My new 2025 GT. Finally something that could replace my unreplaceable 2013 Audi S8

It's mud season in Steamboat CO, snow is melting fast, the landscape stark, and the foliage recovering from a harsh winter. It's a similar contrast with the internal combustion engine vs where Lucid is and where it's going with unrivaled EV engineering achievements. Lucid can't use the phrase ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ (my daily driver has been an Audi since the late 70s), but it equally applies today given what Lucid is doing. The Air GT is finally replacing my unreplaceable 2013 Audi S8, which I purchased with a discount because I worked for Audi on their Google Earth project around that time. I've been wanting Audi to produce something to replace it, especially as an EV, but they couldn't make it happen. Now I think Lucid has finally done it.

Yes, the Air's level of refinement slightly trails Audi's cars, but given how new to the automotive space they are, it's impressive what they've done. Giving any higher priority to 'refinement' in the Air would compromise areas that are far more important and notable. Perhaps Aston Martin will the one to add that bit?

I was looking for the S8 pic!

Why the Air GT over the 4S & Plaid, assuming they were even considered. My guess here, luxury/space/exclusivity?
I've only test drove the Air GT (nice!) and 4S (simply in another league, and its $164k tag showed), but for some of us, the best scar is the paid off one.

The S8 has been in the shop the past 2 months. The ACC on Volkswagen group cars for a long period suffer from a widely know problem where a critical part on the camera control unit has a tendency to break or degrade it's solder joints, thus no cruise at all. The common fix is to de-solder the part and then resolder it, which requires highly specialized equipment. Some people have come up with hacks that appear to work, but are also difficult to carry out. The board itself was end of lifed a long time ago and isn't avialable. The Audi service center sent mine to a place that can do the resoldering a month ago - it's not back yet.

My love for the S8 was because I thought the tech was miles ahead of everyone else - and I switched to the Lucid for the same reason (I thought that their tech videos were really worth watching). I've been wanting to go electric for a long time, but as I said, until the 2025 Lucid showed up, everything else was a major step backwards. I have test driven a Tesla and have hated every aspect of the car there is. Also, a main driver for going electric was high efficiency with minimal impacts to the S8 experience. I don't agree that the 4S is another league either, especially as far as specs go - in terms of range and efficiency the Lucid GT (512 miles, 146 MPGe), is not quite twice that of the 4S (315 miles, 93 MPGe), but incredibly better.

Also, working with the Lucid team and test driving and buying the car was an amazing experience. They even let me pick up a loaner on a Saturday, drive it down to the famous Broadmoor hotel and stay for 2 days while my car was shipped last minute from Chicago to Denver so that we could pick it up when we got back. On top of that, so much more of the money that I paid for the car went to the actual car, instead of a dealership, a sales commission, and all of the many other middle men that take their cut.

I'm an engineer myself and even worked for Audi developing their google earth navigation system, as well as NASA and many defense contractors. It was not difficult to quickly see that Lucid's engineering teams can run circles around everyone else, and they don't have all of that bureaucracy and other crap getting in the way.

MarkMueller said:

View attachment 27550It's mud season in Steamboat CO, snow is melting fast, the landscape stark, and the foliage recovering from a harsh winter. It's a similar contrast with the internal combustion engine vs where Lucid is and where it's going with unrivaled EV engineering achievements. Lucid can't use the phrase ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ (my daily driver has been an Audi since the late 70s), but it equally applies today given what Lucid is doing. The Air GT is finally replacing my unreplaceable 2013 Audi S8, which I purchased with a discount because I worked for Audi on their Google Earth project around that time. I've been wanting Audi to produce something to replace it, especially as an EV, but they couldn't make it happen. Now I think Lucid has finally done it.

Yes, the Air's level of refinement slightly trails Audi's cars, but given how new to the automotive space they are, it's impressive what they've done. Giving any higher priority to 'refinement' in the Air would compromise areas that are far more important and notable. Perhaps Aston Martin will the one to add that bit?

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Sounds almost identical to @RM-S8 s case… enjoy the car!

MarkMueller said:

It's a similar contrast with the internal combustion engine vs where Lucid is and where it's going with unrivaled EV engineering achievements. Lucid can't use the phrase ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ (my daily driver has been an Audi since the late 70s), but it equally applies today given what Lucid is doing. The Air GT is finally replacing my unreplaceable 2013 Audi S8, which I purchased with a discount because I worked for Audi on their Google Earth project around that time. I've been wanting Audi to produce something to replace it, especially as an EV, but they couldn't make it happen. Now I think Lucid has finally done it.

Yes, the Air's level of refinement slightly trails Audi's cars, but given how new to the automotive space they are, it's impressive what they've done. Giving any higher priority to 'refinement' in the Air would compromise areas that are far more important and notable. Perhaps Aston Martin will the one to add that bit?

Click to expand...

Alter, dein Wagen ist der Hammer!

I kinda felt the same when I departed from my second Maserati Ghibli Trofeo GranSport about a month ago, but my AT did not disappoint. For years, there was a rivalry between Porsches and Maseratis in our household. My wife recently swapped her Cayenne 4S with a Panamera 4S refusing to switch to EVs. Me, I took a different route sadly because Maserati is in transition from its ICE to EV sport sedans and does not have a car for me at the time being. I testdrove several German EV sedans and Tesla S but none came close. I have to say it will be hard for me to go back to any other car after my Lucid experience, but shall see what Maserati may have to offer with its Quattroporte EV.