First Test Drive Review - Out of Spec Dave

[Tesla2.0]

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

terrible ... couldn't watch past 19 min. this guy is clueless. wtf talking about the Model 3 screen blocking his phone ????
don't waste your time

 

[ksn]

His surprise of 100k car having no car play .. If apple CarPlay is the only reason people buy any car that's premium there should have been no Tesla's sold.

I agree Lucid needs to be more transparent about the status of upcoming upgrades but a crappy review like this when he talks and talks forever without even one visual of the car is pathetic..

 

[xponents]

His surprise of 100k car having no car play .. If apple CarPlay is the only reason people buy any car that's premium there should have been no Tesla's sold.

I agree Lucid needs to be more transparent about the status of upcoming upgrades but a crappy review like this when he talks and talks forever without even one visual of the car is pathetic..

People buying the roadster 2020 for 250k.. or more like the roadster 2026.

 

[Lucken]

I watched the entire review and, although it's clear the guy is a Tesla guy, I didn't think the review was all that bad or totally non-objective:

* He was referencing the Lucid pilot panel when he was talking about the screen obstructing the phone charging
* He mentioned the materials in the Lucid were in a different league than the Tesla. He felt the materials and fit & finish was in the league of German cars.
* He called the car 'amazing' and said he had "a lot to think about" as if he would consider the Lucid over the Tesla
* He made a number of references to the way that Lucid does things in the car that were great and some that were not. I didn't find those things much different than what I've read here
* His CarPlay comments were amusing given Tesla's history with that
* The one thing that made me scratch my head, and maybe I've missed it here in the forum, is that he said he found it almost impossible to stop smoothly with the regen braking. He said there was always a bit of a jerk. I can't recall that being the case in my test drive, but maybe there were too many other things going on then...but I think I would have noticed that.

So yeah, his Tesla bias comes through, but I didn't think the review was all that bad.

 

[MikeTz]

I turned it off when I realized he had nothing new to say.

 

[hmp10]

I love the reviews that rave about the glories of the Lucid Air, of course, and there are plenty of them.

On the other hand, I appreciate reviews that also point out shortcomings of the Air as long as they do so in an even-handed fashion. I thought this review did just that. For the 14 months I've owned an Air, I have said repeatedly that it it is the best balance of ride, handling, room, comfort, luxury, and style I've ever owned. However . . . there is nothing mentioned in this review on the "cons" side of the ledger that I have not noticed or experienced myself with the car. The Air is superb and I much prefer it to our Model S Plaid, but it is not perfect.

The video closed with this assessment:

"The car's amazing. My head is spinning. I've got a lot to think about here."

For a guy accused of a strong Tesla bias, I really don't see much reason in this wrap-up for complaint.

 

[Shuasha]

I have a lot of complaints about the Out of Spec vids, but I think this was pretty fair. He even said the field of vision was really good, which I hear as a common complaint and I sometimes have issues with.
Them not letting him film may have been due to this being a normal test drive and not a press event where he would have time to set up cameras.

 

[goshen]

I love the reviews that rave about the glories of the Lucid Air, of course, and there are plenty of them.

On the other hand, I appreciate reviews that also point out shortcomings of the Air as long as they do so in an even-handed fashion. I thought this review did just that. For the 14 months I've owned an Air, I have said repeatedly that it it is the best balance of ride, handling, room, comfort, luxury, and style I've ever owned. However . . . there is nothing mentioned in this review on the "cons" side of the ledger that I have not noticed or experienced myself with the car. The Air is superb and I much prefer it to our Model S Plaid, but it is not perfect.

The video closed with this assessment:

"The car's amazing. My head is spinning. I've got a lot to think about here."

For a guy accused of a strong Tesla bias, I really don't see much reason in this wrap-up for complaint.

Totally agree with your assessment of the video. Our bias should never blindfold our views. The guy was spot on and objective. Nothing he said differs from my personal experience owning and driving the AGT since Dec 22 and 2000+ miles and counting

 

[DBV]

I actually thought it was very informative and useful review.

 

[Shane_SLC]

Clickbait nonsense! I've been tussling with him and his annoying son over on Twitter since yesterday. His son claims Lucid forbid his dad from filming the test drive and from filming the delivery process. I pointed out there are literally 1,000's of videos on YouTube of test drives and deliveries but Lucid just so happened to forbid them from filming? I called bullshit! A bunch of others did too.

Newsflash to those who don't know, these two dudes are Tesla guys and really don't like Lucid. They disparage the company just about every chance they get in a very duplicitous way. I'm sick of it and have called them out on it.

For what it's worth, the delivery that Kyle mentioned is my upcoming delivery (at least I'm fairly certain). I asked the Lucid employee handling my delivery appointment if I could have the delivery process filmed at the Denver studio and they said no. I didn't mention him or Out of Spec by name. My impression is that home deliveries are okay to film, but deliveries at Lucid locations not so much. It may depend on the specific location or context. I hope this clarifies things a little bit.

 

[Lucken]

So do owners find they can’t come to a complete stop smoothly with their Lucid? Is this something the reviewer experienced because he wasn’t easing off on the accelerator smoothly? Modulating the pressure correctly on any EV with strong regen is necessary for a smooth stop.

 

[Babyrocko1908]

For what it's worth, the delivery that Kyle mentioned is my upcoming delivery (at least I'm fairly certain). I asked the Lucid employee handling my delivery appointment if I could have the delivery process filmed at the Denver studio and they said no. I didn't mention him or Out of Spec by name. My impression is that home deliveries are okay to film, but deliveries at Lucid locations not so much. It may depend on the specific location or context. I hope this clarifies things a little bit.

And again, there are tons of videos on YouTube of delivery from the studios. As was pointed out to Kyle, it sounds like a Kyle and his Daddy thing and I don't need a vivid imagination as to why Lucid corporate want nothing to do with these guys.

 

[hydbob]

So do owners find they can’t come to a complete stop smoothly with their Lucid? Is this something the reviewer experienced because he wasn’t easing off on the accelerator smoothly? Modulating the pressure correctly on any EV with strong regen is necessary for a smooth stop.

This is the first time since I've been around I remember even hearing this as a complaint. Most of the time it's a mix of...not used to it, got used to it in a few hours etc etc.

 

[Lucken]

This is the first time since I've been around I remember even hearing this as a complaint. Most of the time it's a mix of...not used to it, got used to it in a few hours etc etc.

That's what I thought and as I said prior, I don't recall experiencing that in my test drive.

 

[MorganB]

I feel like he's word vomiting and he also makes incorrect statements . I have no idea what he's talking about with the regen and saying he couldnt try the one pedal driving... unlikely. Touring does have an alcantara headliner.

 

[hmp10]

So do owners find they can’t come to a complete stop smoothly with their Lucid? Is this something the reviewer experienced because he wasn’t easing off on the accelerator smoothly? Modulating the pressure correctly on any EV with strong regen is necessary for a smooth stop.

The reviewer owns a Tesla Model 3, so he should be experienced with one-pedal driving. I've been driving Teslas for six years and the Air for 14 months, and I find no noticeable difference in their regenerative braking. However, early on there was a bit more non-linearity in our Air's braking than in our Plaid's -- a symptom that disappeared at some point and that I assumed was handled in one of the OTA software updates.

The reaction of reviewers to regenerative braking is a continuing puzzle to me. When we got our first Tesla, I adapted to it almost instantly and came to find it one of my favorite features of EV driving. But I have seen very seasoned reviewers with lots of experience testing EVs land all over the lot on regenerative braking. Some love it, some don't like it, some think the Air's regen is too aggressive at the highest setting, some wish it were even stronger. etc. Along with equally unfathomable wildly-variant descriptions of interior room, I tend to ignore most of what I read or hear about regenerative braking.

 

[hmp10]

I feel like he's word vomiting and he also makes incorrect statements . I have no idea what he's talking about with the regen and saying he couldnt try the one pedal driving... unlikely. Touring does have an alcantara headliner.

He did say much regen was not available because he received the car charged up almost to 100% for his short drive. Regen actually is unavailable at full state charge, as the batteries cannot absorb the electrons generated by braking. On the few times I have charged above 95% on road trips, I have found regen not available or noticeably diminished until the charge state drops a few points.

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

Okay, so who decided these guys were qualified to review cars?

nailed it

he didn't know what he was talking about

ie : clueless

On the other hand, I appreciate reviews that also point out shortcomings of the Air as long as they do so in an even-handed fashion.

how can he be even-handed ?... clearly he hasn't delved into all the settings, nor spent enough time driving. I didn't watch the whole thing because it's terrible in so many ways ... does he mention the difference between "hold" and "creep" ... no, he is more concerned about his wife's insomnia. I happen to like the one-foot driving very very much ... especially the bit where you can feel the brakes gently grab and "hold" (when "hold" is engaged ) the car as you come to a stop: I love this! feature, not a bug. If he doesn't like it then select "creep". Clueless. He's trying very hard to find a con....maybe his I-pad doesn't fit ... that's on him, not Lucid....no cable slots on his I-Pad? .... how is that Lucid's fault?

I actually thought it was very informative and useful review.

that's the problem. we are concerned about people who don't own the car thinking this guy has a clue.

I feel like he's word vomiting and he also makes incorrect statements .

Exactly. You could edit down to: "I haven't read the manual or delved into the Lucid menus. It's not like my mom's Tesla."

Lucid Owners is the place to get a sense of the car. Someone with 100 hours in the left seat is "fair and balanced". I never thought I'd be even more enamored of the car, but seriously, the joy curve just keeps getting higher.

 

[hmp10]

I just want to take a birds-eye snapshot of this review and this discussion.

1. The reviewer owns a Tesla and likes the brand.

2. He took a short first drive in a Lucid Air.

3. He found a lot of like about the car, and he found some things not to like.

4. He concluded that the car was "amazing" and, given his unfamiliarity with it at the outset, was left with his "head spinning" and "a lot to think about".

I've been a member of this forum since early days. If I had to sum up the collective conclusions by owners on this forum as they have evolved over time, this reviewer's conclusions square with them very well: the Air is an amazing car, it has some things that are not universally liked, but at the end of the day will leave you astonished at what Lucid has accomplished.

Honestly, folks, I cannot come close to counting the reviews I've read or seen of the Lucid over the past four years since I first started following the brand. This Out of Spec review was very, very far away from the most clueless or irrational ones I've seen.

Other than a personal vendetta that seems to be afoot between the reviewer and a poster here and about which I don't want to know more, I really cannot understand why this review has come under such attack. He found the car "amazing", for Chrissakes.