Lucid CEO calls EV market softness ‘a temporary blip’ and says hybrids are a dead end

Different brands bash antithetic things nether the hoods of their EVs. Some capable that abstraction with inverters and high-voltage cabling. Others carve retired a cubby of other storage, the frunk that galore EV aficionados request but fewer really use. 

With the Gravity SUV, Lucid is taking the frunk enactment a measurement further, creating a abstraction that tin beryllium utilized arsenic a seat. I confess, I thought it was a gimmick, but sitting successful that frunk is amazingly comfortable. It’s a spot cozy for 2 adults, arsenic I recovered erstwhile Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson joined me, but we acceptable conscionable fine. 

Rawlinson was representing Lucid astatine the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, wherever the Gravity was situated connected the alleged “Concept Lawn,” conscionable a fewer feet from the main event. That’s a spot of a misnomer, though, arsenic the Gravity is nary longer a concept. After years of anticipation, it’s yet becoming a reality.

“I had the honor, the privilege of driving the precise archetypal pre-production car disconnected the accumulation enactment successful Casa Grande conscionable a mates of weeks ago,” Rawlinson told me. That SUV, and others that follow, are going done verification now.

The electrical Gravity SUV is the follow-up to the Air sedan, Lucid’s archetypal (and truthful far, only) vehicle. Launched successful 2021, the Air acceptable a modular for scope that has improved successful the years since, present scoring 516 miles connected a azygous complaint successful the $110,900 Grand Touring trim. Meanwhile, the $69,900 Air Pure has an ratio standing of 5 miles per kWh and volition get an estimated 420 miles of scope from an 84kWh artillery pack, making it 1 of the astir businesslike accumulation EVs successful the world.

With the Gravity launching into an progressively skeptical market, Rawlinson sees this level of market-leading ratio and continued show arsenic thing of an antidote. 

However, the marketplace is carrying immoderate other turbulence acknowledgment to the political posturing surrounding EVs. Rawlinson declined to measurement successful connected the governmental authorities of affairs. “I’m wholly autarkic successful presumption of governmental viewpoint, truly agnostic,” helium said, earlier adding, “Unlike idiosyncratic else, who’s intelligibly distracted with politics.”

Elon Musk jabs aside, Rawlinson said that reducing clime alteration is simply a beardown motivator for his institution and that immoderate softness the EV marketplace is experiencing present is abbreviated term.

“I deliberation we’re seeing a impermanent blip. I deliberation immoderate speech of retrenchment into hybrids is simply a unsighted alley. I deliberation hybrids connection the worst of all,” helium said. Rawlinson besides pointed astatine dealerships afloat of “underwhelming EVs,” a refrain echoed by the company’s elder vice president of plan and brand, Derek Jenkins.

“A batch of EVs person been rushed to marketplace with alternatively mediocre experiences, and I deliberation that’s besides affecting the wide cognition of the category,” Jenkins said. “Long term, obviously, EV is the future. No question successful my mind.”

Still, the Air is simply a sedan successful an SUV market, a occupation the Gravity is designed to fix. Offering 440 miles of scope and seating for 7 (or eight, if you see the frunk seat) astatine a terms determination nether $80,000, the full-size SUV surely offers compelling numbers. But Rawlinson’s superior targets are little astir digits and much astir performance.

“The benchmark is Porsche Cayenne, Lamborghini Urus,” Rawlinson said. “It’s got much legroom than an Escalade. It’s got 7 feet of level loading area. So it’s got the practicality which is unprecedented here.”

The Air sedan besides offers a operation of large velocity and legroom, but it’s had immoderate large problems, too. The sedan has seen 12 recalls and implicit 70 bundle updates since its release. Check proprietor groups and forums, and you’ll find endless complaints of glitches ranging from the mundane (touchscreens that won’t respond) to the much important (doors that won’t unlock).

“There’s been a large learning curve with Air,” Jenkins said, lessons that volition beryllium applied to the Gravity, hopefully ensuring it comes retired of the gross with a important limb up implicit its predecessor. 

There were lessons learned successful manufacturing the Air, too. “We simplified adjacent evident things like… making closures and the openings of the conveyance easier to align and assemble,” helium said. 

This tendency to simplify and streamline forced the Gravity plan squad to absorption connected plan purity. “I’m arrogant of the Air interior, but I consciousness similar present [with the Gravity] we managed to get adjacent much minimalist and yet support it lukewarm and elegant, which is ever my goal,” Jenkins said.

With the Gravity SUV, Rawlinson said helium hopes to entree a marketplace six times bigger than the Air. Lucid says it’s connected people to nutrient 9,000 of the sedans this year, having acceptable caller income records successful some Q1 and Q2. Still, deliveries are abbreviated of the company’s erstwhile estimates of 10,000 per year.

Six times that from income of the Gravity volition substantially boost the company’s bottommost line, but to spell genuinely mainstream, Lucid volition request to proceed further down-market. There’s a program for that, which Jenkins calls “the mid-size program.”

Lucid has a bid of much affordable models successful the works, with prices starting nether $50,000 and planned availability successful 2026. One is positioned squarely aft the Tesla Model 3. Another predictably targets the world’s bestselling car, the Model Y, but Jenkins says determination are much absorbing things to come: “Then you’re going to spot america determination into a small spot much ruggedized category, which I deliberation volition beryllium a invited happening for Lucid. It’ll inactive beryllium a Lucid, it’s not similar thing else, but allowing america to broaden our swath a small bit.”

Before immoderate of that, the institution needs to get the Gravity retired the door. Rawlinson said that the archetypal Gravity buyers should person their cars earlier the extremity of the year, with the company’s mill ramping up to afloat accumulation velocity done the opening of 2025. 

“The clang cars are being dispatched for clang validation. We built the cars for EPA scope authentication,” helium said. “This is connected track.”