I’ve had my Lucid Air Touring for two days. I wanted to time the purchase and installation of either or both a Lucid home charging station and/or a simple NEMA 14-50 outlet so that it would be ready by the time I took possession of the car, but at the same time I played it conservative in case something, anything, happened that prevented me from taking possession, or delayed it, or canceled it altogether and I went with a Chevy Tahoe or something.
I also knew that you can plug it into a 110v outlet, as the mobile charging cable comes with that adapter. So I wanted to experience that, and see if I actually needed an upgraded charger. With all the software involved, the cynic in me wonders if the Powers That Be would end up driving me to purchasing their equipment, but in order to live my life, I must pay my tithe.
My tithe in the first 48 hours turns out to be a combination of anxiety and Amex.
I drove it around a bit on Friday, not too much. I had taken delivery with precisely 90 miles on the vehicle. I was disappointed at that. I know we always sign 100 miles, but in my experience, it hasn’t been higher than 25 miles. I guess someone wanted to test the fun. No big deal. I took possession of the vehicle at 80% charge.
After taking my wife and son for a ride and blasting some Atmos, I burned it down to about 70%, brought her in and plugged into the 110.
I knew the 110 would be slow, and it wasn’t too bad the first night. It brought it from ~70% to ~78% in 14 hours. That was Day 0. The proof would be in the pudding on Day 1.
I put my golf clubs in the trunk (beautiful fit, by the way, almost as if the trunk was designed to fit a bag of clubs sideways) and after spending fifteen minutes learning that you have to unlock the doors in order to remove the charger from the port, I was off to my February kickoff meeting at Rudy’s Golf in Alexandria. (Poor Rudy’s Golf. It was bought out by developers and will soon be townhouses.) That was about a 80-mile round trip, and I think I need to also start counting the amount of time the car spent in a parking lot (far, far away from other cars) and not plugged in. This was about three hours. I spent about twenty additional minutes in the car with music playing while I was trying to figure out if my sister was home to see if they wanted to see the car, but apparently they were “napping”, which I totally did not want to disturb (ick), and so I went home, stopping in Tysons Corner for some mast-e-musir.
After being home for a few hours, unplugged (and now I have to start thinking in those terms as this is my first electric car), my wife and I dropped our son off at the babysitter and went to an amazing Greek restaurant in Tysons Corner, about a 30-mile round trip. So I drove for 110 miles on Day 1, plus roughly 30 miles on Day 0, and plugged in before going to bed.
On Day 2, it wasn’t really charging. Went to bed at 52%, woke up at 54%. Toward the end of the day, it must have known I was watching, because it got all the way up to 64% before I waved the towel and went to bed. I didn’t take it off charging all day. That’s unacceptable for actual usage. I definitely need more than a 110.
Earlier in the day, when it had crept all the way up to 56%, I recognized this new reality, and at the same time received the email from Lucid that I was waiting for: Coupon code for $1000 off their home charger. So I ordered the home charger, some saddle colored all-weather interior floor mats, and a performance mesh Lucid branded golf hat. Now, we wait.
I also knew that you can plug it into a 110v outlet, as the mobile charging cable comes with that adapter. So I wanted to experience that, and see if I actually needed an upgraded charger. With all the software involved, the cynic in me wonders if the Powers That Be would end up driving me to purchasing their equipment, but in order to live my life, I must pay my tithe.
My tithe in the first 48 hours turns out to be a combination of anxiety and Amex.
I drove it around a bit on Friday, not too much. I had taken delivery with precisely 90 miles on the vehicle. I was disappointed at that. I know we always sign 100 miles, but in my experience, it hasn’t been higher than 25 miles. I guess someone wanted to test the fun. No big deal. I took possession of the vehicle at 80% charge.
After taking my wife and son for a ride and blasting some Atmos, I burned it down to about 70%, brought her in and plugged into the 110.
I knew the 110 would be slow, and it wasn’t too bad the first night. It brought it from ~70% to ~78% in 14 hours. That was Day 0. The proof would be in the pudding on Day 1.
I put my golf clubs in the trunk (beautiful fit, by the way, almost as if the trunk was designed to fit a bag of clubs sideways) and after spending fifteen minutes learning that you have to unlock the doors in order to remove the charger from the port, I was off to my February kickoff meeting at Rudy’s Golf in Alexandria. (Poor Rudy’s Golf. It was bought out by developers and will soon be townhouses.) That was about a 80-mile round trip, and I think I need to also start counting the amount of time the car spent in a parking lot (far, far away from other cars) and not plugged in. This was about three hours. I spent about twenty additional minutes in the car with music playing while I was trying to figure out if my sister was home to see if they wanted to see the car, but apparently they were “napping”, which I totally did not want to disturb (ick), and so I went home, stopping in Tysons Corner for some mast-e-musir.
After being home for a few hours, unplugged (and now I have to start thinking in those terms as this is my first electric car), my wife and I dropped our son off at the babysitter and went to an amazing Greek restaurant in Tysons Corner, about a 30-mile round trip. So I drove for 110 miles on Day 1, plus roughly 30 miles on Day 0, and plugged in before going to bed.
On Day 2, it wasn’t really charging. Went to bed at 52%, woke up at 54%. Toward the end of the day, it must have known I was watching, because it got all the way up to 64% before I waved the towel and went to bed. I didn’t take it off charging all day. That’s unacceptable for actual usage. I definitely need more than a 110.
Earlier in the day, when it had crept all the way up to 56%, I recognized this new reality, and at the same time received the email from Lucid that I was waiting for: Coupon code for $1000 off their home charger. So I ordered the home charger, some saddle colored all-weather interior floor mats, and a performance mesh Lucid branded golf hat. Now, we wait.
