Had an interesting chat with some dudes from Lucid test team

[submatrix]

I was charging my TTS at an Electrify America in Las Vegas (Outlet Mall, south strip) and got to talking to the driver of another Turbo S with specs almost identical to my own. Turns out he's part of a Lucid test team. Another member of his team was chilling in the parking lot waiting on him.

His team's mission was to drive some Lucids and Taycans from San Francisco to Las Vegas, switching drivers periodically, noting the pros/cons of each vehicle, testing certain features, etc. Sounds like kind of a fun job for young guys. A few interesting takeaway points from the conversation:

• The fellow I chatted with found the Taycan more fun to drive.
• I asked which of their upcoming offerings would most closely match the Turbo S, and what are the specs. He said their test car will do 0-60 in low to mid 2's and will run about $170k, but that price could change.
• The team was able to easily get 500+ miles on a single charge for the Lucids. They only had to do one Lucid charge on the trip whereas the Taycans required several.
• I told them when the time comes to ally themselves with a charging network, they should choose anyone other than Electrify America. He agreed EA is highly unreliable and hates them too but unfortunately, the powers that be at Lucid are setting up some kind of deal with EA.

I had never seen a Lucid before. My personal opinion is that it's not a very attractive car. I doubt I'd want to own one. That said, maybe they're incredible to drive so I should probably reserve judgement.

I friggin' love my TTS but realistically, the way I drive it (Sport Plus, relatively hard acceleration), I'm only getting 175-190 miles on a charge. I knew range sucked going in so whatever, but I guess I didn't really grasp the full extent of how limited the Taycan's range is compared to competitors. I'm not sure what Lucid is doing with their batteries but if they're legitimately getting 500+ miles on a charge, they're in a league of their own.

I was in Vegas this past weekend too, what's most surprising to me is that you were standing outside chatting with people in that 100 degree heat

Also fwiw the drive from LA was a breeze, one stop in Barstow Walmart for about 15 min, arrived with about 120 miles left to spare. Drove 75-80mph the entire way.

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[SWORDER]

I was in Vegas this past weekend too, what's most surprising to me is that you were standing outside chatting with people in that 100 degree heat

Also fwiw the drive from LA was a breeze, one stop in Barstow Walmart for about 15 min, arrived with about 120 miles left to spare. Drove 75-80mph the entire way.

Yes, it was like 108 degrees that day. And there's no shady spots to stand either! Sunscreen and hat are a must when charging in Vegas.

The Barstow Walmart! Yes, I stop there as well. It's part of my routine. There's also one in that little town of Hesperia that can be used in a pinch. Is it just me or is Barstow kind of a depressing place?

 

[Mr.Smith]

If Lucid’s powertrain is the real deal, I kind of wish Porsche/Audi would have partnered with them over Rimac. The Lucid powertrain combined with Porsche chassis, suspension, and braking would be top notch.

Their motors are significantly smaller than the Taycan, yet develop a lot more horsepower. They also managed to get another 200-250 miles of range with 10-15% more battery, yet roughly the same coefficient of drag.

Lucid was trying to license out their technology to OEMS, but no bites

My use case is a bit different because:

• I take frequent road trips and spend a fair amount of time above 70 mph which isn't great for range.
• I don't have a charger at home. Public charger accessibility is a must for me. Lower range means more charging sessions.

Again, I knew what I was getting into when I got the car. Not complaining. Just saying that if Porsche could 2x its range without sacrificing performance, I'd be a pretty happy camper. Until the Lucid dude told me otherwise, I had no idea that the 500+ range was anything more than a pipe dream.

Isn't Lucid using up to 113kwh batteries though?

Their claim to Fame is the efficiency at over 4.8mi/kWh and the smaller motor as @manitou202 mentioned.

Lucid tried to license out their technology but no OEMs bit. I wonder why

 

[submatrix]

Yes, it was like 108 degrees that day. And there's no shady spots to stand either! Sunscreen and hat are a must when charging in Vegas.

The Barstow Walmart! Yes, I stop there as well. It's part of my routine. There's also one in that little town of Hesperia that can be used in a pinch. Is it just me or is Barstow kind of a depressing place?

It's indeed depressing.

Which charger do you use at the Walmart? I pulled up to the pair by the entrance (stations 7-8) and 8 was out of service but 7 worked. That being said, 7 didn't show up on Charging NA but it also gave a free charge so I suspect it hasn't been added to the network yet. It also only gave me like 72kW, but I couldn't be bothered to try the faster chargers elsewhere in the parking lot since I read on PlugShare that they seemed troublesome/finicky.

 

[chrisk]

If Lucid’s powertrain is the real deal, I kind of wish Porsche/Audi would have partnered with them over Rimac. The Lucid powertrain combined with Porsche chassis, suspension, and braking would be top notch.

Their motors are significantly smaller than the Taycan, yet develop a lot more horsepower. They also managed to get another 200-250 miles of range with 10-15% more battery, yet roughly the same coefficient of drag.

On paper it sounds better but we don't know if the materials and design of the Lucid motor will stand the test of time i.e. what would be it reliability and life expectancy.

 

[Miwa]

I've used the Barstow chargers 4 times on Bay Area to Vegas road trips. I wouldn't use the front ones, because they are 150kW, and more likely to have other cars parked next to the spots.

 

[SWORDER]

It's indeed depressing.

Which charger do you use at the Walmart? I pulled up to the pair by the entrance (stations 7-8) and 8 was out of service but 7 worked. That being said, 7 didn't show up on Charging NA but it also gave a free charge so I suspect it hasn't been added to the network yet. It also only gave me like 72kW, but I couldn't be bothered to try the faster chargers elsewhere in the parking lot since I read on PlugShare that they seemed troublesome/finicky.

There are two banks of chargers. I typically go to the one that's further into the complex, further from the Walmart entrance. Two of them, I think maybe 05 and 06, offer 350kW. Those are the ones I use, although I've never actually seen anything north of 250kW.

I'm wondering if perhaps these chargers have been decommissioned since I was last there. The EA app is showing all chargers as being unavailable and no one has checked in on PlugShare since 9/13/21.

 

[submatrix]

There are two banks of chargers. I typically go to the one that's further into the complex, further from the Walmart entrance. Two of them, I think maybe 05 and 06, offer 350kW. Those are the ones I use, although I've never actually seen anything north of 250kW.

I'm wondering if perhaps these chargers have been decommissioned since I was last there. The EA app is showing all chargers as being unavailable and no one has checked in on PlugShare since 9/13/21.

Yeah, I saw the same thing plus people reporting issues with those chargers, hence why I stuck with the front bank when it worked on first try.

 

[daveo4EV]

this is a great drive train and will set the bar for EV drive train power and efficiency - Porsche’s current offerings are not best of breed in either power, weight, or efficiency - they should endeavour to be a leader in at least one of these dimensions - it will pay dividends…

too bad the Lucid Air is such an ugly ugly car - anyone who says Tesla’s and ugly but loves this thing seriously confuses me.

 

[daveo4EV]

There are two banks of chargers. I typically go to the one that's further into the complex, further from the Walmart entrance. Two of them, I think maybe 05 and 06, offer 350kW. Those are the ones I use, although I've never actually seen anything north of 250kW.

I'm wondering if perhaps these chargers have been decommissioned since I was last there. The EA app is showing all chargers as being unavailable and no one has checked in on PlugShare since 9/13/21.

250 kW is pretty good to be expected given the Taycan’s Limit of 270 kW by the time I’m getting 240 kW or better I think we’re operating in real world ideal circumstances…and over 200 kW the car charges sooooooo fast…

 

[Jhenson29]

Porsche’s current offerings are not best of breed in either power, weight, or efficiency - they should endeavour to be a leader in at least one of these dimensions - it will pay dividends…

Can’t they just be a pretty face??

 

[daveo4EV]

Can’t they just be a pretty face??

porsche does make the best looking EV todate IMHO - the Taycan is my preference as a car and style object - but it’s not the best “EV” in any dimension - there are better EV’s - but those alternatives fall down in other area’s…

LucidAir may well be a better EV - but I can’t get past the styling for my personal taste…so it’s a worse “car” in my opinion - but I’m pretty sure if it performs as expected it’s going to set a new bar for the other guys to chase…

choice and competition is great - and I’m loving it.

 

[steen]

Lucid does seem to have some magic juice regarding tech, that surpasses Porsche and Tesla. I would love to have 500 miles of range. Question is if the small motors will last, or break. Time will show.

doesent matter to me tho, the lucid is so ugly, I could never buy one.

 

[Dee]

this is a great drive train and will set the bar for EV drive train power and efficiency - Porsche’s current offerings are not best of breed in either power, weight, or efficiency - they should endeavour to be a leader in at least one of these dimensions - it will pay dividends…

too bad the Lucid Air is such an ugly ugly car - anyone who says Tesla’s and ugly but loves this thing seriously confuses me.

Taycan is the best sport EV, actually it's the only affordable sport EV today so yeah, that's the bar right there... ?

 

[feye]

Most impressive EPA numbers

200 to 260 is more than enough for me, but nice to see this type of efficiency

All these EVs are so efficient. On the other side, we know EPA numbers are garbage. They do not follow a standardized and verified test protocol. Therefore, the range numbers above are meaningless.

I need to know

• battery net capacity
• drag co-efficient
• weight
• tire size

Then practical range is clearly predictable.