Cross shopping w Lucid

[nickmdp]

I was a reservation holder for a GT with invitation to order and they had just started offering test drives to us.

Coming from a Model S Performance that’s always in Ludicrous, my wife was the first to drive and he showed her the drive modes and she said she wanted to try Sprint bc she was used to Ludicrous. He insisted that she wouldn’t want Sprint as it’s launch mode so she settled for Swift to which he said, “I feel like someone like you would want more range so we are going to leave it on smooth”.

I saw literal smoke come out of her ears and she complained it felt sluggish and heavy. When it was my turn, I told him “no thanks, we’re good” and canceled my reservation on the way back to our car and now we are specc’ing a Turbo S.. Thanks Lucid!

Edit: he also told her “no you’re wrong” when she said she thought it “looks like an old person’s car”

Ha, I'm always amazed at how easy it is to be bad at sales. All you have to do in many cases like that is answer questions and let the product sell itself. I'll hand it to my dealer because that's exactly what they did. I showed up unannounced in jeans and a t-shirt, and asked told them I wanted to test drive the 4S they had. He said sure, grabbed the keys, drove me about 5min to get a feel for it, then handed me the keys and just told me the route to take.

After that, he just told me to stop by any time I wanted to take it out for a drive, which I did a few times. He didn't suggest anything to me without me asking for his opinion, and he always qualified his answer with something along the lines of "my personal choice would be X, but some people swear by Y", and made me feel like every choice I made was great.

 

[daveo4EV]

taycan style + lucid drive train efficiency - take _ALL_ my money…

 

[charliemathilde]

Ha, I'm always amazed at how easy it is to be bad at sales. All you have to do in many cases like that is answer questions and let the product sell itself. I'll hand it to my dealer because that's exactly what they did. I showed up unannounced in jeans and a t-shirt, and asked told them I wanted to test drive the 4S they had. He said sure, grabbed the keys, drove me about 5min to get a feel for it, then handed me the keys and just told me the route to take.

After that, he just told me to stop by any time I wanted to take it out for a drive, which I did a few times. He didn't suggest anything to me without me asking for his opinion, and he always qualified his answer with something along the lines of "my personal choice would be X, but some people swear by Y", and made me feel like every choice I made was great.

"Yes, absolutely, sir, that looks great on you"

 

[feye]

Given people are complaining Tesla having harsh rides/bad QC, Lucid being too new and unknown, Taycan's waiting list being too long, I'm surprised that nobody has brought up the MB EQS. Is it too ugly to even be mentioned? ?

I looked at the EQS. It is a bit of a monster. So long. The trunk is huge. Almost feels like an SUV. Otherwise should be a great EV. The software what I've heard is the best you can buy, and limited Level 3 "Drive Pilot" is coming. The EQE AMG with this tech could be the sweet spot.

 

[Mr.Smith]

EV drive trains are all the same so what differentiates one model over another?

A big part of getting a Porsche is for the driving dynamics and the feedback.
The suspension of the Taycan is far superior to the Lucid with more feedback, handling, smother ride on the Taycan.
Taycans steering wheel feel is the gold standard for EVs.

These elements are the reasons you get a Taycan over any EV.

 

[nickmdp]

EV drive trains are all the same so what differentiates one model over another?

A big part of getting a Porsche is for the driving dynamics and the feedback.
The suspension of the Taycan is far superior to the Lucid with more feedback, handling, smother ride on the Taycan.
Taycans steering wheel feel is the gold standard for EVs.

These elements are the reasons you get a Taycan over any EV.

I completely agree with you on the reasons for getting a Taycan, but assuming the specs I'd posted are correct, a single Lucid motor generates more power than a Taycan Turbo and weighs 400 pounds less than the combined motors in the Taycan. They're doing something right, though it's probably safe to assume that other manufacturers will figure it out too.

 

[Mr.Smith]

I completely agree with you on the reasons for getting a Taycan, but assuming the specs I'd posted are correct, a single Lucid motor generates more power than a Taycan Turbo and weighs 400 pounds less than the combined motors in the Taycan. They're doing something right, though it's probably safe to assume that other manufacturers will figure it out too.

It's impressive what Lucid has done, I admire their engineering and EV racing accomplishments.
Yet no other OEM has decided to license Lucids technology.

I drove the Grand Touring for over an hour, really pushed the car as much as allowable on the streets of LA.
What stood out most was the ride quality and handing. It was good, but not like the Taycan. On twisty roads there was understeer which I didn't have in a Taycan.
The Taycans 3 chamber suspension is so more comfortable and better handling than the Lucids

As far as glitches, software included, I'm sure you've seen the complaints on Lucid forums.

It comes down to if you want a luxury cruiser (Lucid) or a sports/luxury car (Taycan)

 

[hhf2]

Currently a 2020 Tesla S owner. Thinking about something other than the Tesla as I've had one for 9 years and I'm disappointed in the Plaid design. I just LOVE LOVE LOVE the Taycan's design - sexiest sedan ever IMO....But I struggle to rationalize the purchase (looking at a used 2020 Turbo btw). The limited range, older EV architecture and from what I read on forums - glitchy software - are a concern, let alone the $$$ difference. I currently have a Lucid GT on order and need to make a decision soon. I don't love the Lucid design frankly, but it makes sense in every other way. Curious whether other owners went through same analysis? Thank you!

Got a Model S 85 RWD, a Model3 DMP and now got myself a Taycan RWD PB+. I think it's kinda all been said here. The Taycan is a joy to ride. You can get it in 80% as fast as the plaid for twice the price. What you get it is terrific exterior and interior design and built quality. I mean, I LOVE the shape of my Model S, but the Taycan is another level of Sexy. It also rides like a dream. A real sports sedan, not just a straight line rocket. Even though my Model 3 runs circles around it and feels a lot more light-footed, it's...how do I put this...empty? It's blindingly fast, but no emotion. Whatever spark Porsche has from motorsports, it truly lives up to that marketing slogan: Soul electrified. Even in my slow version. (Called him Baymax. Lovely Midlife Crisis Healthcare companion, but not very fast).

So: Performance wise, the Taycan is not even close to the Plaid in a straight line. On Mullholland, I think the Taycan can take the Plaid.

What's more important though to consider - and I say that with all my love for Baymax - its tech is a decade back from Tesla. From app, to center console, to PCM, connectivity, hell even the ways the doors open and close. It's atrocious and just shows that Porsche is a car company with very little digital competency. They might catch up, but not with this generation. You will have to have to cut your Taycan A LOT of slack. It frankly sucks digitally.

Range: don't worry. Porsche lowballs. Tesla claimed 400km out of my 2016 Model S 85. I NEVER got more than 280-310km. (and 310 is arriving drenched in sweat on zero battery). The Model 3 claims 540 kilometres, but I never got more than 350km out of it....whereas the specs for Baymax say he goes a measly 320km, but I already went 420km on it at reasonable speeds. The 2-speed gearbox really does work at speeds, despite adding weight.

Long story short:

The better Tesla is the Lucid Air.
Porsche is Porsche. It's like a 911 electrified. If you're not a digital nerd, and love driving. This is your weapon of Choice.

 

[hhf2]

Currently a 2020 Tesla S owner. Thinking about something other than the Tesla as I've had one for 9 years and I'm disappointed in the Plaid design. I just LOVE LOVE LOVE the Taycan's design - sexiest sedan ever IMO....But I struggle to rationalize the purchase (looking at a used 2020 Turbo btw). The limited range, older EV architecture and from what I read on forums - glitchy software - are a concern, let alone the $$$ difference. I currently have a Lucid GT on order and need to make a decision soon. I don't love the Lucid design frankly, but it makes sense in every other way. Curious whether other owners went through same analysis? Thank you!

Oh, AND the charging sucks balls. The Tesla supercharging network is lightyears ahead of everybody else. In Europe Ionity sucks, but more specifically the charge port and car identification is abysmal. Every charging stop is a nail biter...will it work.

AND DESPITE ALL THAT...Baymax rules ?

 

[AnloTaycan2022]

I had no PCM software issues. I took delivery of my car (2022 4S CT) at the end of January. Already 10,000 Km and one round trip of 2,000 km. No issues whatsoever. I have no regrets and wouldn't want to touch a LUCID. If LUCID goes bankrupt, which is a real possibility, nobody will be able to touch that car for repair and the car will be worth nothing regardless how much you paid. This is a very risky proposal. As for having a 1000HP vehicle, how much power do you really need for driving on a highway frankly, and the road handling is for me more important than pure power!!!! At some point more is not better in my opinion, but that is only my own opinion. Others may not share my view on this.

 

[kloisdad]

Ha, I'm always amazed at how easy it is to be bad at sales. All you have to do in many cases like that is answer questions and let the product sell itself. I'll hand it to my dealer because that's exactly what they did. I showed up unannounced in jeans and a t-shirt, and asked told them I wanted to test drive the 4S they had. He said sure, grabbed the keys, drove me about 5min to get a feel for it, then handed me the keys and just told me the route to take.

After that, he just told me to stop by any time I wanted to take it out for a drive, which I did a few times. He didn't suggest anything to me without me asking for his opinion, and he always qualified his answer with something along the lines of "my personal choice would be X, but some people swear by Y", and made me feel like every choice I made was great.

Yep, exactly this. We were the best possible lead for this guy. We'd had $1,000 on-deposit with them for over 6 months and he ran us off in under 15 minutes.

Two days later, my wife stopped by the Porsche dealership next to her office and he basically threw the key at her and said 'put it on sport+, you'll love it' and she was sold.

 

[Henke]

Currently a 2020 Tesla S owner. Thinking about something other than the Tesla as I've had one for 9 years and I'm disappointed in the Plaid design. I just LOVE LOVE LOVE the Taycan's design - sexiest sedan ever IMO....But I struggle to rationalize the purchase (looking at a used 2020 Turbo btw). The limited range, older EV architecture and from what I read on forums - glitchy software - are a concern, let alone the $$$ difference. I currently have a Lucid GT on order and need to make a decision soon. I don't love the Lucid design frankly, but it makes sense in every other way. Curious whether other owners went through same analysis? Thank you!

Have you test driven the car? That sold it for me coming from a 2017 Model S 75D and going to a 2022 Taycan 4S. I don't want to diminish the problems that people have experienced but I think many of these have been ironed out with updates, especially on the MY22. I had two issues and both of these have been resolved with a software update (power button start error and interior alarm issue). Occasionally have the issue of smart lift disappearing but fairly rare.

Regarding range, I have the performance plus battery and get around 270+ miles of range when driven for a few days. I would expect to get 300 when driven on the freeway. Contrast with Tesla who said I would get 259, when I got the car, it showed 251 and it was almost impossible to get close to that unless driven very carefully. Plus the battery would lose more charge when the car wasn't in use in comparison to the Taycan

 

[ThePaddyWan]

I cancelled my Air Dream Edition reservation a few weeks before delivery. The car had all the technical specs performance and practicality wise, though it lacked soul on top of looking like an old Buick. I had a longer post about it in another Lucid thread here.

Other folks in thread made me think about the sales experience. A lot of the Lucid folks talked as if it was the greatest vehicle on earth. The example I remember best was when test driving with the wife and she was U-Turning in a parking lot and learning the controls with someone (in a Macan, if that matters) being blocked by us. The sales man said "We're in a Lucid, they can wait". A bit pretentious. Compare that to our Porsche experience, where the sales rep who just told us that he knows he has a great car to sell and focus on what's important to us before committing to buying.

 

[XLR82XS]

Plus the battery would lose more charge when the car wasn't in use in comparison to the Taycan

Definitely something to mention again here. My Taycan looses 0% SOC when sitting for days. Tesla would loose a decent amount after 2 days. (This is unlocked in a garage without sentry mode activated)

 

[JonS1234]

Definitely something to mention again here. My Taycan looses 0% SOC when sitting for days. Tesla would loose a decent amount after 2 days. (This is unlocked in a garage without sentry mode activated)

I’d argue this is by design rather than a system quirk. The Tesla BMS is constantly working to ensure peak individual cell performance. That means cycling charge through and balancing continually. I actually find it strange that Porsche doesn’t take this approach. Even the best electric power tools have a way of ensuring individual battery cells don’t stay at full charge constantly.