$100,000 for base trim?

The Lucid Air is one of many great luxury cars on the market today. The difference from other companies is his cutting-edge appeal as an EV equipped with cutting-edge technology. At its best, the driver feels like peering into the future from behind the wheel. For those who love to try the latest and greatest, nothing beats Lucid Air. It is an experience in itself.

Consider this. The Lucid Air series includes not only his one of the most efficient cars on the road today, but also the fastest car MotorTrend has ever tested at 400 meters. And despite the Air’s outstanding performance and technology, not to mention the 2022 Car of the Year award, Lucid continues to face brand recognition challenges. At this point, you need to desire Lucid’s otherness (and have a lot of cash) to take the plunge.

The 2023 Lucid Air Pure we tested is a dual-motor AWD version (single-motor rear-wheel-drive model also available) with 480 horsepower plus an EPA rating when fitted with standard 19-inch or 384 wheels. It has a range of 410 miles. Together with the more beautiful twenties. These mileage numbers are pretty impressive when compared to just about any EV except the Tesla Model S (Tesla is also around 400). Pricing for the single-motor Air Pure starts at $89,125, with dual-motor versions adding $5,500. With options, our test car cost $112,425.

If a standard Chevrolet Corvette makes 490 horsepower, the 480 horsepower AWD base trim might sound excessive. But for Lucid Air (and many other EVs), we’re just getting started. The Superior Touring puts out 620 hp, while the Grand Touring 819 puts out a staggering 1,050 hp for long-lasting Grand Touring performance. You might think it’s a top model, but that’s not the case with the Air. The three-motor Sapphire model he puts out nearly 1,300 horsepower.that is very Upscale neighborhood. When you factor in all those high numbers, the Air Pure AWD’s 480 horsepower starts to seem almost dwarf, but that’s only until you actually set foot in it.

Air Pure AWD sprints from 0 to 90mph in 3.6 seconds in MotorTrend’s test with easy-to-use launch control. With one trim-up air touring, the time is shortened by 0.5 seconds to 3.1 seconds. The Air Grand Touring Performance takes things to the next level with a 0-60 time of 2.7 seconds. Then there’s the record-breaking Sapphire prototype we just tested, reaching 60 in just 2.2 seconds. Such acceleration is difficult to describe unless you have experienced it.

The Air Pure’s 3.6 second time is still ahead of the non-AMG Mercedes EQS series and the BMW i7 xDrive60, but you can feel the speed difference from the Pure to other faster Lucid Air trims.

We expected it to be fast, but what we didn’t expect from the Air Pure was Tailhappy antics, especially given its all-wheel-drive orientation. However, the test team found it surprisingly easy to drift Lucid off the skidpad, if not in a violent or threatening manner.

MotorTrend’s figure-of-eight test, which evaluates a car’s acceleration, handling, braking and transitions between them, reveals that the Air Pure has the same sports sedan profile as the higher-end Air trim. . His time of 24.3 seconds at 0.81 g (average) was about the same as his 24.2 seconds at Touring at 0.83 g (average).

In fact, both the Air Pure and Touring outperform the heavier 1,050-horsepower Grand Touring Performance in a figure eight. Driving to the limit, his sub-5,000-pound curb weight on the Air Pure really comes in handy. The Grand Touring we tested was about 300 pounds heavier. Overall, the test team found the Pure to be a satisfying sedan capable of very sporty behavior on the track.

On the road, the Air Pure handles well, and its ride leans toward more comfort than you’d expect from a sports sedan. Will it be able to keep up with air touring and grand touring performance? Probably not, but we’re talking minor degrees here. Compared to other mainstream luxury electric cars priced around $100,000, the Lucid moves impressively regardless of trim.

What the Air Pure fails to do is offer drivers the same luxury feel as the Lucid high trim. The Pure lacks Touring’s ventilated seats and is available in just one dark interior color theme called Mojave. The interior itself is nicely done, with different blacks and grays over different textures, all applied in a non-cluttered way. Tesla owners looking for a less decorative interior will love what they see.

Automotive luxury involves customizing your vehicle to your liking, and this is one area where Air Pure falls short. Like Tesla, the interior color options are limited, which is disappointing in both cases. BMW and Mercedes are happy to order electric four-doors in every interior and exterior hue with multiple interior trim options. Would most buyers opt for the standard interior on site? Yes, but it doesn’t matter.

I don’t want to feel limited. It’s like owning a car where he hits 60 in 3.6 seconds.Part of the charm is getting to know you can You can move quickly if you want, but you don’t have to use that feature at every stop sign.

Other features the Pure doesn’t have include an electric front trunk (aka flank) and soft-close doors. Touring trim adds two more levels of power seat adjustment (14 steps total) and adds four-zone automatic climate control to the Pure’s three-zone. Also, you can’t get real leather seats on the Air Pure, but there’s no FOMO for him here. The seat and steering wheel are made of PurLuxe material, giving it a soft and luxurious feel.

At this price point, I wouldn’t mind the lack of leather or massage seats (a feature our GT-P test car has had for a year), but interior and exterior customization and ventilated seats are more available I wish it was possible.

Missing features have never felt so good. With a glass-free aluminum roof, the Pure extends the Lucid Air to a wider audience – tall people – thanks to excellent visibility.

In our year-long test car for the Lucid Air, the Lucid’s glass canopy roof was a special feature we both loved and hated vehemently, thanks to its impact on forward visibility for those of us above average height. is one of . Pure doesn’t have that much of a problem.

With an unbroken stretch of glass from the bottom of the windshield to the top of the driver’s head, the Pure loses that magical forward vision, but provides a more comfortable interior space. The same goes for the back seats. It has a smaller battery pack than the Grand Touring model, and the rear seat floor is about three inches lower. Passengers will notice the difference.

Drivers, not so much.of motor trendsIn our road trip range test, the Air Pure covered 319 miles, just 11 miles short of the Grand Touring Performance model. Our road trip range numbers measure the expected range at a constant speed of 110 mph on the highway and are the result of actual, real-world testing. Interestingly, in the same test, the Mercedes EQS580 4Matic outperformed both models with 354 miles of performance.

We’ve been with the Air a lot, so we know how good it is and how good it is. But at around $100,000, the Pure begins to lose its special appeal in terms of technical prowess and customizability. Step up to Air Touring and you’ll have more options available, from additional wheel and tire packages to new interior colors and Lucid’s trendy Stealth Dark exterior look. Yes, these are superficial, but in a way so are many aspects of luxury.

At around $100,000, it’s also facing stiff competition from arguably more manageable mainstream luxury EV sedans such as Mercedes’ EQE and EQS, BMW’s i5 and i7, and the Genesis G80 electric.

Sometimes the base model is the best example of this series, but that’s not the case with the Lucid Air Pure. Sure, this represents the brand well, but it’s just a good introduction to a car whose sweet spot is one trim level above his.