Motortrend - Debuting Gravity
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Sid432
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Man.. I didn't know how I watched 1+ hr of this. Time just flew by and learnt a lot about Peter and Lucid..
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Fascinating video -- especially the second half where Rawlinson talks about the early days at Atieva and how it morphed into Lucid. Biggest surprise there was that it was the early investors that insisted that Lucid's first vehicle be a sedan.
Here were some key takeaways:
By implication, it seems the Gravity will have a smaller battery pack available at some point. (9:28)
The Gravity will use motors derived from the Air but with some significant new (and undisclosed) technology in the motor core. (11:44)
Heat pumps will be in Gravity as well as across the Lucid range going forward. (12:07)
The upper-tier battery modules under the Gravity front seats will be pushed forward so that there will be additional toe room for second-row passengers. (14:53)
Lucid is using new EPA test protocols that result in more conservative range estimates. For example, the current 4.74 m/kWh rating of the Pure would have been 4.9 m/kWh under the old protocols. (44:00) Thus, the 440-mile range estimate of the Gravity would equate to about the 451-mile range estimate of the Air Dream Performance on 21" tires. (This is particularly interesting to me, as it means our new Gravity will probably provide about the same real-world range as our Air Dream P, which we find perfectly adequate for any road tripping we've done.)
Lucid has now gotten the Cd of the Air down to 1.97. With its relatively small frontal area, that yields a CdA (total drag) about 11% better than the (unspecified) competition -- maybe the EQS? (54:12)
The Gravity will carry over the aerodynamic sculpting of the battery pack from the Air starting at about the B pillar. (55:15)
Here were some key takeaways:
By implication, it seems the Gravity will have a smaller battery pack available at some point. (9:28)
The Gravity will use motors derived from the Air but with some significant new (and undisclosed) technology in the motor core. (11:44)
Heat pumps will be in Gravity as well as across the Lucid range going forward. (12:07)
The upper-tier battery modules under the Gravity front seats will be pushed forward so that there will be additional toe room for second-row passengers. (14:53)
Lucid is using new EPA test protocols that result in more conservative range estimates. For example, the current 4.74 m/kWh rating of the Pure would have been 4.9 m/kWh under the old protocols. (44:00) Thus, the 440-mile range estimate of the Gravity would equate to about the 451-mile range estimate of the Air Dream Performance on 21" tires. (This is particularly interesting to me, as it means our new Gravity will probably provide about the same real-world range as our Air Dream P, which we find perfectly adequate for any road tripping we've done.)
Lucid has now gotten the Cd of the Air down to 1.97. With its relatively small frontal area, that yields a CdA (total drag) about 11% better than the (unspecified) competition -- maybe the EQS? (54:12)
The Gravity will carry over the aerodynamic sculpting of the battery pack from the Air starting at about the B pillar. (55:15)
Totally agree. Great talk. Definitely dispelled a few myths about how the Air came about. And given the sedan was foisted upon Peter, that suggests they may just do the mid-range crossover before a midrange sedan. I know Derek suggested that to someone at the auto show.
Minivans are the hardest car to design. Damn right !
xponents
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Does that mean Peter wanted a suv over a sedan?
It means the sedan wasn't chosen because it was easier, because they wanted to be "range king" etc. He didn't have an option to do anything else at first. So everything else followed from that.
Motortrend SUV of the Year 2025?
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I understand the desire, but I don't think there's much chance of that. Even if you take the cost of batteries out of the equation, there are few ICE SUVs that will have the same level of power, room, materials, and features at that price point that even the entry-level Gravity will likely have.
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I don't think you'll be getting Gravity then. No way they sell a 120 kWh version under $80k. Not anytime soon anyway.
You should stop considering it, then.
I don’t see how that’s possible. I’w wagering 80K gets you a stripped down, no frills 5-seater with a reduced-size battery pack, and therefore lower range.
Back on topic, this was a great interview especially the history of Lucid/Atieva. It's telling that Peter making a sedan was because he thought the space concept would be revolutionary in the sedan, but hadn't considered it in a SUV until later. Makes sense!
xponents
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Finished the video. It never fails to amaze me how Peter knows EVERYTHING about his car. And his voice could put me to sleep..(in a good way)
I am cross-shopping it with a TX550h+. If it gets over 400mi of range it would be worth it too go electric else it wont.
Maybe. The thing is everyone will cross-shop this with a tesla model x so if they want to see these it might make more sense to have the full 7 seats and large batterypack.
xponents
Active Member
Except the model x ALSO doesnt come with 7 seats and has 340 miles of range...
The lucid might get about the same though with a smaller pack. They need to BEAT tesla since right now most people are apprehensive about lucid because they believe that lucid wont make it.
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I'm not quite sure how you can cross-shop a vehicle the final specs of which have not even been determined. But with a shorter wheelbase and a V6 engine on top of two electric motors -- and the miracles Lucid seems work with the space concept -- my guess is that the Lexus will not be as roomy as the Lucid.
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