Lucid cuts 2024 prices to expand market for Air sedan

Lucid Motors is reworking trim levels for the 2024 model year of its Air sedan, lowering its starting prices to better compete with luxury rivals.

The EV startup is also adding flexibility to its options packages, allowing customers to purchase more features on lower trims rather than moving up the trim ladder on the large sedan, the company said.

"This transforms the flexibility and choice for our customers while highlighting Lucid's commitment to continuous improvement," CEO Peter Rawlinson said in a news release Tuesday.

Lucid will have three core trims for the Air, based on powertrain and battery size: Pure, Touring and Grand Touring. Options can be added in a more a la carte fashion than in 2023. That means lower base prices with fewer standard features but with the option to add them during the order process.

The Grand Touring Performance trim is discontinued, Lucid said. The high-end Air Sapphire will remain a separate, ultra-performance variant that starts at $250,800 with shipping.

For the 2024 model year, Lucid is offering the base Pure trim with a single motor and rear-wheel drive with a starting price of $78,900 with shipping, the automaker said. It has an estimated range of 419 miles, 430 hp and a 0 to 60 mph time of 4.5 seconds, Lucid said.

The rwd Pure replaces the 2023 version with two motors, all-wheel drive and a starting price of $83,900 with shipping. The 2023 model has 410 miles of range, 480 hp and accelerates to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds.

The 2024 Pure offers more options to purchase, including a $2,500 convenience package that adds soft-close doors, four-zone climate control and power rear sun shades, Lucid said. Other options include a genuine leather interior with massaging seats, which was not offered on the 2023 Pure trim.

Unchanged is the steel roof on the Pure. There are no options for a glass roof or sunroof.

The midlevel Air Touring starts at $87,400 with shipping, down from $96,500 with shipping for the 2023 model year, Lucid said. The Touring comes standard with 411 miles of range, all-wheel drive and 620 hp. It accelerates to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, Lucid said.

For 2024, the Touring loses some standard features, such as the upgraded leather interior, which can be added for $3,000. The seats are also downgraded from 14-way to 12-way. Lucid offers optional seats with ventilation and massage for $3,750, according to the company's website.

Lucid did not give 2024 pricing for the Grand Touring trim of the Air. Last year's model was $127,100 with shipping. The automaker also did not give estimated range, saying it would be announced in early 2024. Last year's model of the Air Grand Touring had 460 miles of range.

The Grand Touring loses standard equipment for 2024, including the glass canopy roof, now a $3,500 option, Lucid said. A leather interior is also an option, as are 20-way power front seats with ventilation and massage. The trim's 819 hp remains the same.

The company's new strategy of lowering prices and allowing more flexibility on options should allow it to compete with large luxury sedans in its segment and also with midsize sedans from brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW, Lucid said.

"The lower starting price for the 2024 model year enables the Air to expand its total addressable market from simply the large luxury sedan segment to the midsize luxury sedan market as well," said Rob Whitley, senior manager of product planning, marketing and pricing for the Air.

The EV sedan is newly competitive with models such as the Mercedes EQE, rather than just the larger EQS, Whitley told Automotive News last month. The 2024 Air also competes with combustion vehicles in the midsize segment, he added, and not just EVs.

As part of its third-quarter earnings report, Lucid cuts its production estimate for the Air this year due to slow sales.

The EV maker now estimates 2023 output at 8,000 to 8,500 vehicles, down from its previous estimate of "more than 10,000" Air sedans. Lucid said in November that the move is "to prudently align with deliveries."

Going into its third-quarter report Tuesday, Lucid had delivered 4,267 Air sedans through September and produced 6,037, the company said.