Our Long-Term 2024 Lucid Air Pure Is Ready to Strut Its Stuff

Introduction

It isn’t often that Car and Driver gets this excited about a base model, but the 430-hp Lucid Air Pure is one that deserves as much praise as the 1234-hp Air Sapphire. Not so much for its 4.3-second dash to 60 mph or its 419-mile EPA range—both solid performances—but for the exceptional value and truly luxurious experience behind the wheel. Winning a 10Best award for 2024 all but guaranteed we’d request a long-termer for us to live with and test for 40,000 miles.

The well-appointed cabin is quiet and coddling in this $81,350 spec, a price we could prune by omitting the Stealth Appearance package (black exterior trim, essentially, for $1750) and striking Zenith Red Metallic paint ($800), though everyone agrees that the curb appeal is tough to beat. On top of the $71,400 base price, we also added the DreamDrive Premium package ($2000), more for the surround-view camera system than the ADAS tech, and the Comfort & Convenience package ($2500 for soft-close doors, power sunshades, four-zone climate control, heated rear seats, and a heated steering wheel). Since we ordered our car, Lucid has made the DreamDrive Premium setup standard on the Pure, leaving the more expensive DreamDrive Pro system as the only ADAS option. But seeing as we enjoy driving the Air so much, we don’t feel like we missed out on the Pro’s more advanced hands-free highway assists.

We did, however splurge on the $2900 stereo upgrade. The Surreal Sound Pro option has 21 speakers (up from the standard nine) and features the first automotive integration of Dolby Atmos. Everything from movie theaters to living-room soundbars uses this technology, and for those who are of a certain age, no, it isn’t the latest in noise reduction. Atmos is a digital audio format, which means you have to have the right source and hardware to take advantage of the immersive sound experience. After years of our ears being accustomed to compressed audio, old songs sound brand new in Atmos. Not all your favorite artists have Atmos formatting, but more are being added all the time. Tidal is the only Atmos-enabled app on our Lucid’s infotainment for now. It runs $14 per month.

The initial response from our editors has been overwhelmingly positive, and it seems as though editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga found his new commuter of choice. The 430-hp powertrain isn’t a headline grabber, but it’s got more than enough passing power to shock passengers into attention. A few drivers dug deep into the nitpick trough to complain about the seatbelt chime that rings as soon as you get in the car (a side effect of no true start button). But there’s not been a single comment on the faux leather, which suggests that it’s pretty convincing.

We haven’t had too many problems with the car. It’s mainly just been us getting used to the 21st-century features, such as using a smartphone as a key. This occasionally creates some anxiety should, say, your daughter decide she needs to watch every episode of Sesame Street. Smartphones need power to work, after all, so it’s just one more thing to be conscious of. The nearest Lucid service center is in south-central Michigan, about 90 minutes west of our Ann Arbor base. When we do get around to getting the Air there for some service—or more likely a repair because we did something silly—we will request they adjust the frunk release. It is a little sticky and often requires a few tries to get the hood fully ajar. Upgrading to the roughly $10,000 pricier Air Touring (now the least expensive way to get dual motors and all-wheel drive) nets an optional power frunk.

We’ve had the Air for a few months, and a common theme when discussing it is how it surprises editors when they get in it for a second or third time. Normally, there is a familiarity that breeds complacency, but we are still amazed at how well it executes the luxury-car mission: quiet, smooth, comfortable.

Our Air hasn’t traveled anywhere notable just yet, but its soon-to-come access to the Tesla Supercharger network should make for convenient road tripping. We did put it on one Tesla DC cord already, but it could draw only 48 kilowatts because its 900-volt architecture doesn’t play nice with Tesla’s 400. It’s always something with EV infrastructure, isn’t it?

Months in Fleet: 4 months Current Mileage: 4885 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 110 MPGe
Battery Capacity: 88.0 kWh Observed Driving Range (C/D est): 290 miles
Service: $0 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0
Damage and Destruction: $0

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