- Joined
- Aug 22, 2024
- Messages
- 45
- Reaction score
- 43
- Location
- Santa Barbara, CA
- Cars
- Lucid Air Touring 2023
Greetings folks and Lucid Kin;
I have recently completed the long distance maiden voyage: a round trip from Portland, Oregon to Los Angeles, California with 100 percent highway driving except for 4 miles for highway access each way. The total miles traveled was 2000 miles on a 2023 Air touring with 20 inch rims.
Summary;
My Lucid Touring trip took approximately 18 hours travel time each way to cover 1000 miles including charging stops and one overnight stay.
The interior cabin’s strength in terms of comfort and climate control shined all the way through.
The handling was precise enough to provide the necessary comfort over the long stretches along with the needed maneuverability requirements when dangerous situations callled for aggressive deceleration or acceleration.
Highway assist was a pleasure to work with on the straight stretches although the lane change assist did not engage in a logical setting and engaged in more challenging settings, which has made me apprehensive in choosing to engage as it once disengaged in mid stroke.
The only warning that I have to report is common to all vehicles with ADAS, around sunrise the system has a threshold when it will disengage if the angle of the sun disables its functionality. The danger lies in a few seconds before when it thinks it can engage but the curvature of the road blinds the system and it can potentially make a catastrophic mistake. This is easily remedied if you are paying attention and have both hands planted on the steering wheel. I performed this maneuver prepared that it would fail and thus it was a validation to me that ADAS is not 100% on any vehicle, I have tested this situation with other luxury auto makers and the results were identical.
Lucid Nav was helpful as the range planning function is a useful tool although it can be rough around the edges at times, where it plans for stops that were not necessary and routes that increased travel time. This tool has made me reflect on some of strategic nav choices lucid has made.
Side note: I have traveled this routes multiple times over the past few decades in both EV and ICE vehicles so I have a good sense of optimal stops and charging.
Range: for those that can appreciate when someone tells you they have a complicated relationship, this is truly the case.
I have attempted to stay mostly under 70 mph and limit any sudden accelerations up to the point of hyper-mile moves (No ac, no music) and the opposite which was to have the cabin with plenty of airflow and the speakers thundering away. My conclusion is that the stated range for my 2023 Touring with 20 inch wheels is akin to my first love when my mind painted a white picket fence, apple pies and stories around the campfire with s’mores.
I believe I have graduated to a more mature outlook on range and planning for a healthy long term relationship with my Lucid Touring.
The reality is that this vehicle (as stated by others) has an ac system that takes a heavy toll on the battery, moreover it’s best to allow 30% battery as the minimum you will go to when doing your pre-drive planning.
As stated in other posts, there is no point in driving more than 60 miles per hour if you want to the range to remain decent, in-fact there may have been times when I let it fly which was exhilarating at the price of the battery dishing out a “your daily fun allowance is done, slow the ….. down or I will send an an SOS to Peter Rawlinson himself”
Regen braking was extremely helpful and with smart speed management you can ride a downhill slope to prepare for an upcoming uphill ( forget about adaptive cruise control as your timing and speed choices are beyond the system’s capabilities)
Good news on range: before the battery would ever get dangerously low ( my human condition required a stop for the obvious and a walk to stretch). Therefore the battery capacity is plenty for most lawful endeavors when traveling long distances.
Entertainment systems:
No complaints except for the usual tantrums when you are in an underground area with no signal, and a soft reset is required to bring back the joy of music from the built in apps.
In a perfect world:
I love my Lucid Touring and would not go for a Grand Touring as I happened to stop by the Beverly Hills Lucid Studio to asses the GT, the back seat raised floor was a deal breaker as my back seat layout and comfort is a game changer for my business. Therefore I would love the Air Touring to have a higher range 500 plus miles with the next generation of batteries that do not add 200 pounds of extra weight. The horse power in its current state is plenty for me in any of the three settings. I left the car in smooth mode except for the last ten miles when swift mode and your favorite music album courtesy of Apple Music ( think Eagles live “Take it easy”) got me to my destination refreshed and energized.
The more technical details have already been communicated to the relevant & interested folks at Lucid as I am sure the telematics will reveal my escapades and experiences.
My conclusion: The lucid Air touring is a capable luxury sedan that does not make outlandish claims of auto this or full self that. It is a joy to drive with styling that makes anyone around you stare in awe of this magnificent refined beast of an automobile. There is a learning curve that is well rewarded and I believe in time the software will deliver the reliability of an old school luxury sedan. With both hands planted on the wheels and your eyes remaining vigilant, there is plenty of joy to go around, however if you are over reliant on HA, your risks increases beyond my comfort levels.
Santa Claus:
I have been good all year and never went anywhere close to my Lucid if I chose to be naughty, I would love to switch out the AC system to the new heat pumps, nineteen inch wheels would be nice for those pot holes that choose to remain well hidden and the Lucid app to actually function properly. Oh and one more thing, Lucid hiring a technical writer that can churn out details of every update and function so the folks at Lucid owners don’t have to read every post like a mother in law asking daily when the sink is gonna drain properly.
For the holiday season, I will make another go of this trip and hope to bring you another snapshot of driving from the Pacific Northwest to Southern California. In the meantime, my Touring is in a deep sleep experiencing Lucid dreams of all she can become one day. Here’s to all the owners world wide, good luck out there, See you on the road !
P.s: to the family riding in a silver/grey Lucid around the Grove neighborhood in LA, you made me so happy when everyone in your car was waving hello to me, the spirit of camaraderie uplifted me ! Bless your hearts !
I have recently completed the long distance maiden voyage: a round trip from Portland, Oregon to Los Angeles, California with 100 percent highway driving except for 4 miles for highway access each way. The total miles traveled was 2000 miles on a 2023 Air touring with 20 inch rims.
Summary;
My Lucid Touring trip took approximately 18 hours travel time each way to cover 1000 miles including charging stops and one overnight stay.
The interior cabin’s strength in terms of comfort and climate control shined all the way through.
The handling was precise enough to provide the necessary comfort over the long stretches along with the needed maneuverability requirements when dangerous situations callled for aggressive deceleration or acceleration.
Highway assist was a pleasure to work with on the straight stretches although the lane change assist did not engage in a logical setting and engaged in more challenging settings, which has made me apprehensive in choosing to engage as it once disengaged in mid stroke.
The only warning that I have to report is common to all vehicles with ADAS, around sunrise the system has a threshold when it will disengage if the angle of the sun disables its functionality. The danger lies in a few seconds before when it thinks it can engage but the curvature of the road blinds the system and it can potentially make a catastrophic mistake. This is easily remedied if you are paying attention and have both hands planted on the steering wheel. I performed this maneuver prepared that it would fail and thus it was a validation to me that ADAS is not 100% on any vehicle, I have tested this situation with other luxury auto makers and the results were identical.
Lucid Nav was helpful as the range planning function is a useful tool although it can be rough around the edges at times, where it plans for stops that were not necessary and routes that increased travel time. This tool has made me reflect on some of strategic nav choices lucid has made.
Side note: I have traveled this routes multiple times over the past few decades in both EV and ICE vehicles so I have a good sense of optimal stops and charging.
Range: for those that can appreciate when someone tells you they have a complicated relationship, this is truly the case.
I have attempted to stay mostly under 70 mph and limit any sudden accelerations up to the point of hyper-mile moves (No ac, no music) and the opposite which was to have the cabin with plenty of airflow and the speakers thundering away. My conclusion is that the stated range for my 2023 Touring with 20 inch wheels is akin to my first love when my mind painted a white picket fence, apple pies and stories around the campfire with s’mores.
I believe I have graduated to a more mature outlook on range and planning for a healthy long term relationship with my Lucid Touring.
The reality is that this vehicle (as stated by others) has an ac system that takes a heavy toll on the battery, moreover it’s best to allow 30% battery as the minimum you will go to when doing your pre-drive planning.
As stated in other posts, there is no point in driving more than 60 miles per hour if you want to the range to remain decent, in-fact there may have been times when I let it fly which was exhilarating at the price of the battery dishing out a “your daily fun allowance is done, slow the ….. down or I will send an an SOS to Peter Rawlinson himself”
Regen braking was extremely helpful and with smart speed management you can ride a downhill slope to prepare for an upcoming uphill ( forget about adaptive cruise control as your timing and speed choices are beyond the system’s capabilities)
Good news on range: before the battery would ever get dangerously low ( my human condition required a stop for the obvious and a walk to stretch). Therefore the battery capacity is plenty for most lawful endeavors when traveling long distances.
Entertainment systems:
No complaints except for the usual tantrums when you are in an underground area with no signal, and a soft reset is required to bring back the joy of music from the built in apps.
In a perfect world:
I love my Lucid Touring and would not go for a Grand Touring as I happened to stop by the Beverly Hills Lucid Studio to asses the GT, the back seat raised floor was a deal breaker as my back seat layout and comfort is a game changer for my business. Therefore I would love the Air Touring to have a higher range 500 plus miles with the next generation of batteries that do not add 200 pounds of extra weight. The horse power in its current state is plenty for me in any of the three settings. I left the car in smooth mode except for the last ten miles when swift mode and your favorite music album courtesy of Apple Music ( think Eagles live “Take it easy”) got me to my destination refreshed and energized.
The more technical details have already been communicated to the relevant & interested folks at Lucid as I am sure the telematics will reveal my escapades and experiences.
My conclusion: The lucid Air touring is a capable luxury sedan that does not make outlandish claims of auto this or full self that. It is a joy to drive with styling that makes anyone around you stare in awe of this magnificent refined beast of an automobile. There is a learning curve that is well rewarded and I believe in time the software will deliver the reliability of an old school luxury sedan. With both hands planted on the wheels and your eyes remaining vigilant, there is plenty of joy to go around, however if you are over reliant on HA, your risks increases beyond my comfort levels.
Santa Claus:
I have been good all year and never went anywhere close to my Lucid if I chose to be naughty, I would love to switch out the AC system to the new heat pumps, nineteen inch wheels would be nice for those pot holes that choose to remain well hidden and the Lucid app to actually function properly. Oh and one more thing, Lucid hiring a technical writer that can churn out details of every update and function so the folks at Lucid owners don’t have to read every post like a mother in law asking daily when the sink is gonna drain properly.
For the holiday season, I will make another go of this trip and hope to bring you another snapshot of driving from the Pacific Northwest to Southern California. In the meantime, my Touring is in a deep sleep experiencing Lucid dreams of all she can become one day. Here’s to all the owners world wide, good luck out there, See you on the road !
P.s: to the family riding in a silver/grey Lucid around the Grove neighborhood in LA, you made me so happy when everyone in your car was waving hello to me, the spirit of camaraderie uplifted me ! Bless your hearts !
