The Tesla Model S Plaid’s archnemesis starts at an eye-watering $249,000 before taxes and fees.
The 1,234 horsepower Lucid Air Sapphire is ready to hit US streets. Lucid announced today that the first production model rolled off its assembly line in Casa Grande, Arizona.
The automaker released a picture of the model in the Advanced Manufacturing Plant-1 (AMP-1), where it was undergoing ADAS system calibration. Lucid announced the final specifications of the electric performance sedan last month and promised production would begin in September 2023, followed by customer deliveries in the coming weeks.
The Sapphire is the most powerful variant of the Air. Its twin rear motors, and a single motor mounted on the front axle, deliver over 1,430 pound-feet of torque, and it shares the 118-kilowatt-hour battery with the Dream Edition, which gives it an EPA-estimated 427 miles range and 3.61 miles/kWh efficiency.
The performance numbers are wild. Lucid claims the Air Sapphire can accelerate from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in 1.89 seconds, slingshot to 100 mph in 3.84 seconds, and a quarter mile in 8.95 seconds. It tops out at 205 mph. In a Hagerty drag race early this year, the Air Sapphire beat its archnemesis, the Tesla Model S Plaid, in a quarter-mile drag race.
The Air – whose prices range from $82,000 (excluding taxes and fees) for the Pure variant to the $249,000 for the Sapphire – hasn’t really been a hot seller for the brand, and the low sales could be partly attributed to the hefty prices.
Although year-over-year production numbers are up. Lucid produced 2,173 units in Q2 2023, up 204 percent from Q2 2022, and delivered 1,404 units in the same period, up 107 percent over the same period. Lucid is expected to release Q3 production and delivery figures soon.
With the brand diversifying its production bases, sales might improve in the coming months. Lucid inaugurated its first overseas assembly plant, christened Advanced Manufacturing Plant 2 (AMP-2) in Saudi Arabia, in the King Abdullah Economic City, where it is expected to assemble 5,000 units in the first phase and expand capacity to 155,000 units in the future.
Gallery: Lucid Air Sapphire
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