NEW PLAYER ON ELECTRIC CAR SCENE HAS PLENTY TO OFFER — FOR A PRICE
“The answer to all your questions is: money.” So said legendary television producer Don Ohlmeyer, and while he was referencing the world of sports, the quote also fits neatly with the electric-vehicle sector, where the two biggest questions are about range and charging.
How far can it go on a single charge? How fast can it charge? Solve those two vexing issues — building a better EV mousetrap as it were — and people will beat a path to your door.
Well, Lucid Motors has done just that and all it will cost you is money. Lots of money. But that's nothing new in the EV sector; ranges of 500-plus kilometres and sub-quick charging under 30 minutes are the playground of six-figure vehicles.
The subject of this first-drive review, the Lucid Air Grand Touring, starts at $210,000. That's the price from June 1 going forward. Head down to a Lucid Studio in Vancouver or Toronto before then to sign on the dotted line and that number is $189,000. For that you get the longest range of any production EV available in Canada (in the world, in fact), at 837 km, thanks to a 112-kWh lithium-ion battery pack and some clever Silicon Valley special software sauce. You'll also get the fastest charging rate of 350 km in 15 minutes, thanks to its 900-volt architecture and 300-kW peak charging power.
And, as I discovered driving the all-wheel-drive Air GT around Vancouver last week, you'll get an exceptional luxury sport sedan with unique design features, impressive performance and a bespoke presence. And make note: A Lucid Motors retail space is expected to open in Montreal in the fall of this year.
When first approaching the sedan — with exterior dimensions slotting into the mid-size segment — you're struck by a sense of gravitas. Big 21-inch aero-blade wheels pushed out to the four corners, light bars running the width of the vehicle front and back, and a boat tail rear end make this EV stand out from the premium pack.
There's also function to that aircraft-inspired form. The Air's drag coefficient of 0.21 makes it the world's most aero-efficient luxury car, reducing cabin wind noise and increasing that chart-topping range figure.
As to that cabin … wow. As much as the exterior has clearly been well designed down to the last detail, the interior is simply stunning. Sit down in the driver's sport seat and you're greeted with a floating 5K 34-inch driver display, and a retractable central Pilot Panel on the centre console. All driver and creature-comfort controls are displayed and controlled using these screens, but big kudos to Lucid designers for also including climate-control switches above the Pilot Panel.
Sound system and cruise control switchwork are on the flat-bottomed, meaty sport steering wheel.
Thanks to some smart design work by Lucid engineers in positioning the working bits of the EV drivetrain, the cabin of the Air is full-size all the way. It is simply huge, as is the cargo space in the back, revealed with the opening of a unique clamshell trunk (456 litres of space), and in the frunk, which, at 202 litres, is four times larger than other electric vehicle, Lucid says.
One last, and certainly not least, unique cabin design is the amazing glass canopy, an optional solid glass roof that spans the entire cabin and brings in both light and amazing views. Protective interlayers block the sun's heat.
I know this is an EV thing, but I'm not a fan of not having a start/stop button. As with Volvo EVs, when you climb into the Air, the key-fob detection brings the car to life. All you need to do is use the right-hand stalk on the steering wheel to select drive or reverse and away you go (and for the record, I'm also not a fan of stalk gear selectors).
Driving the car, however, is a delight. When I jump in an EV, I select one-pedal drive if it's available, and the Air has that setting on all the time.
There are three drive modes: Smooth, Swift and Sprint. That last one comes with a warning you have to agree to before you can engage. Why? Because it's bloody quick in that setting; Lucid claims a sub-three-second sprint to 100 km/h in the top-ofthe-line Air.
I found Smooth quick enough, particularly for city driving. And the handling and ride of the Air live up to that Smooth name in all three drive modes, thanks to semi-active dampers, electronic stability control and torque vectoring, which give the heavy sedan a nimble, yet planted, driving dynamic. Suspension settings don't change across the three modes, but steering inputs do, and even in Smooth the steering is firm, like a good sports car.
The Air GT has a maximum horsepower output of 816 — more than the Tesla Model S Raven Performance, the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500SE and the Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock. Needless to say, acceleration is awesome.
If that's not enough power for you, and you have the money, the Air Grand Touring Performance boasts an ungodly output of 1,050 hp and the Air Dream Edition Performance has 1,111 hp.
In addition to the Grand Touring trim, there is the Air Dream Edition Performance (758-km range), the Air Dream Edition Range (837 km), the Grand Touring Performance (717 km, $242,000), the Air Touring (620 hp, 653-km range, $129,000) and the Air Pure (408 hp, 653-km range, $105,000).
Do you get your money's worth if you buy a Lucid Air Grand Touring? Well, loaded up and similarly equipped Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz luxury sport sedans are in the same ballpark, and Bentleys are much more expensive, so if you are fortunate enough to play in that exclusive sandbox, the Lucid Air represents a unique, profoundly capable and totally desirable sedan.