Lucid launches new EV performance brand with a three-motor $249,000 sedan
The publicly listed EV maker Lucid Group has introduced Sapphire, a new high-performance premium brand that pushes the limits of performance and cost.
The business gave its first electric vehicle (EV), the Lucid Air sedan, the Sapphire treatment as part of the public presentation, which took place Friday morning at the Quail Lodge during Monterey Car Week.
The new Lucid Air Sapphire, which costs $249,000, has more than just a new paint colour and interior theme with heavily bolstered 18-way power sport seats covered in black leather and a Sapphire-themed on-screen display (excluding taxes and destination fees).
A three-motor engine that enhances performance all around has a new dual motor rear-drive unit and a single motor front-drive unit. The dual rear-drive unit has an improved coolant flow rate and updated heat exchanger technology. The battery technology has also been improved, according to the business, for more power and more accurate thermal logic.
According to Lucid, the final product (or one of them) is a car that can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in under two seconds, from zero to 100 mph in under four seconds, and from zero to the standing quarter mile in under nine seconds.
The precise horsepower figures, as well as instrumented demonstrations of the vehicle’s performance potential, will be released later; Lucid does not currently have them. The three-motor engine for the Lucid Air Sapphire has more than 1,200 horsepower, according to the manufacturer. Lucid withheld information on this performance EV’s range. Ranges for its other Air models vary from 406 to 520 kilometres on a single charge.
Compared to an all-wheel drive system, the engine enables a more dynamic experience. The double rear-drive unit in the Lucid Sapphire Air can swivel the back of the car and provide torque in two different directions to the back wheels.
Drivers should experience improved cornering balance as they approach and exit corners, rapid reaction times, and stability as a result.
The business claims that further novelties that set the Lucid Air Sapphire apart from previous Air models include stronger front and rear springs, special damper settings, stiffer bushings, and specialised tuning for ABS, traction control, stability control, and electronic power steering.
Additionally, the Sapphire Air has standard carbon ceramic brakes, Aero Sapphire wheels, and Michelin PS4S tyres with sizes 265/35R20 up front and 295/30R21 down back. To further improve the car’s aerodynamic performance, these wheels come with detachable carbon-fiber aero disc wheel covers.
Although lucid management have discussed releasing more affordable versions, now is not the right time. The Sapphire brand is more expensive than the already-luxury Lucid Air.
A small batch of the $249,000 Lucid Air Sapphire EV cars will be produced, according to the manufacturer. Next year, deliveries are anticipated for the United States and Canada. On August 23, Lucid claimed it will start accepting bookings at 9 a.m.
Just a few months ago, Lucid announced that it would begin producing a high-performance companion to its eagerly anticipated Lucid Air luxury sedan: a $179,000 grand tourer with 1,050-horsepower and a 446-mile range.
