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After 11,000 miles in a Lucid Air Touring in underneath 11 months, I don’t see something approaching the horizon that would ever substitute it. It is a beautiful automotive worthy of the 2022 Motor Pattern’s Automotive of the Yr. Nonetheless, if I had Harry Potter’s wand, I’d give it a wave and repair a couple of issues. We’ll get to these in a bit.
The Air Touring is my eighth electrical automotive. I’ve owned a self-built Miata conversion, three completely different BMWs, a Tesla Mannequin 3, a Jaguar I-Tempo, and a Hyundai Ioniq 5 (which isn’t mine, however my spouse’s every day driver).
The Jag might be probably the most comparable when it comes to the driving expertise, though the Lucid is faster, quieter, and has an much more confidence-building connection to the highway. The Lucid can be simply beautiful to take a seat in. The inside structure and controls make extra sense than another automotive I’ve ever pushed. It strikes the correct stability of tactile buttons for continuously used options versus the touchscreen. The Lucid’s touchscreen works properly and isn’t “laggy” just like the Jag’s and the menus are intuitive (very in contrast to the Jag’s.)
However by far, my greatest motivation for shelling out probably the most cash I’ve ever spent on a automotive is for what I name drivability. I beloved to drive the Jag, however its poor effectivity coupled with gradual quick charging meant that for each two hours of freeway driving, I wanted to cost about an hour. This made any significant highway journey within the Jag, particularly with household, who weren’t deriving any enjoyable out of the driving, merely painful.
Street journeys are the place the Lucid really shines. With the supremely quiet cabin oozing a chill vibe, the Lucid makes the miles soften away like no different automotive I’ve pushed. Couple that with a really environment friendly drivetrain and among the many quickest charging on the planet, and nobody within the household can complain about too frequent or too lengthy of stops to cost.
From my residence within the SF Bay Space, I’ve pushed the Air to Las Vegas as soon as, Lake Tahoe a couple of instances, and many journeys to Los Angeles. The period of attaching an asterisk to EV highway journeys is over. My “asterisk removing requirement” is when a automotive’s vary exceeds my bladder’s vary, coupled with a recharge to 80% throughout little greater than a restroom break.
When contemplating the Air, the one automotive I cross-shopped was Porsche’s Taycan. Drivability was a prime precedence for me and that successfully restricted my selections to the 2 premium sedans with 900-volt structure obtainable on the time.
What led me to the Air over the Taycan? First, after proudly owning extra EVs than I’ve fingers on one hand, I’ve turn into accustomed to the simplicity provided by one-pedal driving. Porsche simply doesn’t supply it. Their reasoning sounds completely believable in case your purpose is prime efficiency on the observe, however I wasn’t shopping for a automotive for the observe. Maybe most vital, was the detrimental vibe I obtained from the shopper advisors at my native Porsche supplier. I walked in, opened a couple of doorways, and sat in a couple of automobiles, however the employees had been too busy taking a look at their telephones and refused to make eye contact.
I do know Porsche makes a beautiful automotive, and I can nonetheless admire the Taycan, however these two easy issues made me run straight into Lucid’s arms and I’ve zero regrets.
Cautious readers could also be screaming “Why didn’t you cross-shop the Hyundai Ioniq 6 (or different E-GMP-based mostly automobiles) or a Mannequin S?” These ought to all make glorious highway journey automobiles and compete with the Air and Taycan for stellar drivability at decrease value than both.
Properly, I already had an Ioniq 5 within the driveway after I purchased the Air. The Ioniq 6 was months away after I wanted a automotive, and I had beforehand owned Teslas and soured on the model for customer support causes. ‘Nuff mentioned.
The Lucid Air: What’s Not To Love?
Frankly, all of my criticisms may be categorized as classical “first-world issues” and most may be remedied with software program and are, the truth is, on the unofficial Lucid software program want listing. I do agree with the gadgets on that unofficial listing however wish to spotlight my pet peeves beneath.
Gradual in addition up the “hen’s eye view” display
A characteristic I can now not dwell with out is the superior 360° hen’s eye view (described right here). However occasionally, this display is gradual in addition and is unavailable proper after I want it most.
HomeLink
The backup digital camera covers the HomeLink display. The geofenced HomeLink works nice when pulling into your driveway. However it will get lined by digital camera views when the automotive is put into reverse. So backing out of your storage turns into a multi-step course of:
- Reverse out of the storage
- As soon as out of the storage, put the automotive in park to get entry to HomeLink
- Shut the storage door
- Put the automotive in reverse to proceed backing out
No user-configurable split-screen
There’s a beautiful heart console touchscreen, and above that, there may be one other touchscreen within the heart of the sprint. Generally known as the floating display, you’ll be able to ingeniously drag one display down (or up) extending and increasing the menu between the 2 screens. However what you can’t do, as one instance, is have infotainment on one display and navigation on the opposite. You can, nonetheless, have navigation on one display, and much more navigation on the opposite display. Which isn’t helpful.
No Android Auto
Apple Automotive Play was added in March 2023, however Android customers should endure the indignity of working with Alexia for voice management, with no analogous characteristic for cellphone display sharing. Once I purchased the automotive I used to be informed Android Auto was within the works for the summer season of 2023. I’m getting just a little impatient…
The GOM is topography ignorant
The present GOM (Guess-o-meter) is correct, as long as there aren’t any elevation adjustments concerned. Once I drive to Lake Tahoe from the SF Bay Space I must consider 6 or 7 miles of vary misplaced for each 1,000 ft of elevation gained. Relying on the preliminary and last locations, that may be as a lot as 50 miles of vary misplaced for a 200-mile drive. Driving to/from L.A. over the Grapevine, I’ve discovered that I’ll lose about 20 miles as I ascend, after which I’ll acquire these again as I descend on the opposite facet (on account of roughly web zero elevation change).
As said in pure physics, that is merely mass instances acceleration on account of gravity instances elevation acquire and the one variable is the mass of the automotive’s payload, which frankly is a small fraction when in comparison with the entire mass of the automotive. It’s embarrassing that that is nonetheless a problem nearly two years after the primary buyer automobiles had been delivered.
If I had Android Auto and will use A Higher Route Planner whereas driving I wouldn’t care. In reality, I believe OEMs ought to merely surrender on in-house vary estimators and set up ABRP.
Key fob connection is just too aggressive
When you retailer the important thing fob inside 50 ft of the automotive, you’ll wish to spend money on a Faraday bag to retailer your key in, or your automotive’s vampire drain might be vital. My different automobiles have by no means wanted this.
Particular Point out Plug & Cost (by way of Electrify America)
After a couple of rocky months, Plug & Cost now works flawlessly. Lucid and EA are giving all Air house owners 3 years of free charging. Nonetheless, my concern is that the account is tied to the automotive, to not me personally. I’ve an Electrify America account (in my title) and when the three years are over, will Plug & Cost nonetheless require the account to be tied to the automotive? I’d prefer to keep away from the situation that’s plaguing Ford house owners the place the Plug & Cost characteristic is tied to the automotive and prices a premium vis-a-vis skipping the Plug & Cost expertise and utilizing private accounts the “quaint manner.”
With out query the buggiest automotive I’ve ever owned. That is from one ~100 mile stretch of I5 north of L.A. Within the final 30+ years I’ve pushed this similar part of I5 at the least one million instances in all types of circumstances and have by no means had a consequence like this. And this isn’t a one-off, because it occurs each time I take this automotive to L.A. Ceramic coating is the value we pay for self-importance.
The buggiest automotive I’ve ever owned
The Air has one of many lowest coefficients of drag within the trade, however to a flying insect, there may be simply one thing mesmerizing about that entrance slab of plastic that is sort of a moth to a flame.
Glass cover
I used to be drawn to the attractive glass cover that extends properly previous the driving force’s head. And I nonetheless see it as a compelling characteristic. However after residing with it for a 12 months, I’ve come to… respect it. The Jaguar I-Tempo has an all-glass moonroof so I assumed the expertise can be related. Not so. The execution within the Air is considerably completely different with glass in entrance of you, over you, and behind you. In summer season months, it will get highly regarded, and even with the AC turned as much as 11, the glass radiates sufficient warmth to make it uncomfortable.
The glass cover is without doubt one of the sexist options of the automotive. However in summer season months you do get the feeling of a small thermonuclear gadget working inches out of your brow. A baseball cap takes care of it for me. Lucid additionally now sells a sunshade.
Low clearance with vital overhang
At first look, the automotive doesn’t appear that low—definitely not like some sports activities automobiles. However it’s low sufficient that when coupled with a substantial distance from the entrance wheels to the entrance bumper, even modest driveway inclines will trigger the plastic chin guard to scrape. Approaching such driveways at a major angle helps, however this can not all the time be carried out, neither is sensible to perform with pace bumps or very steep inclines, comparable to these present in and round San Francisco. An iir suspension would assist to get a few further inches of clearance for such instances.
Illuminated cost port
I’m getting nit-picky right here and this drawback shouldn’t be Lucid distinctive. However cost ports needs to be illuminated so the consumer can see the port when it’s darkish. In a basic case of the place dogfooding might assist, each EV I’ve owned has a light-weight behind the cost port door that shines straight within the eyes of the consumer, successfully blinding them. At night time, I discover myself blocking the sunshine with my hand so I can higher see the port. For the love of all that’s holy, level the sunshine on the port, not within the eyes of the consumer. Or a backlit port can be freaking divine.
Conclusion
Once I was a small boy (earlier than seat belts, not to mention automotive seats) I keep in mind standing behind the entrance bench seats on the driveshaft tunnel so I might see out the windshield of the automotive. I’d excitedly soar up and down, annoying my mother and father, and say “Let’s go on a protracted, lengthy bye-bye!”
The Air reconnects me to that very same pleasure of seeing the highway and all the chances that associate with it. With none asterisks hooked up.
Proprietor Tales is a brand new characteristic on InsideEVs the place actual EV house owners such as you share their experiences with the group. Acquired an excellent story? Get in contact.
*John Higham is a retired aerospace engineer. John is a self-proclaimed EV activist, contributing to the native EV group and writing place papers supporting or opposing laws for the Electrical Auto Affiliation.
In 2005, John traveled all over the world together with his household, with tales about them revealed in The New York Occasions, San Jose Mercury Information, and others. John then wrote a journey memoir in regards to the expertise and it was first revealed in 2009 by Alyson Books, NY, NY. It’s now utilized in public faculties nationwide as a geography narrative. It was the primary e-book ever revealed with a companion Google Earth layer.
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