Here, on the pages of the Los Altos Town Crier and the pixels of losaltosonline.com, I review new cars, trucks and SUVs sold in America but built all over the world.
This time, though, we will talk about an almost hometown car. An electric car. From a car company with its headquarters just across the bay.
Except it’s probably not what you’re thinking. It’s Newark, not Fremont, and Lucid, not Tesla.
Lucid Air is clearly meant to be a direct competitor to the Tesla Model S, which is built with a relentless focus on quality. Their current advertising slogan is “Why build the best EV when you can build the best damn car?”
Coincidentally, 16 other Northern California automotive journalists and I awarded the Lucid Air both “Best EV” and “Best Overall” at Western Automotive Journalists’ annual “Best of the Bay” competition in Santa Cruz last October.
Lucid’s strategy is to offer the same car but with four different levels of power and some differences in standard equipment in a wide range of pricing. As Carroll Shelby used to say, “Speed costs money. How fast do you wanna go?”
Over the last three years, Lucid has introduced five different versions of the Air. The first model was the Dream Edition, priced at $169,000, with 1,111 horsepower and 451 miles of range per charge. It was a limited launch edition and is now out of production.
For 2025, there are four different Lucid Air models: The ultra-powerful Lucid Air Sapphire (fully equipped at $249,000, 1,234 horsepower, 0-60 in 1.89 seconds and 427 miles of range), the Grand Touring (starting at $110,900, 819 horsepower, 0-60 in three seconds and 512 miles of range), the Lucid Air Touring (starting at $78,900, 620 horsepower, 0-60 in 3.4 seconds and 406 miles of range, and the newest addition, debuting last year – the Lucid Air Pure (430 horsepower and 420 miles of range per charge).
If 0-60 in 4.5 seconds is fast enough for you (a reminder that those are 1960s peak muscle car numbers), then the Lucid Air Pure is a steal, with a base price of $69,900. That’s $99,100 less than the only Lucid Air you could buy three years ago (the Dream Edition), with very nearly as much range per charge. Recharging? Lucid says 200 miles of range can be regained via DC fast charging in just 17 minutes.
The Air is a gorgeous automobile, sleek and futuristic without being gimmicky. It has an enormous trunk in the rear and a usable front trunk (“frunk”).
The cabin is contemporary and tech-focused, but it dispenses with the one huge screen in the middle approach Tesla takes in favor of two distinct displays – a 34-inch screen with instrumentation in front of the driver and infotainment in the center and then, below that, a tablet-style screen for climate control and various functions and settings. In a clever touch, it retracts to reveal a generous-sized cubby for miscellaneous items. Even if you’re not using that storage space, some drivers appreciate the ability to simply make a screen disappear when it’s not in active use.
Materials, fit and finish are excellent both outside and in. The Air is one of the highest-quality vehicles on the market.
And the driving experience is just brilliant. It’s quick, quiet, rides smoothly, has adaptable driving modes if you want more off-the-line oomph and its handling shows through with every turn in the road.
As mentioned before, the base price of the 2025 Lucid Air Pure is $69,900 ($71,400 with destination charges), and that includes 19-inch Aero Range wheels, a power trunk lid, auto-dimming, power folding, heated exterior mirrors, intelligent microlens array LED headlights with adaptive front lighting, with auto off/on and a daytime LED signature, LED taillights, a rear fog lamp, powered illuminated door handles, PurLuxe leather alternative upholstery, 12-way power front heated seats, navigation, an audio system with HD radio, SiriusXM satellite radio, wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless device charging, three-zone climate control, 60/40 folding rear seatback with a pass-through and a comprehensive suite of active safety features.
Our test vehicle also had some extra cost options: The Fathom Blue metallic paint was $800. DreamDrivePro, a semi-autonomous driving system and the first automotive application of lidar in North America was $2,500. An excellent 21-speaker surround audio system added $2,900.
A comfort and convenience package with soft-close doors, power rear and rear side window sunshades, four-zone climate control, a heated steering wheel and heated rear seats is $2,500, plus our car had the Stealth Appearance package for $1,750 and an upgrade to 20-inch Aero Lite Stealth wheels for $1,200.
The total as-tested price of the 2025 Lucid Air Pure was $83,050.
Lucid will debut the Lucid Gravity SUV later this year, and they have teased a mid-size SUV aimed directly at the Tesla Model Y that could be priced near $50,000.
I’ve seen the Gravity, and it’s stunning, just like the Air. In an era where choices in the EV market are multiplying, Lucid is the company setting the bar for quality and style.
Mike Hagerty, past vice president of membership for Western Automotive Journalists (waj.org), has been writing about cars since 1997. Read more of his reviews at MikeHagertyCars.com.
