Gravity [Dream Edition] Reservations Tracker

[hmp10]

So DE version of Gravity is 1070 hp (242 more than 828)?

Yep, here are the specs that are released so far. Note the range (with the two larger wheel options) is "projected" instead of EPA-certified as on the Grand Touring, and no acceleration number is yet given. Lucid has subsequently given the projected DE range on the smallest wheels as 410 miles.

However, the color choices are limited to black, white, and Aurora Green outside and Yosemite and Tahoe inside, with only the Stealth appearance available. The 7 seat layout is mandatory. You have the same three wheel choices as on the Grand Touring, but all the rest of the Grand Touring options are included on the Dream, right down to the Towing Package.

 

[hmp10]

I've decided to switch my DE order from the largest 22/23" wheels to the mid-size 21/22" wheels and to mount Pirelli P Zero tires on them upon delivery.

Pirelli offers tires from their "ELECT" EV lineup in the correct size, load, and speed ratings, and with self-sealing technology. Also, at 274 watt hours/mile, the P Zeros score very well among max performance summer tires in terms of efficiency. (By contrast, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S scores 290 watt hours/mile.) I suspect the Pirellis will improve the range a bit over the Michelin all-seasons that come on those wheels. Although I can't find hard data on the Michelins to prove it, other Michelin tires tend to score pretty low on efficiency despite their other great characteristics.

Also, after a couple of days of digging, I've become impressed by the self-sealing technology that is beginning to show up from several tire makers. Here's a report on this technology from one of my favorite tire reviewers (the self-sealing demonstration is toward the beginning and the end of the video):

 

[msaunders9430]

I've decided to switch my DE order from the largest 22/23" wheels to the mid-size 21/22" wheels and to mount Pirelli P Zero tires on them upon delivery.

Pirelli offers tires from their "ELECT" EV lineup in the correct size, load, and speed ratings, and with self-sealing technology. Also, at 274 watt hours/mile, the P Zeros score very well among max performance summer tires in terms of efficiency. (By contrast, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S scores 290 watt hours/mile.) I suspect the Pirellis will improve the range a bit over the Michelin all-seasons that come on those wheels. Although I can't find hard data on the Michelins to prove it, other Michelin tires tend to score pretty low on efficiency despite their other great characteristics.

Also, after a couple of days of digging, I've become impressed by the self-sealing technology that is beginning to show up from several tire makers. Here's a report on this technology from one of my favorite tire reviewers (the self-sealing demonstration is toward the beginning and the end of the video):

The sealant used in the Pirelli tires is somewhat similar to the sealant I use in my tubeless mountain and roadbike tires.
No inner tube, just a sealant solution that coats the inside of the tire and seals punctures.

Two questions:

1. The Michelin Primacys have the foam core to reduce noise; Michelin Acoustic Technology. I saw the noise/comfort section of the video, but that was with an ICE car. Any concern about road noise from lack of foam core? Perhaps your Air tires don't have foam and you have no concerns?
2. The Pirellli site says "The Seal Inside™ tire deals immediately with the hole and, in most cases, its fast and effective action means that the driver won’t even realize that the tire has been punctured. Any concern about a nail or other object that caused the puncture remaining in the tire undetected for prolonged time due to no loss in tire pressure and you're not aware of the object's existence? Possible, eventual damage to tire?

Just wondering. I'm good with the Michelins.

 

[hmp10]

The Michelin Primacys have the foam core to reduce noise; Michelin Acoustic Technology. I saw the noise/comfort section of the video, but that was with an ICE car. Any concern about road noise from lack of foam core? Perhaps your Air tires don't have foam and you have no concerns?

Actually, the Pirelli for the front wheels has both the sealant and the acoustic foam. When I talked to the Tire Rack salesperson, he said they have not really found a noticeable difference in noise levels inside the car with any tires whether with or without the foam. This was borne out by the segment of the video I posted in which a microphone was placed in front of the tested tires, one with the foam and two without. There was really was not much difference outside or inside the car. Our Air with 21" Pirelli tries has the foam, and we still hear noticeable tire noise inside the car, although I can't compare it to running the same tires without the foam.

Also note that the kits that do emergency roadside repairs by blowing a sealant into a tire will not work on tires with acoustic foam if the puncture is underneath the foam.

The Pirellli site says "The Seal Inside™ tire deals immediately with the hole and, in most cases, its fast and effective action means that the driver won’t even realize that the tire has been punctured. Any concern about a nail or other object that caused the puncture remaining in the tire undetected for prolonged time due to no loss in tire pressure and you're not aware of the object's existence? Possible, eventual damage to tire?

The Pirelli website makes no mention of the need to repair or replace the tire after a puncture that seals. I found a puncture test run by an Italian automotive magazine in which they punctured the front right tire of an Alfa with both a 4mm nail and a threaded screw. They then drove the car for five and a half hours without any appreciable pressure loss (just 0.1 bar). They then left the nail and the screw in the tire for the next week, and over that time the pressure in the punctured tire dropped only about 4% (from 2.24 bar to 2.14 bar) . . . and this was with two punctures in the tire.

I check my tire pressures weekly with a precision gauge, so I'd have a pretty good chance of detecting a slow leak which would lead me to check for a cause. I'm a lot less worried about this than about the prospect of a flat on a road trip where it would be difficult to find a replacement tire. (Remember that most tire shops won't repair a puncture in a high-speed-rated tire.)

Interestingly, you only get this very slow leaking if the object stays in the puncture. If you remove it, the tire seals completely.

 

[hmp10]

@Joe, I have changed my DE order from the 22/23" wheels to the 21/22" wheels should you want to show that change on the tracker.

Thanks.

 

[hmp10]

This was borne out by the segment of the video I posted in which a microphone was placed in front of the tested tires, one with the foam and two without. There was really was not much difference outside or inside the car.

Correction. This sentence in my above post was incorrect. I went back to double check and noticed that the tire with the acoustic foam I was remembering was from another video. All three tires in the run flat / seal test had no acoustic foam.

 

[msaunders9430]

Actually, the Pirelli for the front wheels has both the sealant and the acoustic foam. When I talked to the Tire Rack salesperson, he said they have not really found a noticeable difference in noise levels inside the car with any tires whether with or without the foam. This was borne out by the segment of the video I posted in which a microphone was placed in front of the tested tires, one with the foam and two without. There was really was not much difference outside or inside the car. Our Air with 21" Pirelli tries has the foam, and we still hear noticeable tire noise inside the car, although I can't compare it to running the same tires without the foam.

Also note that the kits that do emergency roadside repairs by blowing a sealant into a tire will not work on tires with acoustic foam if the puncture is underneath the foam.




The Pirelli website makes no mention of the need to repair or replace the tire after a puncture that seals. I found a puncture test run by an Italian automotive magazine in which they punctured the front right tire of an Alfa with both a 4mm nail and a threaded screw. They then drove the car for five and a half hours without any appreciable pressure loss (just 0.1 bar). They then left the nail and the screw in the tire for the next week, and over that time the pressure in the punctured tire dropped only about 4% (from 2.24 bar to 2.14 bar) . . . and this was with two punctures in the tire.

I check my tire pressures weekly with a precision gauge, so I'd have a pretty good chance of detecting a slow leak which would lead me to check for a cause. I'm a lot less worried about this than about the prospect of a flat on a road trip where it would be difficult to find a replacement tire. (Remember that most tire shops won't repair a puncture in a high-speed-rated tire.)

Interestingly, you only get this very slow leaking if the object stays in the puncture. If you remove it, the tire seals completely.

Got it.

So, about your comment that "the kits that do emergency roadside repairs by blowing a sealant into a tire will not work on tires with acoustic foam if the puncture is underneath the foam". That would be the case with the Lucid Tire Repair Kit being used on the Michelin Primacys that will come on the Gravity?

The replacement canister for the kit is a liquid sealant.

 

[borski]

Got it.

So, about your comment that "the kits that do emergency roadside repairs by blowing a sealant into a tire will not work on tires with acoustic foam if the puncture is underneath the foam". That would be the case with the Lucid Tire Repair Kit being used on the Michelin Primacys that will come on the Gravity?

The replacement canister for the kit is a liquid sealant.

View attachment 27115

Yes. If the puncture is under the foam (shallow) it won’t work. But it usually does.

 

[hmp10]

Got it.

So, about your comment that "the kits that do emergency roadside repairs by blowing a sealant into a tire will not work on tires with acoustic foam if the puncture is underneath the foam". That would be the case with the Lucid Tire Repair Kit being used on the Michelin Primacys that will come on the Gravity?

The replacement canister for the kit is a liquid sealant.

View attachment 27115

I'm not sure. The Pirellis on the Air have foam blocks spaced a bit apart, whereas the Michelins have a continuous foam band. If a puncture occurred in a gap between the blocks, I suppose the spray sealant would work. (The spray sealant would also work for a small puncture on the sidewall that is not covered by the Pirelli sealant band. So even with the Pirelli self-sealers, it might be smart to carry the spray kit on a road trip away from home.)

But in any case, the self-sealing Pirellis seem to be a permanent seal that allows the tire to be driven at normal speeds for prolonged periods. Speed and driving duration are severely limited with the emergency spray kits.