Why did you decide for the Lucid Air vs. Model S, EQS, i7, Taycan, ...?

[Volker.Berlin]

When I entered the EV space 10 years ago, the Tesla Model S basically was the only option worth considering as an ICE replacement for travel and family. As a result, the Model S was overloaded with expectation, it had to be everything to everybody. I still think that the Model S struck a great compromise -- lots of room and performance, great accessibility thanks to the hatch, with creature comfort, range and build quality ranging between acceptable and good -- but the criticism was manifold: It was too big, too small, to heavy, missing a tow bar, lacking certain luxury/convenience features and, for many, too expensive all at the same time.

Fast forward 10 years. Now there is a some choice in every EV market segment, and even in the niche electric / luxury / sedan segment, there are a number of impressive options. When I talk to people about why they chose their EV model, the most frequent answer I get is "it was the best option for my budget". Given that you are in the market for a Lucid Air, I assume that budget wasn't the primary driver of your decision. What exactly made you choose the Air over the obvious alternatives Model S (plaid), EQS, i7 or Taycan?

 

[Thinjake]

Honestly, it was the exclusivity. Tesla's are like Civics these days.... a dime a dozen. I wanted something different...something rare.

 

[MPawelek]

Service after the sale from Tesla is terrible. Too many stories about Teslas sitting for months waiting for parts and service. It appears that in many cases once they get your money you are on your own. I don’t have time for that…..

The Taycan just does not get the mileage I need here in Texas.

 

[hydbob]

Because variety is the spice of life! Had cars from the other 4, time for something new! Oh yea and also the range, big big deal.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

Range looks speed interior design storage space and resume of the people at the company. Figured I’d get an EQS based on the prototype but then the market version was so underwhelming and ugly and too blingy (how the hell can you be blingy and ugly? They figured it out!).

 

[noobzilla]

I was highly considering Model Y and almost pulled the trigger two years ago and considered it again in February until I saw the Air. My budget is tight but with the 7500 credit and just adding a bit more it makes more sense to get a Pure over a Y for various reasons but mainly the range. I checked Model 3 also but again just for a bit more Y makes more sense for me. After doing more research and finding out about actual effective range I realize I'd want minimum 400mi EPA so there's only EQS and Air left. No to EQS because AWD trim is too expensive and I'd rather get 500mi range with the AGT at that price.

I was also expecting price increases so for me it's now or never. A couple months later Lucid did announce the increase.

Still going back and forth between Pure and Touring. I really want the glass top but for $20k it's hard to swallow, but this could be my last car so might as well go all in and enjoy. Working extra hard so I can buy any Air. But have to be realistic with my finances so I will reserve one of each and would be super happy with a Pure.

Edit: fixed sentences, some random wrong words I missed. Still in bed lol

 

[RichMalden]

For me it was absolutely the range and no, I did not expect 520 miles. If I get 350-400 solid miles for a road trip I am thrilled and the Lucid can do it. If it were not for the range I would have stuck with an ICE vehicle.

I also love the balance between luxury and minimalistic, the performance, space, exterior looks (more the front than the back) and the uniqueness.

 

[CLTGT]

Never had an EV. Saw a commercial and liked the styling, power and range. I also liked that it wasn't a Tesla. Other than that, I would have either kept my BMW M5 or bought another M5 or M8. That being said, I might still go that route as Lucid seems to be really hard to get a car from right now and all these problems at the factory, enhanced inspections and re-inspections have me very worried about what the actual product I receive might be. I am very worried about the fit & finish as well as every other aspect of the hardware given the recent Lucid events. Note that I do not name software, lack of software updates or lack of announcements with respect to additional Service Centers as decision-impacting factors at this time for me.

 

[Demosthenes]

I considered an MS several years ago but I remember thinking that the promise of full autopilot and then never delivering on it kind of kept me from pulling the trigger. Then I was set on a taycan but thought it was a bit too flashy for me. I think it looks really great tbh, but didn’t want to face endless Porsche questions. I was briefly amazed by the EQS hyperscreen but then quickly became more and more repulsed by the ‘extra-ness’ of the entire interior and the bland exterior.

So then came along lucid. I was walking around in a mall and saw a huge lucid poster and liked the look of it so I did a bit of minor research and put in a reservation initially for a touring and then upgraded to a GT a few weeks later. I think what got me was:

1. I liked the look - to me, it was a good combination of extraordinary yet understated
2. I thought it had the best battery tech
3. It was new/rare/exclusive - this was a big draw for me

None of the other options checked all those boxes as much as did the lucid, in my opinion. I think as the car ages and the EV industry explodes over the next 10 years, I’ll probably still like the looks, the battery tech will no longer be the best, and the exclusivity will fade. But I do believe that I will still love this car based on its driving experience and will still recall fond memories of that feeling of ‘specialness’ being part of this early adopter group.

 

[Volker.Berlin]

(how the hell can you be blingy and ugly? They figured it out!).

That's what happens when a German company tries to design for the Chinese market...

 

[Demosthenes]

Never had an EV. Saw a commercial and liked the styling, power and range. I also liked that it wasn't a Tesla. Other than that, I would have either kept my BMW M5 or bought another M5 or M8. That being said, I might still go that route as Lucid seems to be really hard to get a car from right now and all these problems at the factory, enhanced inspections and re-inspections have me very worried about what the actual product I receive might be. I am very worried about the fit & finish as well as every other aspect of the hardware given the recent Lucid events. Note that I do not name software, lack of software updates or lack of announcements with respect to additional Service Centers as decision-impacting factors at this time for me.

Yeah you and @Neurio along with others who have been waiting for the greys, not a great experience so far.

For what it’s worth, I asked my detailer/car wrapper/ceramic coater to microanalyze every inch of my car while he works on it for fit and finish issues and report back to me since I’m not really a car guy and probably miss a ton of things. Honestly, I don’t really care about minor issues but just for my own curiosity and knowledge. He’s had it for about a week now and he tells me that the fit and finish are superb and much better than the teslas that he works on. He also asked me a strange question about whether lucid did a factory ceramic coat as standard - something about my car made him believe that to be the case. I said no, not that I’m aware of. This guy has been doing wraps and ceramics for over 15 years. Wonder why he’d ask that question

 

[hydbob]

Yeah you and @Neurio along with others who have been waiting for the greys, not a great experience so far.

For what it’s worth, I asked my detailer/car wrapper/ceramic coater to microanalyze every inch of my car while he works on it for fit and finish issues and report back to me since I’m not really a car guy and probably miss a ton of things. Honestly, I don’t really care about minor issues but just for my own curiosity and knowledge. He’s had it for about a week now and he tells me that the fit and finish are superb and much better than the teslas that he works on. He also asked me a strange question about whether lucid did a factory ceramic coat as standard - something about my car made him believe that to be the case. I said no, not that I’m aware of. This guy has been doing wraps and ceramics for over 15 years. Wonder why he’d ask that question

My detailer asked the same thing, but when I asked Lucid they said no. Apparently, Lucid's paint job is top notch.

 

[CLTGT]

Yep, they finally get to producing some grey cars only to have the vast majority of those produced so far stuck in some sort issue that caused them to have some hiccup from 4/27-5/3 and now have cars being inspected and re-inspected. It really makes you worry that this batch may not be the quality they might otherwise would have.

 

[hydbob]

Yep, they finally get to producing some grey cars only to have the vast majority of those produced so far stuck in some sort issue that caused them to have some hiccup from 4/27-5/3 and now have cars being inspected and re-inspected. It really makes you worry that this batch may not be the quality they might otherwise would have.

The other way to look at it is that they caught the issue and that speaks to the build quality QC...either way, you jinxed yourself when you said there would be another delay after getting your VIN

 

[SaratogaLefty]

I thought I had a deal on a 2021 Porsche Taycan 4S but at the last minute the Dealer screwed me on the price, so I walked. I really liked the looks of the Taycan and the four wheel steering and handling were great! But the rear seat headroom (sedan) was very low and I don't like station wagons so the Turismo was not considered. Thank goodness I walked cause that's how I wound up putting my deposit down on the Lucid. I've owned four Porsches, three Mercedes, a Jaguar, a BMW, a Landrover, and a lot of Lexus's. My last car was a custom ordered 2018 Panamera with full leather and a lot of other extras. The main problem I had with it was the seats were very stiff and uncomfortable for long drives (I have a bad back). The Mercedes EQS was never really a consideration because it is just too ugly externally and the interior looks like a bordello out of a cheap movie. The Lucid has everything I want; great seat comfort; great looks inside and out; exclusivity; fantastic ride. Range is less important for me than charging speed because after four hours driving I need to stop and take a break and even at a constant 80 mph four hours still leaves enough range to not get anxious about finding a charging station.

 

[oldnick25]

I started my search in September of 2021. A lot has changed already in the past 9 months. I did in fact know about Lucid at the time, and really liked what I saw. Lucid hadn't even produced a car yet though. I was new to EVs, and figured Tesla was the leader in the EV market. I wanted a fast electric car. In fact, I almost pulled the trigger on a Model S, but ultimately the yoke was a deal breaker for me. The buttons for turn-signals was a turnoff. Tesla didn't offer test drives of their Model S at the time, I don't know if that's still the case. I was also unable to find anyone who had one to test drive. I did get to test drive the Model 3 Performance. There were a few things that turned me off from the Model 3. I was not impressed with the interior. The car didn't feel natural to me, and forced me to take my eyes off the road to perform simple tasks. Such as swiping on the left-hand side of the center screen to shift "gears" from drive to reverse. The speed limit is displayed on the in the upper-left corner of the center screen forced my eyes off the road longer than I'm comfortable with. Of course these are things I'd probably get accustomed to. That being said, I did like the car. Just not enough to buy it.
Visited the Lucid store in Oak Brook, IL, and decided to put down a fully refundable deposit, and continue my search.
To shorten it up, the Air is able to provide the near top if not the top in terms of speed, range, comfort, and a sound system. Combine that with Lucid's innovation, technology, staff, and funding, I felt the Lucid Air had the best offering, and promise as a startup. I'm okay with being an early adopter, and being patient while the kinks get worked out. I've been able to follow this forum before I had to confirm my order, and ya'll have provided so much information that I'm comfortable with the existing issues and annoyances that have been expressed thus far.
Honestly, while I appreciate what Elon has done for the EV/auto market, I don't like him as an individual. I'm quite thankful I didn't pull the trigger on a Tesla.

 

[Tesla2.0]

I was actually in the market between Model-X, Range Rover and Navigator.
I rented all 3 to test out for my vacation trips last year then I decided Model-X is the one to go. Then there is this range anxiety issue (230 mile in rental) held me back to wait a little more improvement from Tesla. So I held off on SUV thought and started shopping sedan between S-Class and Model-S, then my wife introduced me about Lucid Air and I got hooked by that headlight. I initially ordered Touring online, and the more I research about it the more I like it, so I attempted for DE, and it was sold out and had to settle with GT.

Design Look
(Curve, soft look, color coordination and more curves)

Exclusivity
(Tesla starts looking like Honda in my area, MB looks like Rolex watch in every mid age Asian men)

Efficiency
(Range, charging speed, engine miniaturization, coefficient drag)

Luxurious interiors
(glass dome, velvet, leather, wood, matt chrome, wool…)

Lucid converted me to be EV believer, not Tesla. So I’m going for EV out from this point on.

 

[hmp10]

We didn't choose between the Lucid and the Model S. We bought both, trading a 2015 Model S P90D for a Model S Plaid last August, and taking delivery of our Air Dream Performance at the end of December. (I find the Lucid Air a better car across the board. My partner likes the Air a lot but still has a soft spot for the Model S . . . even professing to like the yoke, which I persist in detesting.)

After seeing the gorgeous Mercedes Vision Concept and assuming it would have stellar performance, I thought the EQS might well be our next EV sedan. But then that hideous lump with a casino/whorehouse interior and inept packaging (no frunk and poor rear headroom) was unveiled, and I lost all interest.

I never considered the Taycan, as the rear seat was too cramped for our purposes, and I have never liked Porsche's options pricing practices.

 

[HC_79]

After having an e-Tron for the past 3 years I knew I would never go back to an ICE vehicle but had so many issues with the software it just left a sour taste in my mouth. VW Group as a whole has been plagued with software issues for years and I bought into the hype that they were taking it seriously and were going to fix it. After seeing that VW couldn't even get plug and charge working on the launch of the ID4 with EA it told me they have no clue what they're doing when it comes to software development and given EV's rely more on software than hardware I came to the realization that anything from VW Group is off the table. After seeing many reviews I just felt that not only VW but ICE manufacturers as a whole just aren't good when it comes to software and getting updates done fast.

So it left me with Tesla, Lucid or Rivian. Like others, I wanted something different and in CA Tesla's are everywhere plus time and time again I would hear stories on Tesla's quality and after sales service not being the best. With Rivian, i'm not a truck person and the SUV just doesn't do it for me which left me with the Lucid. The Lucid is a nice looking car and whilst it comes with software issues I can see they're actively trying to fix things with OTA updates. I don't mind bugs as long as they're fixed and Lucid has released more OTA updates in the 7 months the car has been out than Audi ever gave me over 3 years. I also wanted an efficient EV and Lucid seems to be the only one that has matched \ surpassed Tesla on this. Traditional ICE makers can't make an efficient EV to save themselves and it just seems the answer for them is to "add more battery". My e-Tron had a 95Kw battery and EPA rated at 204 and I believe the newer Audi's are sitting between 250 and 300 so Lucid should be commended for what they've been able to deliver for such a new company.

My biggest concern with Lucid is survival. The production issues are becoming a bit of a joke to a point that as soon as they get momentum they seem to stop again due to some QA issue. Lucid's management aren't new to the automotive industry and should be better than this. When the Lucid was announced it was leagues ahead of traditional ICE makers but with delays it's allowed them to catch up. Whilst they may not be making efficient EV's they've got brand recognition which Lucid doesn't so the longer these delays continue the more of an uphill battle the will face.

I love what Lucid has brought to the table in terms of efficiency and tech. I just hope I haven't bet on the wrong horse because management can't get its act together.

 

[joec]

I'm currently driving a Model 3 on a lease that's up January of next year. It was my first EV, so I didn't want to commit to a long-term relationship. Glad I didn't.

At the end of last year, having driven the Tesla for just under 2 years, I was left with two impressions: I would never buy an ICE again, and I wouldn't get a Tesla again, unless I had to.

Tesla has done great things, but now they are the FSD company. They care about nothing else. Their CEO is constantly finding new ways of distracting himself, while their cars stagnate or actively get worse (yolk steering wheel) in every way. They are in for a rude awakening in the next 5-10 years when some of these other startups eat their lunch, as far as I'm concerned.

I hate the dealership model, but I did consider a Taycan. Always had great admiration for Porsche, though I've never had one. I may have even considered an ID.3 R from VW, if they offered it in the US. Sure would have saved me a lot of money. (When I was getting the Tesla, the runner up car on my list was a Golf GTI.)

Of all the available options, only the Porsche Taycan 4 CT appealed to me. But it seemed to have a smaller interior than my Model 3. Smaller frunk. Low head clearance, even on the CT. And the range wasn't too impressive, either. (I know they tend to beat the EPA, but having a similar range in the Model 3 taught me that with an EV, you should buy as much range as you can afford. And the Porsche is pricey for the range you get.)

I hate SUVs. I have no use for a truck. That left out Rivian and just about all the other big name manufacturers. Polestar doesn't have the range, and I find their design uninspiring.

As I've noted elsewhere in these forums, I find the EQS hideous, inside and out.

Then I stumbled upon Lucid. A company that copied everything good about Tesla and left out all the baggage. More interior room. More luxurious, without being gaudy. More range. Better efficiency. Better looking, to my eyes, even than the Model S. No stupid ego-fueled feud with Apple, so CarPlay (eventually). No dealerships. It's as if someone designed a car company just for me.

The Air is actually bigger than I normally like to drive, but the "space concept" gave me the impression it only looked bigger because of all that interior space. When I visited Millbrae and actually saw the car, I was convinced of that truth. Yes, it's bigger than my Model 3, but not by that much, given how much bigger it feels inside.

The only issue is timing. Given I wanted a Touring, and I placed my res early this Feb, would I get the car by the end of January? Who knows? I have the option to extend my Tesla lease by a few months, so if it comes down to that, so be it. As long as I get it somewhere in the first quarter of 2023, I'll be happy. If it comes sooner, all the better.