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Lucid doubles down on horsepower with the Air Grand Touring Performance

Stephen Edelstein
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The Lucid Air already boasts the longest range of any EV currently on sale, but now Lucid is focusing on performance.

Unveiled Tuesday, the Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance will be the sportiest regular-production version of the electric luxury sedan. Its dual-motor all-wheel-drive powertrain produces 1,050 horsepower, which will get the Grand Touring Performance from zero to 60mph in 2.6 seconds, according to Lucid.

Front three quarter view of the Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance EV.
Lucid

Granted, those numbers don’t surpass the limited-volume Lucid Air Dream Edition P (for performance), which has a claimed 1,111 hp and 2.5-second zero-to-60mph time. But since reservations for the Dream Edition P (and the less powerful Dream Edition Range version) are now closed, the Grand Touring Performance is now the sportiest Air available. This new model is also the most powerful production EV currently available in North America, Lucid pointed out, beating the 1,020-hp Tesla Model S Plaid.

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The range is estimated at 446 miles. That is less than the record 520 miles of the Dream Edition Range, as well as some other Lucid models, but still more than any other current production EV available in the United States. Only the base (non-Plaid) Model S comes close, with a 405-mile range rating. Lucid noted that the Air’s 350-kilowatt DC fast-charging capability added 300 miles of range in 21 minutes in recent independent media tests.

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The Grand Touring Performance gets the same tech features as other Air models, including a 34-inch 5K dashboard display, over-the-air (OTA) software update capability, a 21-speaker Dolby Atmos-compatible audio system, and Lucid’s DreamDrive Pro driver-assist system.

Pricing starts at $179,000, and Lucid plans to begin U.S. customer deliveries in June. Lucid also qualifies for the full $7,500 federal EV tax credit.

Lucid also confirmed that deliveries of the Air Grand Touring (non-Performance) model have started. This version has 819 hp, can do zero to 60mph in a claimed 3.0 seconds, and has a 516-mile range with the standard 19-inch wheels. Optional 21-inch wheels drop the range to 469 miles.

Once production of the Grand Touring and Grand Touring Performance fully ramp up, Lucid will move on to lower-level Touring and Pure models. The automaker has also said it will launch an SUV, codenamed Project Gravity, in 2023.

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Stephen Edelstein
Stephen Edelstein
Contributing Editor
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
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