Test drive in Seattle

[BTBP]

We had the opportunity to test drive a Gravity in Seattle today. For background, we were Tesla Model X early adopters a decade ago and upgraded to the refreshed Model X when they came out in 2022. We normally keep our cars at least 5 years, but the violence against Teslas led us to look for an alternative. We found out about the Gravity, and were very impressed by the engineering, so we placed an order. Here's what we thought:
The Good:
The build is very solid, with notably better stiffness than the Model X (falcon wing door cutouts make the Model X somewhat flexible). Seattle streets will challenge any suspension, but the Gravity absorbed the bumps very well. Although I didn't have the opportunity to drive it on the highway, it was at least as quiet as the refreshed Model X, and much quieter than the original Model X.
Acceleration is robust. The calibration of the accelerator and the strangely strong spring on the accelerator pedal made it seem a little laggy until I got used to it. (My wife said it reminded her of her Cayenne Turbo.)
One pedal driving was excellent.
Maneuverability in parking lots was excellent.
The squircle is a big improvement over an old-fashioned round steering wheel, but I much prefer the Model X yoke. Maybe I'd like the squircle as well after I had time to optimize the position.
It has a turn signal lever! Tesla moving the turn signals to the steering wheel was dumb and a little bit dangerous. You shouldn't need to take your eyes off of the road to turn on turn signals or wipers!
The Not-So-Good:
The driver and passenger positions seemed a little claustrophobic after driving the Model X for so many years. The big black sun visors and the enormous camera mount behind the rear view mirror kind of ruin the feeling of openness you should get from that big windshield. (In fairness, I suspect those sun visors are much more effective than the lame Model X sun visors.)
My wife commented that it felt "bulky" to drive, and I felt the same, even though it's almost exactly the same size as the Model X.
The Nav system interface is nowhere near as good as the Model X. I'm really accustomed to popups guiding me to the correct turn point. I would expect the HUD will correct this shortcoming.
The HUD was not working, but it was certainly installed, since I got the blue oval on the middle of my field of view!
The Bad:
Visibility out the back of the Gravity is terrible! The rear window is very small, and mostly blocked by the back seat headrests. I always considered the rear vision in the Model X to be marginal, but the Gravity is much, much worse. Coupled with the smallish outside mirrors, I really felt challenged to keep track of other vehicles in heavy traffic.
The Model X allows continuous display of the rear and side cameras in the rectangular display, which gives much better rear view than any mirror. I'm hoping Lucid does something similar in the Gravity in a future software upgrade. Until then, I'm cancelling my order, because I just wouldn't enjoy driving the Gravity worrying about cars behind me that I couldn't easily monitor.

 

[knewman]

Fair criticisms imo. Visibility was one of my biggest negs too, and it's a problem for me in my Air as well. Ironically, thanks to safety regs it's a problem for most modern vehicles.

Gotta say I'm a bit surprised by your "bulky" comment. The only time I felt the weight of Gravity (lol) was under an emergency braking test.

 

[johnse]

Visibility out the back of the Gravity is terrible! The rear window is very small, and mostly blocked by the back seat headrests.

I felt the same at the start of my test drive. I have a 2018 Model X. But then the SA pushed a button on the pilot panel to remotely drop the 3rd row seat headrests. That gave visibility much better than the X, in my opinion.

 

[joec]

Yeah, if there aren’t passengers in the third row, drop the headrests back there. Makes a big difference.

 

[DeaneG]

Lucid does like a heavy accelerator pedal. For me, it makes the car feel a little more massive.

 

[Ron_Burgundy]

With respect to rear visibility, I do wish Lucid would make the dreamdrive graphics available at all times. I find them very helpful with respect to blind spots and generally knowing where other cars are. Our X does this.

All valid concerns. Totally agree about the massive ADAS hardware housing on the windshield and I hate the visor placement. Not sure why they didn’t change that from the Air.

My biggest issue with the Gravity is the top brake light in the rear takes up too much space on the rear windshield. I wish it were positioned differently.

Still look forward to driving our Gravity every chance I get, though.

 

[hwy17er]

We had the opportunity to test drive a Gravity in Seattle today. For background, we were Tesla Model X early adopters a decade ago and upgraded to the refreshed Model X when they came out in 2022. We normally keep our cars at least 5 years, but the violence against Teslas led us to look for an alternative. We found out about the Gravity, and were very impressed by the engineering, so we placed an order. Here's what we thought:
The Good:
The build is very solid, with notably better stiffness than the Model X (falcon wing door cutouts make the Model X somewhat flexible). Seattle streets will challenge any suspension, but the Gravity absorbed the bumps very well. Although I didn't have the opportunity to drive it on the highway, it was at least as quiet as the refreshed Model X, and much quieter than the original Model X.
Acceleration is robust. The calibration of the accelerator and the strangely strong spring on the accelerator pedal made it seem a little laggy until I got used to it. (My wife said it reminded her of her Cayenne Turbo.)
One pedal driving was excellent.
Maneuverability in parking lots was excellent.
The squircle is a big improvement over an old-fashioned round steering wheel, but I much prefer the Model X yoke. Maybe I'd like the squircle as well after I had time to optimize the position.
It has a turn signal lever! Tesla moving the turn signals to the steering wheel was dumb and a little bit dangerous. You shouldn't need to take your eyes off of the road to turn on turn signals or wipers!
The Not-So-Good:
The driver and passenger positions seemed a little claustrophobic after driving the Model X for so many years. The big black sun visors and the enormous camera mount behind the rear view mirror kind of ruin the feeling of openness you should get from that big windshield. (In fairness, I suspect those sun visors are much more effective than the lame Model X sun visors.)
My wife commented that it felt "bulky" to drive, and I felt the same, even though it's almost exactly the same size as the Model X.
The Nav system interface is nowhere near as good as the Model X. I'm really accustomed to popups guiding me to the correct turn point. I would expect the HUD will correct this shortcoming.
The HUD was not working, but it was certainly installed, since I got the blue oval on the middle of my field of view!
The Bad:
Visibility out the back of the Gravity is terrible! The rear window is very small, and mostly blocked by the back seat headrests. I always considered the rear vision in the Model X to be marginal, but the Gravity is much, much worse. Coupled with the smallish outside mirrors, I really felt challenged to keep track of other vehicles in heavy traffic.
The Model X allows continuous display of the rear and side cameras in the rectangular display, which gives much better rear view than any mirror. I'm hoping Lucid does something similar in the Gravity in a future software upgrade. Until then, I'm cancelling my order, because I just wouldn't enjoy driving the Gravity worrying about cars behind me that I couldn't easily monitor.

Isn't there a way to pop the 3rd row headrests down from the cockpit w/o having to actually fold the seatbacks down?

 

[borski]

Isn't there a way to pop the 3rd row headrests down from the cockpit w/o having to actually fold the seatbacks down?

Yes. There’s a button on the pilot panel.

 

[hwy17er]

Isn't there a way to pop the 3rd row headrests down from the cockpit w/o having to actually fold the seatbacks down?

Test drove a Gravity at Westfield Valley Fair in Santa Clara/San Jose this morning
I think it was an AG GGT, Tahoe interior, 21/22s 3row
Was shocked they just walked us out, handed us the key fob and said "have fun,..see you in an hour"

Very smooth ride; and quiet! Super quick off the line and blows everything away from 50-80mph getting on the fwy
Lowered it down, clicked on "sport" and floored it around the cloverleaf....oh HELL ya! Drives like my wife's Taycan but with more comfy seats and seemingly less glitchy UX

I learned too late after the test that one can indeed swipe down the lower screen to reveal a hidden menu and yes, drop those rear view blocking 3rd row headrests down from the cockpit. No noticeable view obstruction from the A-pillars as some have stated in these forums and barely noticed the late August Silicon Valley sun beating down on our heads so I guess the overhead glass tinting does the job ok.

Tried the Regen on "high" for a bit but preferred the "standard" as the more range conserving setting felt like someone was stomping on the brake pedal every time I lifted my Pb82-foot off the accelerator. This thing gets to where you wanna go almost immediately when you "encourage it" on the fwy but Service had obviously put a governor on the throttle that tapped out at 88mph so ppl were still passing me on 280.... I can see why many want the 22/23's w/ the PZ5s to thoroughly enjoy dry curvy roads but what about when it's dumping snow on the way to Tahoe? I tried to get info about a winter tire option coming down the pipe for the Gravity 20/21's I'd prefer to take to the snow but all the SA's at the mall were not aware of any pertinent info. Might take a range hit to put some M+S rated tires on it but can't see switching tires out for summer either.

What to do..what to do??

Wondering if the engineers on here like @TahoeMichael have anything to say about winter driving in a heavy SUV?

 

[borski]

Tried the Regen on "high" for a bit but preferred the "standard" as the more range conserving setting felt like someone was stomping on the brake pedal every time I lifted my Pb82-foot off the accelerator.

You'll eventually switch back. It takes some getting used to, but once you get used to it, high regen is definitely preferable for all situations other than snow or track. Just takes a bit of learning to feather the throttle.

 

[borski]

I tried to get info about a winter tire option coming down the pipe for the Gravity 20/21's I'd prefer to take to the snow but all the SA's at the mall were not aware of any pertinent info.

Winter tires for 21/22 exist right now if you don't mind non-OEM:
1. Vredestein Wintrac Pro+. (The Pro version also work, but are discontinued)
2. Pirelli Scorpion Winter

For the 20/21, those same Vredesteins also exist: Vredestein Wintrac Pro+

No winter tire options for the 22/23 to date. To be fair, there are precisely zero winter tire options for the 21s on the Air, so I wouldn't hold my breath for winter tire options for the 22/23 on Gravity.

 

[Bdr100]

Test drove a Gravity at Westfield Valley Fair in Santa Clara/San Jose this morning
I think it was an AG GGT, Tahoe interior, 21/22s 3row
Was shocked they just walked us out, handed us the key fob and said "have fun,..see you in an hour"

Very smooth ride; and quiet! Super quick off the line and blows everything away from 50-80mph getting on the fwy
Lowered it down, clicked on "sport" and floored it around the cloverleaf....oh HELL ya! Drives like my wife's Taycan but with more comfy seats and seemingly less glitchy UX

I learned too late after the test that one can indeed swipe down the lower screen to reveal a hidden menu and yes, drop those rear view blocking 3rd row headrests down from the cockpit. No noticeable view obstruction from the A-pillars as some have stated in these forums and barely noticed the late August Silicon Valley sun beating down on our heads so I guess the overhead glass tinting does the job ok.

Tried the Regen on "high" for a bit but preferred the "standard" as the more range conserving setting felt like someone was stomping on the brake pedal every time I lifted my Pb82-foot off the accelerator. This thing gets to where you wanna go almost immediately when you "encourage it" on the fwy but Service had obviously put a governor on the throttle that tapped out at 88mph so ppl were still passing me on 280.... I can see why many want the 22/23's w/ the PZ5s to thoroughly enjoy dry curvy roads but what about when it's dumping snow on the way to Tahoe? I tried to get info about a winter tire option coming down the pipe for the Gravity 20/21's I'd prefer to take to the snow but all the SA's at the mall were not aware of any pertinent info. Might take a range hit to put some M+S rated tires on it but can't see switching tires out for summer either.

What to do..what to do??

Wondering if the engineers on here like @TahoeMichael have anything to say about winter driving in a heavy SUV?

Interesting on probable speed governor for test drive. On my test drive (but with an onboard SA along) I easily hit 100 on a quick acceleration test. After quickly backing off to about 80, SA suggested I hit accelerator again to see how Gravity still had head snapping acceleration at 80.

 

[johnse]

On my test drive my SA prompted me to "see if there was a speed governor" . Didn't quite hit 100, though it still had plenty of oomph.

She said with their Air testers there are limiters.

I wonder if one of their conditions for unaccompanied test drives is to have the limiter?

 

[hwy17er]

Winter tires for 21/22 exist right now if you don't mind non-OEM:
1. Vredestein Wintrac Pro+. (The Pro version also work, but are discontinued)
2. Pirelli Scorpion Winter

For the 20/21, those same Vredesteins also exist: Vredestein Wintrac Pro+

No winter tire options for the 22/23 to date. To be fair, there are precisely zero winter tire options for the 21s on the Air, so I wouldn't hold my breath for winter tire options for the 22/23 on Gravity.

Thank you for this info!!
BTW...Do you or anyone on here know the brand/model/sizes of the A/T tires they had on the Gravity X (pronounced "Gravity Cross" apparently) at the Monterey Car week thing?