During the development of the Lucid Air, the company showed off a three-motor version that seemed capable of very impressive performance. Judging by a new teaser, we'll see a production version of that speedy EV at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, on August 19.
The teaser's brief animation shows three cylindrical objects spinning and rotating. The items have a resemblance to a portion of the stator, which is a major component of an electric motor. To push the message even harder, the company includes the statement: "Three is a magic number."
Three is a magic number. See why at The Quail. 8.19.22 #BlueMeansGo #DreamAhead pic.twitter.com/7BihZBhw78
— Lucid Motors (@LucidMotors) August 16, 2022
Assuming this really is the three-motor Air, then it could be a real competitor against the Tesla Model S Plaid. In 2020, the company sent a prototype of the tri-motor around Laguna Seca and managed to set a lap time of 1 minute and 31.3 seconds. For comparison, a Plaid was able to do it in 1:30.3.
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Lucid also showed off the tri-motor prototype covering the quarter-mile in 9.245 seconds at 157.26 miles per hour. Although, as a pre-production vehicle, we can't be certain whether the version going on sale is also capable of this acceleration.
When Lucid released all the details about the Air Dream Edition in 2020, it also provided some hints about the three-motor model. The company claimed the two motors in the rear axle were capable of making an outrageous 1,300 horsepower (969 kilowatts). At the time, the automaker hoped to launch this vehicle in late 2021.
The most powerful version of the Air so far was the Dream Edition Performance that made 1,111 hp (829 kW). Lucid no longer offers this trim level, so the Grand Touring Performance with 1,050 hp (783 kW) is the current top dog in the lineup. One of them was the fastest production vehicle in the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed hill climb with a time of 50.79 seconds.
In August, Lucid reduced its estimated Air production in 2022 to between 6,000 and 7,000 units. This was the second reduction during the year after initially hoping to build 20,000 vehicles and later revising that number down to between 12,000 and 14,000 cars. The automaker cited "extraordinary supply chain and logistics challenges" as the reason for changing plans.
The Lucid Air Stealth Look Package will also be on display during Monterey Car Week. For a discussion of it and the other vehicles premiering during the big automotive event, check out the latest episode of the Rambling About Cars podcast:
