, which Lucid tell us will be out first (Q2 2021), comes with both a frunk and a trunk. Any review you may see of the vehicle leads with this for some reason, so we’re going to assume they’re watching and follow suit. Jokes aside, that’s a whole lot of storage space for golf clubs, prams and shopping.
It can take charge for an 80-mile journey in just an hour. Impressive stats if you know your electric vehicles. At 300kw this will be the fastest charging EV on the market, so long as Porsche don’t actually meet their current claims of 350kw (actual rate of 280kw).
Under independent review, the Dream edition has surpassed 500 miles on a single charge. This blows the Tesla model 3 out of the water and leaves it suspended in mid-Lucid Air. Not only that, but the car will offer bi-directionality. What is that? I hear you ask. This essentially turns the car into a mobile power pack capable of charging other cars, or even powering your home.
Other noteworthy accreditations are the facial recognition and driver monitoring system. This means the car knows where you’re looking, coupled with its LiDAR system to alert it of objects in the vehicles path, the car is aware of whether you’ve seen the danger or not. Like eyes in the side of your head.
Enough of the boring stuff. Let’s get down to the nitty gritty.
The Dream Edition is recorded, on track, hitting 0-60mph in under 2.5 seconds. For a sedan, that’s pretty incredible. On a quarter mile drag strip, it finished under 10 seconds. With over 1000bhp, and the space for up to 3 600bhp engines providing drive, they’ve only skimmed the surface of performance.
With a short hood, long cabin and short boot, the Air has been given a distinguished look by its architects. Aerodynamics play a key roll in all car design and the makers of Lucid’s Air have pushed the boundaries offering a drag coefficient of only 0.21 compared with the Tesla Model S of 0.24.
So, the news you’ve all tuned in for. When can we get our hands on this stunning fete of engineering? You can place your deposit of AED3800 today, with delivery expected for Q2 of 2021. You can reserve yours now over at https://www.lucidmotors.com/air/reserve/ .
Track racing, competing, it's in my blood. It's part of me, it's part of my life; I have been doing it all my life and it stands out above everything else.
All posts byJuan Manuel