Lucid Air Sapphire first drive: An all-electric work of art that’s almost too f’ing fast… almost
FINALLY YA’LL! Nearly two years after its initial announcement, we drove the 1,234 horsepower Lucid Air Sapphire in all its tri-motor glory. Spoiler alert! It did not disappoint. This EV is a masterclass in power and efficiency, setting the bar for a new breed of vehicles that are as fast as they are luxurious. Peep the full video review at the bottom.
Lucid Motors continues to gain notoriety in the EV space for its industry-leading efficiency and in many cases, bonkers performance specs. All of those accolades have come from just one model so far – the Air sedan.
While the American automaker is still looking to find its stride in brand recognition to boost sales of its flagship vehicle, it is not from a lack of effort. All variants of the Air sedan are impressive, delivering some of the best range in the entire industry, all within a sleek and luxe 924V package.
We recently saw Lucid roll out its 2024 model year versions of the Air, which now includes a RWD version of its entry-level Air Pure and a range-boosted Grand Touring. We’ll save thoughts on those versions for another day (although we did just drive them both).
Today’s focus is on the pinnacle of Lucid’s current portfolio and arguably of all mass-produced passenger EVs – the Air Sapphire. This exclusive tri-motor variant was first announced in the summer of 2022 with some redonkulous performance specs. We’re talking 0-60 mph in 1.98 seconds (from a standstill, mind you), 0-100 mph in under 4 seconds, and a top speed of 205 mph.
If you’re asking yourself why that sort of acceleration is necessary, first off, you’re a fool, and second, because Lucid has the technological prowess to do so. This halo EV is a major flex – not built for the average consumer (it does cost $250k after all), but exists as an exercise in futuristic all-electric performance.
I’d argue it’s also a nod to another American EV automaker (and any other automaker for that matter) saying, “That’s right, look what we can f@$king do. Top that.”
It’s not my place to choose a winner in the equation, but my career does put me in an excellent position where I get to test out insane rides like the Lucid Air Sapphire and report back to you lovely readers.
If you’ve read my work before (you better have!), you may recall I’ve been calling out the Lucid team directly every single time I cover the Air Sapphire, asking begging them to give me a chance to drive it. Finally, that opportunity came my way, and I made sure to document my genuine reactions as I put the accelerator to the floor for the first time… then again, and again, and again. Here are my thoughts.
The Lucid Air Sapphire is the fastest thing I’ve ever been in
We got invited to the Bay Area to tour the Lucid Motors design studio and test-drive all the 2024 Air models, including the Sapphire. While I was interested in testing out all variants of the Air, I was genuinely clamoring to get into Sapphire, and the Lucid team must have known it because they put me in that bad boy first (thanks, team).
Right out of the parking lot, the acceleration of the Lucid Air Sapphire was undeniable—so much so that I missed my first turn on the planned route and drove about four miles in the wrong direction without even noticing. This was a theme for me throughout the day, and I swear I have proper navigation skills. I was simply more focused on putting Sapphire through some windy roads and wide-open straightaways around Half Moon Bay.
What can I say that has yet to be shared? Is Sapphire fast? Probably the fastest… at least from what I’ve experienced. However, that is just one simple element of this dynamic sedan. The overall ride is unapologetically smooth at any speed, from any angle, and in any of the three drive modes… as long as you know what you’re doing.
This is only a vehicle for someone with adequate driving experience, both in EVs and in general. It’s a wild stallion of a vessel that will try to buck you off of it at every turn if you’re not careful. I was living for it, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t puckered a few times.
As you’ll see in my video review below, the first proper straightaway delivered visible shock in my body language as I tightened up and shortened my neck like a turtle trying to hide. I thought 1,111 horsepower in the Dream Edition was wild when I experienced Air for the first time back in 2021, but Lucid’s Sapphire edition takes it to a whole other echelon.
Yeah, I broke some speed laws, but how could you not when you get an opportunity like this one? Be cool, and don’t snitch; I was safe. I promise. Whether from a standstill or already in motion, the pure speed of this EV is unmatched, giving you the freedom to overtake any vehicle whenever you want with zero delay.
Aside from the acceleration, I was in awe of the Sapphire’s handling. It’s sticky as hell, as proved by miles of winding wet roads surrounded by redwoods in California. The Alcantara seats and steering wheel offered plenty of comfort while driving, and you know I had those air-conditioned seats to keep my back cool during my adrenaline-fueled ride.
I did notice that the Sapphire’s cabin was not as quiet as the other Lucid Air variants, but it wasn’t a huge difference. While I tested out all three drive modes of the sedan, I actually found myself in the lowest “Smooth” mode the most – that was more than enough speed for me. If you’re always driving this thing in Sapphire mode, you’re either a maniac or belong in Formula E… or both.
This is one of the rare instances in all my drives where it’s challenging to relay how impressive the drive of the Lucid Air Sapphire is. It’s something you have to experience for yourself. To aid in my demonstration of its power, I put together a little video of my experience, complete with expressions of fear, thrill, and pure elation.
The Lucid Air Sapphire is available now for a price of $249,000. Here’s my video for your viewing pleasure:
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Tesla has reportedly yet to start testing its robotaxi service in Austin without a safety driver behind the wheel – just weeks before the planned launch.
For months now, Tesla and CEO Elon Musk have been hyping the launch of “Tesla Robotaxi”, a Uber-like ride-hailing service powered by autonomous Tesla vehicles, starting with a launch in Austin, Texas in June.
We have extensively reported that this launch is disappointing compared to what Tesla promised for years: that all its consumer vehicles built since 2016 are capable of self-driving.
Instead, Tesla plans to build an internal fleet of “10-20” Model Ys and have them offer ride-hailing services in a geo-fenced area around Austin, Texas, helped by human teleoperations. This is very similar to what Waymo has been offering in other cities for years, specifically in Austin, for months now.
Even with the significant downgrade in self-driving capabilities promised with this project, there are many doubts about Tesla’s ability to achieve the lesser goal.
That’s because the robotaxi service will be based on Tesla’s ‘Supervised Full Self-Driving’ program, which is currently achieving about 500 miles between critical disengagements fleet-wide, according to the latest crowdsourced data.
Tesla will be able to improve on that by optimizing a version for the geo-fenced area in Austin and it has been training its neural nets for that for months with vehicles going around Austin.
However, a new report now claims that Tesla has yet to start testing its service without safety drivers at the wheel – similar to Tesla’s public ‘Supervised FSD’. The Information wrote in a new report:
Elon Musk’s deadline for launching Tesla’s first robotaxi service, in Austin, Texas, is weeks away, but the company hadn’t started testing its cars without a human safety driver as of last month, according to an engineer close to the testing and a former employee. That’s a crucial step required before Tesla can launch the pilot service for customers.
For comparison, before launching its paid ride service in Austin, Waymo tested its vehicles with safety drivers in the area for 6 months and then without safety drivers for another 6 months.
Waymo has now taken over a significant market share of ride-hailing rides in the Texas capital, but it still has limitations; for example, it doesn’t drive on the interstate.
The report also mentions that Tesla has been working with local emergency services in Austin to develop intervention plans in order to avoid causing issues if its autonomous vehicles fail.
Electrek’s Take
This is the biggest softball goal. It’s a fraction of what was promised, it’s something that others have achieved before. It’s a punt created for Tesla to finally get a “win” in self-driving.
If they can’t even make it, it would be disastrous, but at least, I hope that it will finally open the eyes of many Tesla shareholders to the reality that Tesla is actually behind in autonomous driving and that Musk’s latest claims that Tesla will have “millions of robotaxi on the road” in 2026 are just the same as when he claimed it would happen in 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019: corporate puffery.
My main concern now is for public safety. I have little hope of US regulators being able to stop Tesla considering Trump is firing anyone who got in Musk’s way after he gave him over $250 million.
If Tesla brings its cowboy approach to this, it could get bad quickly.
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The development of Rivian’s R2 validation builds continues to progress. We know so because the American automaker’s founder and CEO, RJ Scaringe, continues to pepper us with welcome updates with plenty of fantastic images. The latest post features the inner workings of Rivian’s Maximus drive unit, which will propel the upcoming R2 EVs when they hit the market next year.
Another day, another exciting social media update from RJ Scaringe. Nine days ago, the Rivian CEO shared a peek at the company’s new Maximus drive unit, designed to be more compact and efficiently built to help reduce cost-per-unit production.
Our only look was from outside the drive unit’s casing at the time, but it was exciting news nonetheless. As an encore, Scaringe posted photos of the R2 validation builds on a pilot line at the automaker’s facility in Normal, Illinois.
This evening, Scaringe took to Instagram and X once again to share a better look at the inner workings of the Rivian Maximus drive unit. Check it out:
RJ shares more images of Rivian’s Maximus development
Rivian’s CEO posted the three images above, which showcase some interesting perspectives of the developing drive unit. As previously shared by Rivian, Maximus uses a new continuous winding technique that reduces the total welds per stator and thus the total overall cost of building each one.
For comparison, Rivian’s current Enduro drive unit requires 264 stator welds, while Maximus only needs 24. You can see the stator windings in the image above to the left. Scaringe shared excitement in the progress of the Rivian team’s Maximus drive unit as well as some insight in his post:
I love the packaging on Maximus — the drive unit for R2. It has a side mounted inverter that utilizes flat area at the end of the motor to minimize the length of bus bars, keeping them light and efficient. The large planar shape also allows all processing and power electronics to exist on a single printed circuit board.
The inverter chassis closes out the oil cooled motor cavity and seamlessly routes coolant from the power modules to the drive unit’s heat exchanger with no extra parts.
Overall, the inverter part count is reduced by 41% relative to Enduro and structural inverter lid saves more parts and fasteners by also serving as the drive unit mount. I love this design efficiency. (heart emoji)
Looks fantastic, RJ. We can’t wait to see the visual progress of the R2 you share next!
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On today’s thrilling episode of Quick Charge, we’ve a huge spike in global EV sales and a huge dip in Tesla deliveries. Plus a whole bunch of news from Toyota, including an updated bZ that’s just a bit better than before … but is a bit better going to make a big difference?
We’re also on track for more than 1 in 4 new cars sold this year to be electric, with a whole lot more hybrids coming in to make up the difference and drive fuel demand down to a new yearly low. All this, plus the top 5 cheapest EVs to insure when you hit the play button.
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