First impression 10 days in

[jfk]

I took delivery of my silver Grand Touring 19" about 10 days ago and wanted to share some initial thoughts (many of which are probably no surprise to existing owners here):

• First of all, the car is nothing short of amazing. The luxurious agility, the cargo space and the range are second to none. I'd recommend it to anyone who can afford it.
• Unfortunately the car came with out of date software, even though it claimed it was up to date. I wasted a bunch of time trying to figure out why CarPlay wasn't working, until realizing 2.0.55 was not actually the latest version. After calling customer care and waiting a day, a newer update was finally offered.
• Related, updates seem to apply serially, which meant I had to update the car like 5 times to actually be current, each waiting 40 minutes, with the cooling system blowing at 100% at times and the rear lights illuminated (don't update at a campground ).
• The Santa Cruz interior is gorgeous, but stains quickly and the bright stitching on the dashboard causes reflections in the windshield.
• The blind spot camera is only on as long as the turn signal is on. I usually tap the turn signal to get it to blink 3 times, and then change lanes, and so while changing lanes the blind spot camera is already off again — making it less useful than it could be.
• There's a bit of scratching in the gas pedal when coming to a halt, and when driving again. Maybe this is related to Hold, or maybe mine is defective.
• The flaps in front of the front tires are a bit flimsy. One was hanging down after a few days already, and I was able to temporarily put it back in place after I found one of the plastic bolts in my driveway.

Other than that my experience has been perfect so far! Thanks for all the discussion here that helped me take the plunge .

 

[BobFM]

Congrats and enjoy your GT!

 

[groundhog]

If you picked up at a service center the car should have been up to date.
Also Scotchgard the carpets completely.
Buy floor mats!

 

[Genghis]

Congrats on the ownership and enjoy. I love my car (Cosmos Silver GT 21"), and I believe it is the ultimate driving machine... and this is someone coming from a BMW M4 that I still love and drive.

Some advice in addition to above, keep notes of any issues (minor or big) and share that with the service team members if and when you do take it to service. My experience is that they will do everything to address all of them to their best ability so your car and experience is as close to perfect as it can be.

 

[hmp10]

• The flaps in front of the front tires are a bit flimsy. One was hanging down after a few days already, and I was able to temporarily put it back in place after I found one of the plastic bolts in my driveway.

Congratulations on your new car. I think you'll soon find all other cars a tad disappointing.

As for those airfoils, they can be an issue. They are actually made of a thick, sturdy rubbery material but are very flexible, probably to handle minor impacts. However, the are very low to the ground (only 3 1/8" ground clearance), and you really have to remember they are there when parking the car. I lost one pair and another singleton while I was getting used to gauging the distance to concrete parking stops using the birds-eye-view camera. I ended up just buying a spare pair (they are asymmetric) to keep in my garage, as they are easy to replace. Maybe that removed the jinx, as I've not torn one off since.

 

[hydbob]

I took delivery of my silver Grand Touring 19" about 10 days ago and wanted to share some initial thoughts (many of which are probably no surprise to existing owners here):

• First of all, the car is nothing short of amazing. The luxurious agility, the cargo space and the range are second to none. I'd recommend it to anyone who can afford it.
• Unfortunately the car came with out of date software, even though it claimed it was up to date. I wasted a bunch of time trying to figure out why CarPlay wasn't working, until realizing 2.0.55 was not actually the latest version. After calling customer care and waiting
• The blind spot camera is only on as long as the turn signal is on. I usually tap the turn signal to get it to blink 3 times, and then change lanes, and so while changing lanes the blind spot camera is already off again — making it less useful than it could be.

Other than that my experience has been perfect so far! Thanks for all the discussion here that helped me take the plunge .

Push your turn signal all the way down or up and it will stay on as well as the camera u til you rotate your wheel roughly 90 degrees in either direction. There are 2 levels to the turn signals. A 3 blink push and a stay on push.

 

[jfk]

Push your turn signal all the way down or up and it will stay on as well as the camera u til you rotate your wheel roughly 90 degrees in either direction. There are 2 levels to the turn signals. A 3 blink push and a stay on push.

Yep, I don’t usually use it for changing lanes though because you’d have to manually turn it off again since you’re not turning enough. Plus it’s surprisingly stiff on mine, maybe because it’s new.

 

[hmp10]

Yep, I don’t usually use it for changing lanes though because you’d have to manually turn it off again since you’re not turning enough. Plus it’s surprisingly stiff on mine, maybe because it’s new.

The lane-change feature does not require you to turn the signal off manually. You just press the stalk up or down short of the "catch" position, and the signal well self-cancel after a lane change.

Judging by the number of people in Florida who do not signal lane changes -- and who frequently jump lanes without warning and cause accidents -- it seems many people do not understand how lange-change signals work on modern cars.

In Florida, Section 316.155 of the traffic code requires that lane changes be signaled at least 100 feet before commencement of the lane change. The California Vehicle Code Section 22107 likewise requires that a lane change be signaled. Similar laws are on the books of almost all states.

It's true that the Lucid turn signal stalk has an abnormally stiff spring, though. It has not lost any tension in the 17 months I've been driving an Air. I'm not sure why they chose such a stiff spring unless it was to keep you from accidentally activating the turn signal when pressing the windshield wiper swipe button at the end of the stalk. If so, however, that creates the opposite problem, as many Lucid drivers (myself included) sometimes activate the wiper swipe when having to put so much pressure on the stalk to signal a turn -- on top of which the stalk requires an abnormally long stretch to reach it.

 

[Amster]

If you picked up at a service center the car should have been up to date.
Also Scotchgard the carpets completely.
Buy floor mats!

Not necessarily. Mine was three updates behind when I picked it up.

 

[digiboxer]

A

The lane-change feature does not require you to turn the signal off manually. You just press the stalk up or down short of the "catch" position, and the signal well self-cancel after a lane change.

Judging by the number of people in Florida who do not signal lane changes -- and who frequently jump lanes without warning and cause accidents -- it seems many people do not understand how lange-change signals work on modern cars.

In Florida, Section 316.155 of the traffic code requires that lane changes be signaled at least 100 feet before commencement of the lane change. The California Vehicle Code Section 22107 likewise requires that a lane change be signaled. Similar laws are on the books of almost all states.

It's true that the Lucid turn signal stalk has an abnormally stiff spring, though. It has not lost any tension in the 17 months I've been driving an Air. I'm not sure why they chose such a stiff spring unless it was to keep you from accidentally activating the turn signal when pressing the windshield wiper swipe button at the end of the stalk. If so, however, that creates the opposite problem, as many Lucid drivers (myself included) sometimes activate the wiper swipe when having to put so much pressure on the stalk to signal a turn -- on top of which the stalk requires an abnormally long stretch to reach it.

Agreed--3 months in and I trigger the wipers inadvertently and regularly. Otherwise, I don't mind the stiffness of the tactile controls, including the lane-keep thing that others don't like. Ever since childhood firm warnings have impressed me more that weak ones

 

[Steveinarizona]

The lane-change feature does not require you to turn the signal off manually. You just press the stalk up or down short of the "catch" position, and the signal well self-cancel after a lane change.

Judging by the number of people in Florida who do not signal lane changes -- and who frequently jump lanes without warning and cause accidents -- it seems many people do not understand how lange-change signals work on modern cars.

In Florida, Section 316.155 of the traffic code requires that lane changes be signaled at least 100 feet before commencement of the lane change. The California Vehicle Code Section 22107 likewise requires that a lane change be signaled. Similar laws are on the books of almost all states.

It's true that the Lucid turn signal stalk has an abnormally stiff spring, though. It has not lost any tension in the 17 months I've been driving an Air. I'm not sure why they chose such a stiff spring unless it was to keep you from accidentally activating the turn signal when pressing the windshield wiper swipe button at the end of the stalk. If so, however, that creates the opposite problem, as many Lucid drivers (myself included) sometimes activate the wiper swipe when having to put so much pressure on the stalk to signal a turn -- on top of which the stalk requires an abnormally long stretch to reach it.

Arizona also::

28-754. Turning movements and required signals

A. A person shall not turn a vehicle at an intersection unless the vehicle is in proper position on the roadway as required in section 28-751, or turn a vehicle to enter a private road or driveway or otherwise turn a vehicle from a direct course or move right or left on a roadway unless and until the movement can be made with reasonable safety. A person shall not so turn any vehicle without giving an appropriate signal in the manner provided by this article in the event any other traffic may be affected by the movement.

B. A signal of intention to turn right or left when required shall be given continuously during not less than the last one hundred feet traveled by the vehicle before turning.

C. A person shall not stop or suddenly decrease the speed of a vehicle without first giving an appropriate signal in the manner provided by this article to the driver of any vehicle immediately to the rear when there is opportunity to give the signal.

B and C are routinely ignored in the Grand Canyon State. Most drivers either ignore the turn signals all together or wait until they are in the turn to start signaling. I attribute this to the low level of education in this country as they clearly cannot understand the basic purpose of signaling.

 

[jfk]

You just press the stalk up or down short of the "catch" position, and the signal well self-cancel after a lane change.

On mine this only blinks exactly three times, no matter if the lane change is done or not — which means the blind spot camera turns off before I start changing lanes (since I adhere to the 100ft rule you're all citing). My point was that the camera should ideally stay on longer, so you can react to someone pulling over during the lane change.

And if I'm fully pushing it up or down I have to manually cancel on a lane change (yes, it self-cancels on a turn, but not a lane change). How do I get the behavior you describe?

 

[Adnillien]

On mine this only blinks exactly three times, no matter if the lane change is done or not — which means the blind spot camera turns off before I start changing lanes (since I adhere to the 100ft rule you're all citing). My point was that the camera should ideally stay on longer, so you can react to someone pulling over during the lane change.

And if I'm fully pushing it up or down I have to manually cancel on a lane change (yes, it self-cancels on a turn, but not a lane change). How do I get the behavior you describe?

I agree, I would like the option to have the turn signals and cameras stay on longer than 3 blinks. Maybe 5 or 7 blinks.

 

[hydbob]

On mine this only blinks exactly three times, no matter if the lane change is done or not — which means the blind spot camera turns off before I start changing lanes (since I adhere to the 100ft rule you're all citing). My point was that the camera should ideally stay on longer, so you can react to someone pulling over during the lane change.

And if I'm fully pushing it up or down I have to manually cancel on a lane change (yes, it self-cancels on a turn, but not a lane change). How do I get the behavior you describe?

I just cancel the signal by pushing the stalk in the opposite direction. I almost never use the 3 blink and am used to full press and self cancel.

 

[joec]

I just cancel the signal by pushing the stalk in the opposite direction. I almost never use the 3 blink and am used to full press and self cancel.

Same. I get that the 3-blink is convenient. However, I don’t feel it gives other drivers adequate warning of my actions. I try to give at least 3 blinks before I even START moving into the next lane. Thus, the full signal on and manual flipping it off after I am completely into the next lane is the only way to go for now.

Eventually, I imagine Lucid will copy Tesla’s automatic signal off feature.

 

[OldAg]

I routinely use the full signal, not the 3 blink mode. After a couple of minutes my wife reminds me to cancel it.

 

[Steveinarizona]

I routinely use the full signal, not the 3 blink mode. After a couple of minutes my wife reminds me to cancel it.

 

[richardshirley1@]

Re the bright stitching causing an annoying reflection in the windshield, I noticed this when we rented a GT a few months ago.

I had a similar situation in another car and I resolved it by getting a fine point marker pen and just making the bright stitching dark. I know this is crazy for a $150K car but it worked and never caused any staining, etc. Best if you can get a marker pen that matches the background color.

 

[MHDave]

I just cancel the signal by pushing the stalk in the opposite direction. I almost never use the 3 blink and am used to full press and self cancel.

Third option ... hold slight pressure on the turn signal stalk while you're changing lanes, then release. Camera stays on and blinkers stay on while you're doing this. By "slight pressure" I mean that you do the same thing you'd do to get the three blinks, but don't release until you're ready for that blinker and camera to go off.
Yep, I know, you (speaking broadly, not to @hydbob) don't want to do that because of this and that and it is an expensive car and you shouldn't have to, but it is an alternative.

 

[Scubahuey]

If you picked up at a service center the car should have been up to date.
Also Scotchgard the carpets completely.
Buy floor mats!

I second this “Buy floor mats!”. I highly recommend https://custoarmor.com. It is awesome on my Touring with Santa Cruz interior (beige floor/original floor mats).