California-based EV maker Lucid Motors says its ultrahigh-performance EV, the Lucid Air Sapphire, will be available soon. With over 1,200 horsepower, the Sapphire can keep up with the best, even topping Tesla’s Model S Plaid.
Lucid Air Sapphire will be available soon
Lucid teased fans with a tri-motor version of its electric Air sedan for several months before finally revealing the flagship EV at Monterey Car Week last summer.
A new twin rear-drive unit with incorporated torque vectoring powers the Sapphire. The technology was developed in-house, working with the single-motor front-drive unit to deliver over 1,200 hp.
Lucid says this makes it “not only the most powerful electric sedan ever produced but also the most powerful sedan in the world.”
The Lucid Air Sapphire features nearly 200 more horsepower than the Tesla Model S Plaid. It can go zero to 60 mph in under two seconds, zero to 100 in under four, and a standing quarter mile in less than nine seconds.
To prove its claims, the team over at Hagerty put it up to the test alongside a Buggati Chiron and Ducati motorcycle, and the Sapphire smoked them all, making it the quickest production car they have ever seen. (You can watch the video here.)
And it could be yours soon. Lucid posted a picture of the Air Sapphire on its Twitter Thursday coming off the assembly line at its Casa Grande, Arizona, facility. The EV maker said, “The world’s first luxury electric super-sports sedan will be available soon.”
Lucid says the Air Sapphire is just the beginning and represents an “entirely new performance-focused brand within Lucid.”
Top comment by Damon Ekstrom
I'm getting tired of seeing so many EV options out there for people that don't have to bat an eye at forking over $50k+, $100k+, or in this case $200k+ for a car. I'm not suggesting that these vehicles aren't worth that much, but the only way we get to a sustainable future where carbon emissions have all but subsided, is by ensuring that people of all income brackets have quality EVs to choose from.
I'm glad to hear that GM is bringing back the Bolt, I'm glad that Tesla is investing in the "Model 2", I just wish we could start seeing a bigger push for EVs that start under $30k, because that's the sweet spot for many drivers in today's economy where inflation and interest rates have skyrocketed to an all time high.
The company initially said the performance EV would be offered as a limited-production model and would be first available in the US and Canada starting in the first half of 2023. Prices for the Sapphire start at $249,000.
Lucid made some big moves in the past several months, licensing its powertrain tech to Aston Martin to help the British automaker integrate it into an all-new EV platform.
CEO Peter Rawlinson said the Strategic partnership, worth more than $450M, is just the start of Lucid’s tech business. The deal expands the reach of its product while “paving the way for more mainstream applications” in the future.
In another first, Lucid’s luxury EVs are now available to rent in Saudi Arabia as the automaker looks to expand its brand overseas.
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