Lucid’s Tri-Motor Retakes Tesla’s Plaid Record at Laguna Seca

[BlindPass]

Exactly. Musk has lured Rawlinson down a path where Musk is in his sweet spot and where the spotlight is now off the area in which Lucid can best differentiate itself from Tesla.

People who buy MB S63's and BMW M760's want to know their cars will be powerful, quick, and smooth. But in my experience they seldom make their choices of one over the other based on tiny differences in extreme performance, but rather on subjective factors such as design, features, and brand loyalty.

If Lucid insists on trying to beat Musk at the track, they could well end up a loser. If they can get back to focusing on premium luxury, they will go somewhere Musk doesn't seem inclined to follow.

I really think this has descended into something personal between two egos.

Had the interior comfort and reveal been better, would we be making these conclusions over some track tuning that most premium manufacturers will do?

Would Lucid do better if they had this type of drivetrain, but didn’t make low cost tweets about a prototype with some extra nice wheels being elite? Would they do better if they had settled for designing their technology to match a the current S, a car largely from 8 years ago?


I don’t think it’s a pissing match to have the foundation of the company as having a drivetrain that can compete with what most view as the best EV drivetrain. It’s likely a requirement. MB or BMW with inferior, yesteryear performance aren’t MB or BMW.

I think it’s largely cheap marketing. Should they have developed a tri-motor so soon? Maybe not, but if they have plans for chasing the larger SUV market, it’s likely needed.

Hopefully they can reverse some of the haste in getting something in production, and convert the premium EV they developed into having a true luxury trim option.

 

[hmp10]

Lucid made its case for its technology with its top-tier system efficiency, with its extraordinary range, with its phenomenally volumetric- and weight-efficient drive unit, and with its remarkable acceleration times. That is a very solid foundation on which to start building a reputation for superior comfort, quality, and luxury in a premium sedan.

For it to get into a back and forth with Tesla in the extreme reaches of blazing track performance so far beyond the needs or even the interests of most luxury car buyers puts them at risk of looking more like the choo-choo that tried but couldn't quite overtake Tesla. As Musk showed at Battery Day, he's going to make this a blood match. Will Lucid win? Maybe. Will Tesla win? Maybe. But Tesla's got a strong foothold in the EV market and new forays into cell technology that look truly groundbreaking upon which to fall back. What's Lucid got if it loses the track wars before it has even established its brand as an innovative, roomy, low-volume luxury car?

A year ago, Rawlinson talked repeatedly about not being a competitor to Tesla but a competitor to large German luxury sedans whose buyers were not being offered an equivalent EV choice. Where are the videos comparing the Lucid's performance and features to an S63, an Alpina B7, or an S8? Where are the reviews comparing Lucid's digital technology to those cars? Now almost every video and news story we see is about another Laguna race lap or Sonoma drag run with Tesla's latest move squarely in their sights . . . or about how Tesla's single control screen compares to Lucid's information and control array . . . or how Tesla's purported Full Self Driving compares to Lucid's Dream Drive.

And while this is going on, auto journalists keep posting videos commenting on how uncomfortable the rear seating position is in Lucid's premiere offering.

Tesla has beaten the fastest German sedans in acceleration, torque, and horsepower for some years now. There is not an S-Class or 7 Series buyer who could not just as easily have afforded a Tesla Model S Performance. Yet they did not choose Tesla. If they're going to choose Lucid, it won't be because the Lucid has better track times than Tesla. It will be because Lucid bested the German cars on other buying factors.

 

[WillChen]

Lucid made its case for its technology with its top-tier system efficiency, with its extraordinary range, with its phenomenally volumetric- and weight-efficient drive unit, and with its remarkable acceleration times. That is a very solid foundation on which to start building a reputation for superior comfort, quality, and luxury in a premium sedan.

For it to get into a back and forth with Tesla in the extreme reaches of blazing track performance so far beyond the needs or even the interests of most luxury car buyers puts them at risk of looking more like the choo-choo that tried but couldn't quite overtake Tesla. As Musk showed at Battery Day, he's going to make this a blood match. Will Lucid win? Maybe. Will Tesla win? Maybe. But Tesla's got a strong foothold in the EV market and new forays into cell technology that look truly groundbreaking upon which to fall back. What's Lucid got if it loses the track wars before it has even established its brand as an innovative, roomy, low-volume luxury car?

A year ago, Rawlinson talked repeatedly about not being a competitor to Tesla but a competitor to large German luxury sedans whose buyers were not being offered an equivalent EV choice. Where are the videos comparing the Lucid's performance and features to an S63, an Alpina 7, or an S8? Where are the reviews comparing Lucid's digital technology to those cars? Now almost every video and news story we see is about another Laguna race lap or Sonoma drag run with Tesla's latest move squarely in their sights . . . or about how Tesla's single control screen compares to Lucid's information and control array . . . or how Tesla's purported Full Self Driving compares to Lucid's Dream Drive.

And while this is going on, auto journalists keep posting videos commenting on how uncomfortable the rear seating position is in Lucid's premiere offering.

Tesla has beaten the fastest German sedans in acceleration, torque, and horsepower for some years now. There is not an S-Class or 7 Series buyer who could not just as easily have afforded a Tesla Model S Performance. Yet they did not choose Tesla. If they're going to choose Lucid, it won't be because the Lucid has better track times than Tesla. It will be because Lucid bested the German cars on other buying factors.

1000% agree!!

 

[Hawk]

Lucid made its case for its technology with its top-tier system efficiency, with its extraordinary range, with its phenomenally volumetric- and weight-efficient drive unit, and with its remarkable acceleration times. That is a very solid foundation on which to start building a reputation for superior comfort, quality, and luxury in a premium sedan.

For it to get into a back and forth with Tesla in the extreme reaches of blazing track performance so far beyond the needs or even the interests of most luxury car buyers puts them at risk of looking more like the choo-choo that tried but couldn't quite overtake Tesla. As Musk showed at Battery Day, he's going to make this a blood match. Will Lucid win? Maybe. Will Tesla win? Maybe. But Tesla's got a strong foothold in the EV market and new forays into cell technology that look truly groundbreaking upon which to fall back. What's Lucid got if it loses the track wars before it has even established its brand as an innovative, roomy, low-volume luxury car?

A year ago, Rawlinson talked repeatedly about not being a competitor to Tesla but a competitor to large German luxury sedans whose buyers were not being offered an equivalent EV choice. Where are the videos comparing the Lucid's performance and features to an S63, an Alpina 7, or an S8? Where are the reviews comparing Lucid's digital technology to those cars? Now almost every video and news story we see is about another Laguna race lap or Sonoma drag run with Tesla's latest move squarely in their sights . . . or about how Tesla's single control screen compares to Lucid's information and control array . . . or how Tesla's purported Full Self Driving compares to Lucid's Dream Drive.

And while this is going on, auto journalists keep posting videos commenting on how uncomfortable the rear seating position is in Lucid's premiere offering.

Tesla has beaten the fastest German sedans in acceleration, torque, and horsepower for some years now. There is not an S-Class or 7 Series buyer who could not just as easily have afforded a Tesla Model S Performance. Yet they did not choose Tesla. If they're going to choose Lucid, it won't be because the Lucid has better track times than Tesla. It will be because Lucid bested the German cars on other buying factors.

What he said!

 

[WillChen]

I just watched the Tri-Motor car run video on a big screen. The last few turns are really average, Lucid probably needs to hire better testers, the car’s acceleration is nice but the line and response are so... hmm, let’s say a Miata at those corners would probably look more fluid.

 

[hmp10]

One of the press articles said the Lucid that ran 1:31.3 was driven by a Lucid staffer, whereas Tesla attained its 1:30.3 with a professional race driver. This article speculated that a professional driver could have bettered the time.

 

[WillChen]

One of the press articles said the Lucid that ran 1:31.3 was driven by a Lucid staffer, whereas Tesla attained its 1:30.3 with a professional race driver. This article speculated that a professional driver could have bettered the time.

That makes sense and I would imagine Lucid could do better. The way the person drove it in some of the turns was really underwhelming. It’s kind of slow that even a regular sports car could probably do better times in the corners..

 

[hmp10]

This is an interesting perspective from a car guy who has been a passenger in Lucid cars at Laguna Seca. The Lucid discussion begins shortly after the 11:00 mark:

It will be such a damn, damn, damn shame if Lucid cannot do something to improve the rear legroom issue in the Dream Edition and the coming Performance version.

 

[WillChen]

Amazing. Where can I buy some Lucid motors stock again?

 

[hmp10]

Not for a while, I hope. With plenty of cash behind them for this launch phase of the business, Lucid would be wise not to take on the distractions of being a publicly-traded company.

The identity split that is emerging with Lucid is going to be interesting. It seems that some early deposit customers are getting turned off as it emerges that Lucid might not turn out to be a real competitor in terms of melding high-performance with passenger comfort that you get with large German sedans. The question is whether the speed junkies who like Tesla for its power and speed and who will accept compromises in comfort and luxury will turn to Lucid as an alternative, especially given the price gap.

If the Tesla Plaid and the Lucid Performance end up essentially neck-and-neck in the track wars, will customers pay a big premium for the Lucid -- a car with less production history behind it and a less-evolved charging infrastructure -- just to get a more luxurious but not significantly more comfortable interior? Remember that the Plaid is going to hit the market at around $140k. We don't know pricing of the Lucid tri-motor, but it's probably going to be even more than the Dream Edition, so we're probably talking a $30K gap at a minimum.