New member with Touring reservation

[jabbahop]

Just reserved a Touring and joined the forum to find out more about the cars. There looks to be lots of great content to go through.

We have a 2021 Tesla Model S Long range but I am interested in Lucid Air because of

1) the advanced tech for charging and efficiency. We drive across country 2x/year so going further and charging less is a great benefit.
2) I have never driven or sat in a Lucid, but I am hopeful the Lucid is more comfortable and quiet than our Model S.
3) interested in Lucid since they seem focused on treating customers better than Tesla these days.

 

[Sandvinsd]

Just reserved a Touring and joined the forum to find out more about the cars. There looks to be lots of great content to go through.

We have a 2021 Tesla Model S Long range but I am interested in Lucid Air because of

1) the advanced tech for charging and efficiency. We drive across country 2x/year so going further and charging less is a great benefit.
2) I have never driven or sat in a Lucid, but I am hopeful the Lucid is more comfortable and quiet than our Model S.
3) interested in Lucid since they seem focused on treating customers better than Tesla these days.

I‘m curious as to your experience charging on your cross country drives in the Tesla. They have those supercharger stations and it is supposedly easy to do that. There must be something about that experience to say you are wanting the Lucid for charging and efficiency that is a benefit over the Tesla Long range. How often are you having to stop and charge in the tesla and for how long each time? If you do a day driving, what are you looking at in terms of ‘fuel stops’? Your range in the Tesla vs. the EPA range on these trips? Are you trying to take in one less charge stop with the Lucid I assume?

I am planning on taking the Lucid cross country. We have a Leaf but with the range, it is not feasible to leave the county, so I don’t have the experience driving an EV on longer or multi-day trips.

 

[jabbahop]

I‘m curious as to your experience charging on your cross country drives in the Tesla. They have those supercharger stations and it is supposedly easy to do that. There must be something about that experience to say you are wanting the Lucid for charging and efficiency that is a benefit over the Tesla Long range. How often are you having to stop and charge in the tesla and for how long each time? If you do a day driving, what are you looking at in terms of ‘fuel stops’? Your range in the Tesla vs. the EPA range on these trips? Are you trying to take in one less charge stop with the Lucid I assume?

I am planning on taking the Lucid cross country. We have a Leaf but with the range, it is not feasible to leave the county, so I don’t have the experience driving an EV on longer or multi-day trips.

Using superchargers is easy as long as you stick to mostly interstates which we do between our homes in Vermont and Utah. It is about 2600 miles and takes us 4 long days. We typically spend the night @ a hotel that has destination charging so we begin the day with a relatively full (we don’t typically charge to 100% to spare the battery). We travel with a dog so it is fine stopping every 2-3 hours. Most of the Tesla chargers that we use are still V2 chargers that are 150kwh vs the newer V3 that charge @ 250kwh. We typically drive about 600-700 miles per day and probably charge about 4 -6 times as we try to use the bottom of the battery which charges the fastest. We will start with 90% and then try to get down to 10-15% before our first charge. Thereafter we will normally only charge to 50-60% when charging slows dramatically. We could do fewer charges by filling up to 80+% but that means waiting perhaps another 20minutes. The nice thing about superchargers is they are often no more than 100 miles to the next one.

The three things that would make life easier in that drive are

1) actually getting close to the rated range @ highway speeds. I am not sure the exact number but while our car is rated @ 400 miles, @ 70-80 mph, it probably gets more like 300 miles. In addition we don’t like driving below 10% nor waiting to fill to 100% so really we are only using about 70% of the battery. The range test that was recently done on the Lucid dream got 500 miles @ 70mph which is pretty close to rated range so that would be nice.

2) the charging test on youtube also showed the Air did really well in terms of charging speed and curve. our Tesla can charge @ 250kwh for a couple of minutes and then starts down from there. @ 1/2 full it is below 100kwh as I recall. So I am hoping the Lucid gets more miles/min of charging.

3) the epa test shows it is more efficient in terms of miles/kw so we will be using less electricity per mile driven. It is also nice that Lucid has free EA charging for three years.

4) Lastly I hoping the Lucid is more comfortable and quiet on the long trip. The MS Long range is pretty good but could always be better and smooth and quiet makes the drive that much more enjoyable. We had a 2019 Model S that we sold to get the 2021. Overall the 2021 is a better car but for some reason the suspension is much stiffer than our old car so that isn’t idea for the long drive.

I will need to see do a bunch more research on the Air Touring before pulling the trigger to make the switch but that is the reason I am considering it.

BTW - our 2nd car in Vermont is a BMW i3 so I know what it is like to not be able to go far in an EV ;-)

 

[Not Sam]

Welcome!

Re 1) the 500-mile range test at 70mph: That test was not really representative of real-life driving, because it was as close to a constant 70mph as they could get. Based on what the owners have posted here with real-life experience, you'll see a similar dropoff from the rated range on the Lucid as you see on the Tesla (though there's some evidence it won't be quite as much as a percentage).

That said, the GT's EPA range is much higher than that of the MS LR's, so you should see a much higher real-life range too. Just not 500 miles.

 

[jabbahop]

I agree the speed limit in Utah is 75 so 80 is pretty typical but as we get to the midwest and Vermont, we drive closer to a constant 70 so it is better estimate for us than the EPA highway. At least it seems like Lucid’s EPA estimate is much closer to our reality than Tesla’s is.

We can’t spring for the 500 mile range so will be looking @ the 400 Touring version so there is a big drop there

 

[bhramabull]

That being said in the summers, especially here in the Southwest, will the range even at higher speeds now be closer to that 500 mile mark?

 

[Adnillien]

That being said in the summers, especially here in the Southwest, will the range even at higher speeds now be closer to that 500 mile mark?

I am expecting the AC to take a sizeable chunk of range, especially here in AZ.

 

[bhramabull]

I am expecting the AC to take a sizeable chunk of range, especially here in AZ.

fantastic point, but then what if like we never really crank up the AC here. Even with our current Model 3. You still think it would take away range at a fast range? What about heat pump?

 

[Not Sam]

Note that it's not just the A/C (and the heater) and the maximum speed. Read through this other thread for a discussion of the different factors that can significantly affect range. There are many other posts about range here as well you can search for.

But if you're willing to hypermile (keep your speed very constant, check your tire pressures), and your route is flat, free of traffic, above 50 degrees or so, and has calm winds, you'll get a lot closer to the EPA range, and higher speeds won't affect it as much as they will in the MS since the drag coefficient is better.

 

[Coltonw011]

fantastic point, but then what if like we never really crank up the AC here. Even with our current Model 3. You still think it would take away range at a fast range? What about heat pump?

Heat pumps are more efficient than resistance heating. Although, there have been some major issues with heat pumps in extreme cold. Lucid uses resistance heating at this time so the AC will actually use less power than the heating system if I remember correctly. Lucid may implement a heat pump eventually, just not at this time.

 

[Not Sam]

Heat pumps are more efficient than resistance heating. Although, there have been some major issues with heat pumps in extreme cold. Lucid uses resistance heating at this time so the AC will actually use less power than the heating system if I remember correctly. Lucid may implement a heat pump eventually, just not at this time.

Yeah, the resistance heater currently in the Lucid will definitely use more power than the A/C for the same temperature difference.

If you can stand leaving the cabin temerature low(er) and relying more on the seat heaters, that will also help.

 

[Ormond]

I agree the speed limit in Utah is 75 so 80 is pretty typical but as we get to the midwest and Vermont, we drive closer to a constant 70 so it is better estimate for us than the EPA highway. At least it seems like Lucid’s EPA estimate is much closer to our reality than Tesla’s is.

We can’t spring for the 500 mile range so will be looking @ the 400 Touring version so there is a big drop there

Which wheels do you have on your Model S? I have a 2022 Model S on order, and I am debating canceling it for the Lucid Air.

 

[SDHacker]

AS @hmp10 pointed out, heat pumps are not effective cooling the cabin in hotter climes. Car & Driver did a test using a M3 with resistance heat on high with the seat warmers on high and there was a 60 mile drop in range.

 

[jabbahop]

Which wheels do you have on your Model S? I have a 2022 Model S on order, and I am debating canceling it for the Lucid Air.

We have the 19” standard wheels with all season tires.

 

[MikeTz]

Note that it's not just the A/C (and the heater) and the maximum speed. Read through this other thread for a discussion of the different factors that can significantly affect range. There are many other posts about range here as well you can search for.

But if you're willing to hypermile (keep your speed very constant, check your tire pressures), and your route is flat, free of traffic, above 50 degrees or so, and has calm winds, you'll get a lot closer to the EPA range, and higher speeds won't affect it as much as they will in the MS since the drag coefficient is better.

The Latest High voltage variable speed A/C compressors are very efficient and have the advantage of running at full speed independent of the car's speed. Something an ICE car can not do. So far the A/C is doing a good job but I am waiting to see how the Lucid performs on a typical hot humid Summer Florida day.

 

[experiment458]

I can say my Lucid is definitely quieter and more comfortable than my Tesla. By the time you get your Lucid, the software should be pretty solid too.