Model S Plaid vs Vs Air Touring

[momo3605]

Just finished filming a Plaid vs my Lucid Air Touring comparo on some CA twisty backroads! Will post up video once it’s done.

And don’t worry, we mostly discounted the obvious power gap between the two and focused more on suspension, steering, and handling characteristics.

 

[xponents]

Just finished filming a Plaid vs my Lucid Air Touring comparo on some CA twisty backroads! Will post up video once it’s done. Just a teaser for now!

And don’t worry, we mostly discounted the obvious power gap between the two and focused more on suspension, steering, and handling characteristics.

View attachment 16868

Very much looking forward to it! How are you liking the car so far?

Also your neighbor's garage is cool AF. Is that a bel air?

 

[lucidtouringman]

I did a similar comparison before making my purchase decision. I test drove the Tesla and the lucid on the same day and it was hands down, not a contest so curious to see what you are assessment was

 

[Daniel2022AT]

I did a similar comparison before making my purchase decision. I test drove the Tesla and the lucid on the same day and it was hands down, not a contest so curious to see what you are assessment was

Do you have any notes on your comparison you can share as well?

 

[momo3605]

Very much looking forward to it! How are you liking the car so far?

Also your neighbor's garage is cool AF. Is that a bel air?

Haha no, it’s Cupertino in Northern CA, home of Apple

 

[lucidtouringman]

Do you have any notes on your comparison you can share as well?

They're 100% mental notes.. but let me share this.. first me and my wife and 6yr old son test drove the Lucid Touring.. then we walked over to Tesla Model S .. as soon as my wife got into the Tesla.. she let out a "No".. we looked at each other... and she said.. ...that it felt like a downgrade... pay more for the.. Lucid and that was that. We took the test drive of the Model S anyway and I felt that the power on the Model S came on in an unrefined brute power way.. if that makes sense.. and we didn't feel good with all that oncoming rough power.. doing the same thing in the Lucid, felt more refined and linear... those small differences of Lucid engineering everything in house.. all came together for a more refined driving experience..

Also, the screen layouts... Tesla just feels lazy... and last point.. every freaking one has a Tesla...We paid a bit extra for the Touring.. but I so do not think of that while driving it... loved all things Lucid so far... and I'm a fan... the Tesla seems so basic compared to the Lucid.. no refined interiors with the same taste and class...imho..and I wanted a car with a second mover advantage and it shows... daily! Hope this helps...

 

[xponents]

Haha no, it’s Cupertino in Northern CA, home of Apple

Lol wasn't talking about the neighborhood, the Chevy Bel Air I meant! Sorry! And have you met @borski yet?

 

[xponents]

6yr old son test drove the Lucid touring

I wish.... lol

then we walked over to Tesla Model S .. as soon as my wife got into the Tesla.. she let out a "No".. we looked at each other... and she said.. this feels like a downgrade... pay more for the Lucid and that was that. We took the test drove of the Model S anyway and I felt that the power on the Model S came on in a. Unrefined brute power way.. if that makes sense.. and we didn't feel good with all that oncoming power.. doing the same thing in the Lucid, felt more refined and linear... those small differences of Lucid engineering everything in house.. all came together for a more refined driving experience.. Also, the screen layouts... Tesla just feels lazy... and last point.. every freaking one has a Tesla...We paid a bit extra for the Touring.. but I so do not think of that while driving it... loved all things Lucid so far... and I'm a fan... the Tesla seems so basic compared to the Lucid.. and I wanted a car with a second mover advantage and it shows... daily! Hope this helps...

Hilarious as it mirrors my experience exactly. We test drove the Lucid first, sampling a touring and a pure. Then, we went into a model s. I was actually trying to stay very positive about it, but as I sat in the back seat it was hilariously sad how small it was. We were actually shocked at it, as even I expected it to be better. I wanted us to just leave, but my parents wanted us to sample the tragic mess that it would end up being.

My parents don't really care about power delivery and the speed of it, but we appreciated the lucid's suspension and noise more(despite tesla limiting us to a 30 mph drive vs 70 in the lucid). The model s height adjustment was nice I'll admit, but the benefits of the Lucid are far worth it.

Then the failures of both the cars come. The Lucid was flawless, only being terrible at the auto parking demonstration.

The model s was on another level.. first the screen froze and turned black, leaving us unable to see anything. We decided to go back to talk to tesla reps(this is on a small 30 mph loop, so that's easy). We then sat in the lobby and saw our test drive vehicle being towed into the service center. By then, we had all had enough of that sh*tty car and told the tesla employees we were leaving.

On the subject of employees and the actual service center, Lucid's employees were far friendlier and helped with other issues/getting to know the car. In tesla we just felt like we were the next person on the list. As for the studios, Lucid's was nicer and we got to sit on a sofa. I remember being in awe of a 2016 Tesla showroom and aspiring for a Model X back then(being young, i even asked the employee if she "knew anything" about the "upcoming" 25k tesla model 2. she laughed in a friendly way and said no, but you might want a model 3 as your first car!). Now, they don't have that apple/porsche store feel like Lucid does and the same goes for the employees which arent as friendly. The current tesla showroom has outdated posters and a waiting room that my local kia dealership beats.

 

[borski]

Haha no, it’s Cupertino in Northern CA, home of Apple

Wait, you're in Cupertino? Let's grab a coffee or beer!

 

[xponents]

Wait, you're in Cupertino? Let's grab a coffee or beer!

My thoughts exactly!

 

[Daniel2022AT]

They're 100% mental notes.. but let me share this.. first me and my wife and 6yr old son test drove the Lucid Touring.. then we walked over to Tesla Model S .. as soon as my wife got into the Tesla.. she let out a "No".. we looked at each other... and she said.. ...that it felt like a downgrade... pay more for the.. Lucid and that was that. We took the test drive of the Model S anyway and I felt that the power on the Model S came on in an unrefined brute power way.. if that makes sense.. and we didn't feel good with all that oncoming rough power.. doing the same thing in the Lucid, felt more refined and linear... those small differences of Lucid engineering everything in house.. all came together for a more refined driving experience..

Also, the screen layouts... Tesla just feels lazy... and last point.. every freaking one has a Tesla...We paid a bit extra for the Touring.. but I so do not think of that while driving it... loved all things Lucid so far... and I'm a fan... the Tesla seems so basic compared to the Lucid.. no refined interiors with the same taste and class...imho..and I wanted a car with a second mover advantage and it shows... daily! Hope this helps...

Thank you for the mental notes. I really appreciate it. I was very very close to purchasing the S but then it became available only with the yoke. Silly. Then I checked back 2 years later and the price went from $75k to $105k. Sillier. It seems like 25% of my neighborhood is either the S, 3, or Y. It is so ubiquitous. Not bad just boring. Then one day I spotted a Rivian just down the street. So I see there are other choices. Then a buddy of mine who retired to PHX told me about Lucid in 2022. The rest is history as they say. There are I think 3 Lucid’s close by in my suburban Milwaukee region. I’m pushing a high profile friend towards the Sapphire. Cheers.

 

[momo3605]

Ok super late, editing took a while and file sizes were gigantic...but here we go!

(2) Owner Comparison: 2023 Tesla Model S Plaid vs 2023 Lucid Air Touring - YouTube
@Bobby @borski can you guys move the link into the OP?

 

[Haggy]

My experience isn't quite the same since my Model S is older and my Lucid's a GT, and for people whose top concern is 0-60, there's nothing wrong with that if it's what you are into. But if it's not your top concern, the GT will be more than enough to blow you away. Tesla has made a lot of software improvements over the years, but in terms of overall design, making it quicker wasn't enough of a draw for me to want to upgrade my Model S.

I took the Lucid test drive after showing up in my Model S, which was my daily drive. Getting back into the Model S after the test drive was a bit of a let down, but the S is still a nice car.

One thing that wasn't covered was ADAS. Tesla's does a lot more overall, but what Lucid does, it does well. It took Tesla years of improvement and refinement. Lucid has improved DreamDrive in recent updates and aside from the lack of lane changes, it does what's most important to me. But I've also gotten used to the idea of not having to reengage lane centering if I deviate from what the car does, and Tesla falls short in that respect. If neither required touching the wheel, it wouldn't be an issue. But with Lucid, as of the latest software, I'm not likely to bounce around in the lane from putting too much pressure on the wheel, as was the case with Tesla, but I also have no danger of disengaging autosteer by mistake.

Lucid still has lots of little things that are on the wish list, and the drop down for Homelink is one of them, but it took Tesla eight years to get it right. Lucid definitely fell short on that for now.

I'd say that the video is fair overall. I haven't had an issue with the seat not going low enough for my taste. The problem I have is that if the seat is down, and the car moves it back and tilts the steering wheel to let me out, then the car won't recognize my face when I get back in. Lucid could probably fix it easily by tilting the steering wheel down initially, but for now, moving the seat up a bit made that workable for me.

 

[momo3605]

My experience isn't quite the same since my Model S is older and my Lucid's a GT, and for people whose top concern is 0-60, there's nothing wrong with that if it's what you are into. But if it's not your top concern, the GT will be more than enough to blow you away. Tesla has made a lot of software improvements over the years, but in terms of overall design, making it quicker wasn't enough of a draw for me to want to upgrade my Model S.

I took the Lucid test drive after showing up in my Model S, which was my daily drive. Getting back into the Model S after the test drive was a bit of a let down, but the S is still a nice car.

One thing that wasn't covered was ADAS. Tesla's does a lot more overall, but what Lucid does, it does well. It took Tesla years of improvement and refinement. Lucid has improved DreamDrive in recent updates and aside from the lack of lane changes, it does what's most important to me. But I've also gotten used to the idea of not having to reengage lane centering if I deviate from what the car does, and Tesla falls short in that respect. If neither required touching the wheel, it wouldn't be an issue. But with Lucid, as of the latest software, I'm not likely to bounce around in the lane from putting too much pressure on the wheel, as was the case with Tesla, but I also have no danger of disengaging autosteer by mistake.

Lucid still has lots of little things that are on the wish list, and the drop down for Homelink is one of them, but it took Tesla eight years to get it right. Lucid definitely fell short on that for now.

I'd say that the video is fair overall. I haven't had an issue with the seat not going low enough for my taste. The problem I have is that if the seat is down, and the car moves it back and tilts the steering wheel to let me out, then the car won't recognize my face when I get back in. Lucid could probably fix it easily by tilting the steering wheel down initially, but for now, moving the seat up a bit made that workable for me.

I think we’re more or less on the same page. The new model S suspension was revised so I’m sure it drives different from your older one. I personally didn’t have an issue with seat height in the lucid either (I’m not that tall) but I do think the model s ergonomics are better. It feels like a smaller car, easier to see out of, and the seat hugs you a bit better than the touring seat (which most will agree is not great). I noticed I was able to push harder in the corners when I was driving the Tesla than I did in the lucid because the ergonomics give you more confidence to push on the smaller roads.

I didn’t touch on ADAS because I’ve owned a Tesla with autopilot and FSD and it blows dreamdrive out of the water in almost every respect, and I think most will agree lucid is in catch up mode in that regard so I won’t go there.

I do think the touring is fast enough, even the pure AWD was quick enough for me as well. Even with some areas where we felt the Tesla was better, I think the win goes to Lucid for overall being a much nicer car in most ways

 

[Haggy]

I think we’re more or less on the same page. The new model S suspension was revised so I’m sure it drives different from your older one. I personally didn’t have an issue with seat height in the lucid either (I’m not that tall) but I do think the model s ergonomics are better. It feels like a smaller car, easier to see out of, and the seat hugs you a bit better than the touring seat (which most will agree is not great). I noticed I was able to push harder in the corners when I was driving the Tesla than I did in the lucid because the ergonomics give you more confidence to push on the smaller roads.

I didn’t touch on ADAS because I’ve owned a Tesla with autopilot and FSD and it blows dreamdrive out of the water in almost every respect, and I think most will agree lucid is in catch up mode in that regard so I won’t go there.

I do think the touring is fast enough, even the pure AWD was quick enough for me as well. Even with some areas where we felt the Tesla was better, I think the win goes to Lucid for overall being a much nicer car in most ways

Tesla has changed the seats a number of times over the years. Early on, Musk himself admitted that they weren't up to par. I haven't tried the latest ones, and am fine with the Lucid's, but you'd have a better idea if you've used Tesla's latest seats. Lucid also gives me massage, etc. although obviously it doesn't apply to that review. As far as ergonomics, in terms of having things in the right place for me to look, I think that Lucid did a better job especially on the things that I need to look at while driving. They fell short on some things such as Homelink, at least for now. But that's a different aspect of ergonomics. Another aspect of ergonomics is that some older people have problems getting in and out of the Tesla. My father has complained about the Tesla more than any other car. He hasn't gotten into the Lucid yet, and the Lucid does have grab handles in the back but not in the front, so I'll see how that goes. It's impossible to cover everything in a review but there are things like this that came up a lot in Tesla's forum early on that people won't notice until they try the car. I probably have a couple of decades left before that might be an issue for me personally.

Most of all, it comes down to what people value most, and either might be a better choice for anybody. Comparisons are typically done by price. If I wanted to compare cars in the same 0-60 category (around 3.0 to 3.1 seconds) then Lucid would win in terms of the overall car but cost a lot more. So somebody with that specific requirement might feel that Tesla blows away Lucid.

I think that overall, that review gives people a lot of useful information, and a lot to think about, and hopefully people will be able to figure the rest out with a test drive.

 

[LVAGT]

If your budget is $75k, would you choose a Lucid Pure or a Model S?

 

[xponents]

If your budget is $75k, would you choose a Lucid Pure or a Model S?

A model s, because you can't get a pure for 75k lol

But if it was 80kish, honestly it depends on what you value in a car. Only when you go up to a touring is there no way the S is better IMO.

 

[Steveinarizona]

If your budget is $75k, would you choose a Lucid Pure or a Model S?

It all comes down to what a purchaser most values. Most people paying that much are savvy enough to view a car under consideration as a collection of features and deficits and determine the balance that best works for the purchaser. Is it pure straight away speed? Is it handling in the twisties? Is it luxury? Is it too big or too small inside or outside? Is the range adequate or does that not matter? Etc. Etc.

 

[borski]

A model s, because you can't get a pure for 75k lol

But if it was 80kish, honestly it depends on what you value in a car. Only when you go up to a touring is there no way the S is better IMO.

Used

 

[stealth]

@momo3605 , that was an awesome video. Really enjoyed the candor and live commentary as you did the driver swaps. I was curious about the cabin noise at driving speed between the two vehicles. Your video offers the first real world comparison of the two vehicles. On the seats, the Tesla is lauded by many for their seats and driver positioning so was not entirely surprised to hear your buddy share that opinion. All that to say - thanks for filming, editing, and posting the video. Cheers!