This is the new Lucid Gravity, an electric SUV designed and built by the Californian manufacturer Lucid as the second car in its line-up after the Lucid Air. Currently on sale in the US and Canada, as well as Switzerland, Germany, Norway, The Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the Air has ensured Lucid achieved escape velocity from start-up status. Its focus is 100 per cent on high-end products that start where other EV specialists end their ranges.
Up until now, the only Lucid on sale has been the Air, a large luxury saloon offering a twist on the classic combustion-era proportions. Instead of a long bonnet and boot (or hood and trunk, perhaps), the Air’s silhouette priortises the passenger cabin, with a long wheelbase and short overhangs. As well as using a ‘skateboard’ of batteries (the LEAP, or Lucid Electric Advanced Platform) underpinning the car to increase physical scale and space, Lucid is also using technology as a way of creating a new form of luxury.
We spoke to Derek Jenkins, Lucid’s SVP of Brand and Design, about the brand’s approach and how this is one of the only ways a brand-new company can tackle the persistent hegemony of heritage and history that has defined luxury automotive design up until now. Jenkins has been at Lucid since 2015, back when the company was still known as Atieva.
Atieva was founded way back in 2007, in the very early days of electrification, and through a series of acquisitions, mergers and partnerships, it eventually emerged as Lucid Motors in late 2016. At this point, company pivoted from supplying batteries and powertrains to making its own car. This is when the Air was first shown in concept form.
Jenkins was formerly director of design at Mazda North America Operations, and before that he was chief designer for Volkswagen North America, the studio that created the Scirocco concept, Ragster, Microbus concept, and Concept T. He’s also worked for Audi, where he was the principal exterior designer of the cult aluminium-bodied A2 concept and production cars and the elegant 2002 Audi A8. Parlaying this experience into luxury EVs has proved an engaging challenge.
Jenkins sets out the four keystones of Lucid’s approach to luxury. For a start, there’s the compact drivetrain that allows for huge internal spaces, not just in the passenger cabin but in the luggage compartments. ‘Range is our next key point,’ he says, ‘it’s code for efficiency. The Air achieves 5 miles per KwH – it’s the most aerodynamic luxury saloon on the market.’ Next up is performance. No surprises here, for EVs have had a power advantage over their ICE forebears since forever.
That said, the flagship Air, the Sapphire, has the equivalent of 1,234 horsepower, hits 60mph in under two seconds and tops out at well over 200mph. The most efficient Air, the Grand Touring model, has a 512-mile range. EV aficionados know full well that you can’t explore extremes of range and performance at the same time, or even in the same model, but it shows Lucid’s breadth of ability and confidence in its components and engineering.
Finally, there is luxury. For us, ‘this means mindfulness, sustainability, materials and the user experience’, says Jenkins, ‘the starting point for all of this was our Californian DNA. When it comes to vehicles, the place of origin really matters. All great auto brands wear this on their sleeve.’
The Air’s proportions came out of studying ‘decades and decades of internal combustion cars’. ‘Long hoods symbolised more cylinders and therefore more power,’ Jenkins explains, ‘a grille is essentially an abstracted radiator. We found we could move the passengers forward and make the cabin longer… it’s a non-traditional approach that is better for space and access.’ Another influence was aviation’s ‘golden age’, ‘from the 1940s to the 1960s, when aircraft were these pure, honest machines’, Jenkins says. Even the Air’s large trunk opening evokes a cargo plane.
Lucid Gravity, an electric SUV coming in 2025
If the Air is the ultimate Cali cruiser, the Gravity is presumably the SUV to conquer the state’s many and varied terrains and lifestyles. ‘California is a unique place,’ the designer continues, ‘it has amazing natural geography, lifestyle, icons of art, culture and technology. We felt it was a really good bedrock to build a brand on.’ He points out that California has long been at the cutting edge of American car culture, ‘from racing and custom cars, to the transition to importing small cars after the oil crisis. Hybrid and electrification [also] have their roots in California.’
Crucially, luxury values are shifting, and Jenkins believes that Lucid is well placed to tap into a new generation of high-end consumer. ‘There’s a new way to express personal success, if you like,’ he says. ‘You see it across architecture, interiors, health and wellness, etc.’ Lucid’s models are designed in California and built in Arizona, with the factory now expanded to include the start of Gravity production in 2025.
Given the US is so SUV-centric, why start with a sedan? ‘We debated this extensively in 2015,’ Jenkins admits. ‘We always knew we’d be an advanced technology company and therefore a luxury brand. We felt that efficiency, long-range, handling and performance were all best demonstrated by a sedan.’ Nevertheless, it’s a shrinking segment as buyers turn to SUVs and crossovers.
According to Jenkins, ‘the lessons learned with Air have made Gravity a better SUV’. Despite the infusion of Cali-culture, Jenkins admits that both vehicles ‘were conceived with a strong dose of European influence. We’re not solely looking at things from an American point of view.’ Unlike other recent electric SUVs and trucks, Air and Gravity easily fit into European road infrastructure, although they’re still big cars.
Other aspects of Lucid’s new luxury approach include the way the company approaches its spacious interiors. In the Air, the rear seats are trimmed a different shade to the front. ‘It creates a space that feels more lounge-like and open,’ says Jenkins. In the Gravity, rear seats have folding laptop tables, because ‘people would rather have their own gear, not monster screens in front of them [all the time].’ The Gravity can carry up to seven people, or the load area can haul up to three mountain bikes, making it both sensible and sybaritic. ‘This is a primary household vehicle,’ says Jenkins, ‘you need the flexible space.’
Interiors and materials draw inspiration from contemporary furniture design and leather goods companies, with open-pore woods, unfussy surfaces and a feeling of warmth and tactility. Unlike some competitors, Lucid isn’t going all-out with customisation options. ‘We’ve looked at bespoke programmes,’ Jenkins says, ‘but we’ve taken the approach of creating a simple set of curated themes named after California locations – Yosemite, Tahoe, Mojave and Ojai.
So where do Lucid’s customers come from, now and in the future. ‘Most obviously, it’s our Californian neighbour,’ Jenkins says diplomatically. ‘People are ready for something new. But we also have former owners of Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus. Consumer values are changing and people are very conscious of what a luxury vehicle says about them. Lucid has an aura of new luxury.’ Happily for Jenkins and his team, this evolution has run alongside Lucid’s growth as a company.
Was this intentional? ‘To a degree, it was a leap of faith. We had some market research, but we’ve definitely evolved it along the way. You have to make it happen,’ he says, adding that Lucid will continue to innovate and evolve. ‘If you look at the car industry, any time there’s a big tech innovation there follows a period of rapid change, and that affects people’s taste. With all the increased competition, we’re going to have to run pretty hard and fast to keep things fresh.’
Lucid Air, from $69,900 for the Air Pure model to $249,000 for the Lucid Air Sapphire, LucidMotors.com, @LucidMotors
Lucid Gravity, coming soon, details at LucidMotors.com
