BEHIND THE HEADLINES
Whatever your ambitions in the EV space, tech is key explains Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson
‘We try things and they fail. Life isn’t easy,’ said James Dyson of the demise of his electric car project. But where plenty have failed Lucid has so far survived; flourished even. Initially one of myriad EV start-ups that sprung up all over Silicon Valley, it soon established itself as stronger than most. Lead by Peter Rawlinson, the engineer who helped make the Tesla Model S a production reality, and with the superb Air saloon as proof of its technical proficiency, Lucid climbed from the primordial soup, grew lungs and legs and set about sprinting after Elon’s outfit.
In late 2023 it delivered its 10,000th car (it delivered its first in late 2021). Lucid’s second car, the Gravity SUV, will go on sale later this year. Next year we’ll see the first Aston Martin EVs running Lucid-developed powertrains. And Rawlinson’s advanced engineering team is busy working on Lucid’s third car, a mid-sized Model 3/Model Y rival targeting a $48,000 starting price.
The Lucid difference? Tech, according to Rawlinson. The electric car business is a technology arms race – fortunately Lucid has rather big guns.
‘We’re trying to move the needle for the state of the art, and make a more advanced electric car than anyone else. There’s been a whole phalanx of start-ups and we’re often grouped in with them; unfairly, I think. There’s still not been another electric car within 100 miles of our range and we’re still both the highest voltage EV you can buy and the fastest charging. And now, with the Air Sapphire, we’re claiming a conservative 1.89sec to 60mph…’
LUCID GREW LEGS AND LUNGS AND SPRINTED AFTER ELON’S OUTFIT
Innovative technology is Lucid’s lifeblood; always has been, as Rawlinson explains. ‘Back in 2016 we were going bankrupt fast. I needed to prove we had the best battery technology in the world, so we decided to partner with McLaren on a Formula E battery pack. That second-generation car was a step-change for Formula E – previously the drivers had to swap into a second, fully charged car to get through a race.’
That decision paid back handsomely. As a graphic demonstration of Lucid�
