I Just Don't Get It . . .

I just reached Lucid Sales. They said the production date for the Dream Edition has been pushed into the second half of the year, but they couldn't/wouldn't say just how far.

I asked whether the delay would enable any features to be added to the car (such as power-operated doors or more rear toe room), but they were equivocal. They just kept repeating that the delay was to ensure that the quality of the delivered cars would be as high as possible and that this had been necessitated, in part, by Covid and delays in safety testing.

I also asked when cars would be turned over to auto journalists for testing and review but again got no firm answer.

I'm rather frustrated. Throughout a year of Covid challenges and factory construction, Lucid has repeatedly said that everything remained on schedule. Now -- on the day that a reverse merger is announced -- comes news of production delays. It's very odd that Lucid would announce production delays at such a time, unless they were hoping that the noise surrounding the SPAC merger would drown it out.
 
I think you'll have to operate under the assumption the car won't be available until later in the 2nd half of the year. For a startup like Lucid, the importance (especially at this price point) to not follow in the footsteps of Tesla, and release a subpar initial offering, can't be overemphasized. That's why I think it will now be later than sooner.
 
Dow Jones ran an article suggesting the same thing -- that the Dream Edition won't come out until late this year.

I really want to be able to trade the Model S I have against another EV before the warranty runs out in June. I'm now toying with canceling my Dream Edition reservation and ordering a Tesla Model X Plaid to tide me over until an EV sedan I like comes on the market.

I much, much prefer the Lucid interior to the Tesla's, but at least rear seat passengers would be more comfortable in the Model X than the Lucid with the larger battery pack.

Sigh . . . .
 
I agree with you on the interior of the Tesla. I thought it was tolerable but my wife disliked it enough that it was a deal breaker. The interior is what got me interested int he Lucid. That along with the efficiency.

If the Lucid Dream edition is late this year, then the Touring and Grand Touring will be into next year. I may have to take a close look at the Audi E-Tron GT that is due out in June. It should have a better interior than the Tesla but it will not compare to either Tesla or Lucid for efficiency.

Please let us know what you hear from your sales associate.
 
Lucid Sales confirmed the Dream Edition will be delayed into the 2nd half of the year. They wouldn't say how far, but it's interesting that they are saying "second half" instead of "third quarter". Dow Jones is surmising that customer cars won't see the start of production until late this year.

At least the Audi E-Tron GT is going to have the rear foot garages that I was hoping the Lucid Dream Edition would have.
 
So far Lucid has received a modest 7,500 reservations for its first model, an attractive and technologically advanced luxury sedan called the Lucid Air. It won’t start production until the second half of this year, rather than the spring, as previously communicated. But the thing that stood out in Lucid’s financial disclosures was the level of projected cash burn: It expects to consume almost $10

Read more at: https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadf...vide-an-unflattering-look-under-the-spac-hood
Copyright © BloombergQuint
 
The rest of the article that got cut off.

But the thing that stood out in Lucid’s financial disclosures was the level of projected cash burn: It expects to consume almost $10 billion of cash in four years. That far exceeds the $4.4 billion Lucid will receive from the SPAC and a concurrent PIPE financing — a type of equity funding open only to accredited investors.

Read more at: https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadf...vide-an-unflattering-look-under-the-spac-hood
Copyright © BloombergQuint
 
Traders often sell “sell on the news” after a long-rumored deal is consummated. The scope of Churchill’s decline was especially pronounced, signifying investors may also have been disappointed by the production delay or the terms of the deal. Lucid said it expects to need $600 million in bridge financing to bolster the company’s cash until the transaction with Churchill closes. The company expects negative free cash flow of around $10 billion through 2024, raising the question of how it will seek additional funds.
 
I have a reservation for both a Lucid Air Dream Edition and a Rivian R1S SUV and participate in the forums for both.

The Lucid Air is hitting the market ahead of Rivian's two launch vehicles. The Lucid Air has gotten extensive coverage from the mainstream automotive press (such as "Car & Driver" and "Motor Trend"), which have gone along on convoy range tests and observed race track time trials (where Lucid set several records), and were well represented at the September 9, 2020 reveal. EV internet channels with large followings, such as "E for Electric", "Transport Evolved", "InsideEVS", "Fully Charged", "Electroheads", etc. have each run multiple, lengthly, and highly-complimentary segments on the Air. Not a day goes by without a couple of YouTube videos on the Lucid Air going up (not counting the recent explosion of SPAC videos obsessing about a stock offering). Lucid has finally launched a national TV ad campaign.

Moreover, Lucid has recently won two prestigious awards: the Forbes Transportation Award for Best Product 2020 and the Chicago Athenaeum Good Design Award for 2020. Also, Lucid picked up the Overall Electric Vehicle of the Year award from the newly-established AutoTech Breakthrough Awards.

Rivian is also getting a lot of attention, but nothing exceeding Lucid in this regard, or even matching it in some cases. Yet the principle Rivian forum is hopping with activity while crickets are chirping on this one.

The 20 most active members on the Rivian forum have averaged 481 posts apiece. Two members have exceeded 1200 posts each. There were ten new posts yesterday on the forum (despite Super Bowl). There has not been a post on this forum since last Thursday. The post prior to that one was four days earlier.

What gives here?

Is the potential Lucid customer base really that much smaller than Rivian's?

Do age and economic demographics make potential Lucid buyers less internet-oriented?

Is a Lucid Air sedan that much less appealing than a Rivian pickup or SUV?

Is Lucid just not resonating with the EV-buying public?

Has having Saudi Arabia as a principal investor in Lucid instead of Amazon and Ford as principal investors in Rivian suppressed interest in Lucid?

I just don't get it.

previously my dream car was the Tesla Model S P100D, then I discovered the lucid air, which quickly supplanted this model S as my new dream car. I just joined the forum and this is my accident my first post, but I desperately would love to get the lucid air grand touring, but I'm not in a financial position to do so. My heart aches and weeps at this. I hope to be able to have a financial turnaround soon to then be able to treat myself to this amazing vehicle.
 
I have a Model S P90D. While I'm switching to a Lucid Air Dream Edition, the Tesla is a great car that made me an EV addict. My brother had a Model 3 which he finds to be the best car he ever owned. You will miss out on a bit of space, luxury, and efficiency if you don't get an Air, but if you can find a Tesla within your reach, you'll have a blast with it.

I've test driven a Model Y Performance and, frankly, I find it the most comfortable car in the Tesla lineup for front and rear seat passengers, as well as having the most well-thought-out interior storage.
 
The YouTube video of Peter Rawlinson test driving a Lucid Air that was put up two days ago has already gotten almost 130,000 views with a 38:1 like/dislike ratio. Several YouTube channels have also done their own analyses of and commentary on the video. This forum may be a bit moribund, but at least the car is getting some real attention.
 
Back
Top