Tesla Price Decrease

[HC_79]

Does anyone think Lucid is overpriced now that Tesla has dropped the price of its vehicles?

 

[EVCar]

While there are always objective differences between any 2 cars, the purchase decision is personal and subjective.
As such, for me, there is no right or wrong decision, and hence no need to explain one's decision or to convince others.
The discussions are kind of academic.

 

[EatThis]

These comparisons are soooooo tiresome. Like Bobby said, drive both. Buy the one you like better.

It’s like you’re all trying to prove my point about the Dell laptop vs MacBook Pro.

Checklists are oh so useless once you get behind the wheel.

There’s a reason the vast majority of the people on this forum chose the Air. It’s not like they didn’t have this information when they made that choice.

I think folks on this forum are not just buyers of their car but an enthusiast for Lucid. The fact that they're not price competitive for non-legacy buyer is worrisome. It'll hinder the success of the company, which may impact how often we get OTA updates and long term value of the car.

 

[joec]

I think folks on this forum are not just buyers of their car but an enthusiast for Lucid. The fact that they're not price competitive for non-legacy buyer is worrisome. It'll hinder the success of the company, which may impact how often we get OTA updates and long term value of the car.

But that's my point. I completely disagree. Thousands of companies have found success without competing on price. Tiffany does not compete on price. Rolex does not compete on price. And on and on and on.

The fact that there are "enthusiasts" for the brand is proof that Lucid's focus on brand exclusivity is working. They just need to expand on that. Not turn their brand into a bargain basement.

The dumbest thing Lucid could do for its longterm success right now is get into a race to the bottom with other companies on price. For one, they will lose, because they can't compete with economies of scale, long-term contracts for parts, etc. Their cars will still be more expensive, unless they want to lose even more money on every sale and go bankrupt that much faster.

Second, Lucid will dilute the only thing they have of value at the moment: the perception that they are "higher status" than their competition. For the sake of winning a few hundred more sales from cheapskates, they'd be turning away their most valuable customers—the ones who are willing to pay more to feel like they have something special.

This is why Mercedes has lower-cost models in other categories, yet keeps the S class nice and pricey. Lucid will do the same when their sub-$50k car is ready. Not before. The Air is a flagship. It needs to stay that way.

 

[xponents]

But that's my point. I completely disagree. Thousands of companies have found success without competing on price. Tiffany does not compete on price. Rolex does not compete on price. And on and on and on.

The fact that there are "enthusiasts" for the brand is proof that Lucid's focus on brand exclusivity is working. They just need to expand on that. Not turn their brand into a bargain basement.

The dumbest thing Lucid could do for its longterm success right now is get into a race to the bottom with other companies on price. For one, they will lose, because they can't compete with economies of scale, long-term contracts for parts, etc. Their cars will still be more expensive, unless they want to lose even more money on every sale and go bankrupt that much faster.

Second, Lucid will dilute the only thing they have of value at the moment: the perception that they are "higher status" than their competition. For the sake of winning a few hundred more sales from cheapskates, they'd be turning away their most valuable customers—the ones who are willing to pay more to feel like they have something special.

This is why Mercedes has lower-cost models in other categories, yet keeps the S class nice and pricey. Lucid will do the same when their sub-$50k car is ready. Not before. The Air is a flagship. It needs to stay that way.

Again, android vs apple as an example. Lucid is targeting the S class, which by the way it is doing AMAZINGLY at, coming very close to its numbers, and having more sales than the 7 and the a8.

 

[Steveinarizona]

But that's my point. I completely disagree. Thousands of companies have found success without competing on price. Tiffany does not compete on price. Rolex does not compete on price. And on and on and on.

The fact that there are "enthusiasts" for the brand is proof that Lucid's focus on brand exclusivity is working. They just need to expand on that. Not turn their brand into a bargain basement.

The dumbest thing Lucid could do for its longterm success right now is get into a race to the bottom with other companies on price. For one, they will lose, because they can't compete with economies of scale, long-term contracts for parts, etc. Their cars will still be more expensive, unless they want to lose even more money on every sale and go bankrupt that much faster.

Second, Lucid will dilute the only thing they have of value at the moment: the perception that they are "higher status" than their competition. For the sake of winning a few hundred more sales from cheapskates, they'd be turning away their most valuable customers—the ones who are willing to pay more to feel like they have something special.

This is why Mercedes has lower-cost models in other categories, yet keeps the S class nice and pricey. Lucid will do the same when their sub-$50k car is ready. Not before. The Air is a flagship. It needs to stay that way.

Agree. I think the closest mainstream carmaker to Lucid would be BMW and Mercedes which don't have basic models. They don't compete with the Chevrolet Malibu, the Ford Escape nor the Dodge Charger. They do compete on features AND ON CHARGES but against each other, not against cars that are not really comparable. But all three lack a basic parts bin (thank gawd) but even here, the most basic models are pretty basic (A series for MB, 1 series for BMW).

Tesla may eventually come out with a real luxury vehicle. Until then, IMO, Lucid is competing with MB, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Genesis. It would be a mistake to try to compete with someone who is selling a product missing a key and expensive component of your product.

 

[Tesla2.0]

Tesla may eventually come out with a real luxury vehicle. Until then, IMO, Lucid is competing with MB, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Genesis. It would be a mistake to try to compete with someone who is selling a product missing a key and expensive component of your product.

Tesla already did. Their definition of luxury is tech-rich, not creature comfort. Just look how Musk lives.

 

[hydbob]

Agree. I think the closest mainstream carmaker to Lucid would be BMW and Mercedes which don't have basic models. They don't compete with the Chevrolet Malibu, the Ford Escape nor the Dodge Charger. They do compete on features AND ON CHARGES but against each other, not against cars that are not really comparable. But all three lack a basic parts bin (thank gawd) but even here, the most basic models are pretty basic (A series for MB, 1 series for BMW).

Tesla may eventually come out with a real luxury vehicle. Until then, IMO, Lucid is competing with MB, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Genesis. It would be a mistake to try to compete with someone who is selling a product missing a key and expensive component of your product.

Aren't the 1,2,3 models and the A,C models considered basic? Also, I know you love your car, but Genesis does not belong in the group you mentioned.

 

[xponents]

Aren't the 1,2,3 models and the A,C models considered basic? Also, I know you love your car, but Genesis does not belong in the group you mentioned.

Okay, maybe the first 3 but porsche CANNOT be compared to the genesis.

 

[Drendino]

No autopilot is not fair. The lucid still comes with stock dreamdrive, which is almost equivalent to teslas stock autopilot.

Sorry, but Lucid’s DDP isn’t close to even Tesla’s Auto Pilot. Until Lucid starts to give us more if the full beans and take off the nanny restrictions from Highway Assist, they are going to lose the value proposition all day. The superior fit and finish and driving experience is awesome, but not enough to move the needle until DDP becomes more serious. At that point more people will be willing to pay more for a Lucid. CarPlay would also help, but who knows if that’s even happening. People love tech.

 

[xponents]

Sorry, but Lucid’s DDP isn’t close to even Tesla’s Auto Pilot. Until Lucid starts to give us more if the full beans and take off the nanny restrictions from Highway Assist, they are going to lose the value proposition all day. The superior fit and finish and driving experience is awesome, but not enough to move the needle until DDP becomes more serious. At that point more people will be willing to pay more for a Lucid. CarPlay would also help, but who knows if that’s even happening. People love tech.

I do wish lucid had city driving. Thats actually the ONLY reason I would ever consider a tesla.

 

[joec]

I do wish lucid had city driving. Thats actually the ONLY reason I would ever consider a tesla.

If you like having your car turn into oncoming traffic regularly, sure.

City driving in Tesla's software is a complete disaster. Anyone who tells you different hasn't driven the streets of Boulder with it.

 

[xponents]

If you like having your car turn into oncoming traffic regularly, sure.

City driving in Tesla's software is a complete disaster. Anyone who tells you different hasn't driven the streets of Boulder with it.

I meant if lucid made an actually useful city driving, with lidar and all the sensors we have over teslas.

 

[NewEnglander]

I meant if lucid made an actually useful city driving, with lidar and all the sensors we have over teslas.

Even with LiDAR and sensors, solving for full self driving or something meaningful ain’t that easy. The leader in self driving is actually not Tesla, it’s Google’s Waymo. However, google won’t license technology just like Android Auto till they are sure it is actually safe. Lucid will have a hard time trying to be Tesla. If it has a good enough DDPro that is comparable to say BMW/Merc etc, it’s good enough. Lucid’s USP is great motor and battery tech that makes the car spacious, luxurious interiors and a smooth/quiet ride. It can be Mercedes of EVs. It does not need to be Tech savvy Tesla for it to do well. There is ample market for a luxurious, comfortable EV with tech on par with traditional manufacturers. If CarPlay worked well today for Lucid, I am willing to bet their sales would grow rapidly.

 

[Drendino]

If it has a good enough DDPro that is comparable to say BMW/Merc etc, it’s good enough. Lucid’s USP is great motor and battery tech that makes the car spacious, luxurious interiors and a smooth/quiet ride. It can be Mercedes of EVs. It does not need to be Tech savvy Tesla for it to do well. There is ample market for a luxurious, comfortable EV with tech on par with traditional manufacturers. If CarPlay worked well today for Lucid, I am willing to bet their sales would grow rapidly.

I agree with this. Lucid needs to catch up with BMW and Mercedes in a hurry. The only problem is that at the rate they are going, by the time they catch today’s technology, the German companies will move the goal post. Sometimes I wonder if Lucid’s attorneys are keeping them handcuffed in search of zero risk, which doesn’t exist. I’m not saying that they should release technology that isn’t ready. I just wonder why if they are using the same platform as Mercedes, they won’t release more DDP features. Highway Assist is excellent. It’s time to ease up a little on the nanby-pamby alerts and restrictions.

 

[HariK]

• If price parity is most important: A Plaid without FSD is $124k, with FSD is $133k. It is probably best to compared to an Air Touring with all the options ($130k) not a Pure as compared above. A round steering wheel is a no-cost option for Tesla Model S right now. Test drive both and decide.
• If performance is most important, a GT-P pretty much wins the comparison in every category (except FSD and charging speed at V3 Tesla Superchargers). Rear entertainment is pretty useless in my opinion. Grab a phone or iPad.
• If software is more important than driving dynamics, Tesla wins at this moment. I'm rooting for Lucid to release bunches of cool updates and catch up. I think that will happen, but it may take a couple years. For me, CarPlay will give it a huge advantage.

Yes. Model s long range should be compared to pure

 

[HariK]

Again, android vs apple as an example. Lucid is targeting the S class,

Yes. Lucid is like iPhone only for the high end. Android and windows span the entire spectrum.

 

[NewEnglander]

I agree with this. Lucid needs to catch up with BMW and Mercedes in a hurry. The only problem is that at the rate they are going, by the time they catch today’s technology, the German companies will move the goal post. Sometimes I wonder if Lucid’s attorneys are keeping them handcuffed in search of zero risk, which doesn’t exist. I’m not saying that they should release technology that isn’t ready. I just wonder why if they are using the same platform as Mercedes, they won’t release more DDP features. Highway Assist is excellent. It’s time to ease up a little on the nanby-pamby alerts and restrictions.

I don’t think German’s can easily catch-up with Lucid. Lucid’s effort is ground up engineering and has been done using first principles. No one can create a car with such a small motor and battery tech without superb in-house innovative engineering. German cars have not shown that sort of innovation at all. Lucid could do it because Peter had roots with Tesla plus Lucid has been in battery technology for sports cars forever. That is why, what is good about Lucid is really good and very difficult to copy. I am assuming Lucid has patented its technology. Even Tesla’s motors are not as miniature and high tech as Lucid’s and that is why, Lucid is spacious inside without being too large from outside. All Lucid needs to do is solve for software issues. Forget marketing, forget opening new stores. Just enable the techies to crank out superior code. Once that is done, they will have a winner. Mercedes cannot create a car which is this spacious and with this size trunk and frunk.

 

[LCIDdreams]

You would qualify if you signed the purchase agreement before aug 16 2022 as then the car would reside under the previous ev credit which had no msrp or income limitations.

So I could upgrade my Pure reservation to Touring and get legacy Touring pricing, the $7500 Lucid credit (ie discount) and the $7500 federal credit?

 

[Drendino]

I don’t think German’s can easily catch-up with Lucid. Lucid’s effort is ground up engineering and has been done using first principles. No one can create a car with such a small motor and battery tech without superb in-house innovative engineering. German cars have not shown that sort of innovation at all. Lucid could do it because Peter had roots with Tesla plus Lucid has been in battery technology for sports cars forever. That is why, what is good about Lucid is really good and very difficult to copy. I am assuming Lucid has patented its technology. Even Tesla’s motors are not as miniature and high tech as Lucid’s and that is why, Lucid is spacious inside without being too large from outside. All Lucid needs to do is solve for software issues. Forget marketing, forget opening new stores. Just enable the techies to crank out superior code. Once that is done, they will have a winner. Mercedes cannot create a car which is this spacious and with this size trunk and frunk.

This is the reason why Lucid only needs to be “as good” in the software department as the Germans. There is no contest in the hardware department. Lucid really needs to get their software up to par in a hurry because MB and BMW are making fast and aggressive advancements. Porsche is the exception to the Germans and is an example of what happens when you don’t take software progress seriously. I don’t think Porsche has a chance at catching anyone in the industry (including Lucid) for a very long time.

 

[EVCar]

I personally think Lucid should go all out on the customer service front and be the leading manufacturer with white glove service.
At this price point, if Lucid can become the equivalent of the Ritz, they will sell more cars than they can make,
Don't nickel and dime the guys with the broken charge port door. Don't let the bean counters decide charging $10 a month for connectivity.
These are small change for the big picture.