Lucid Motors Has Begun Taking Refundable Deposits For Air

Lucid Motors has begun taking refundable deposits for its 1000-horsepower, 400-mile all-electric sedan, the Air. While the deposits are reportedly completely refundable, they are still pretty substantial … so it will be interesting to see how many the firm manages to take (if it ends up publicly revealing these figures).

Those wanting to reserve a “standard edition” Lucid Air will have to put down $2,500, and those wanting to reserve a “Launch Edition” of the Air will have to put down $25,500. There will reportedly only be 255 of these limited “Launch Edition” Lucid Air versions built.

It’s not clear yet how expensive the “Launch Edition” Lucid Airs will be, but as the standard editions are themselves likely to run well over $100,000, they clearly won’t be cheap. But that’s probably part of why they will sell decently (along with the very comfortable-looking back seats). They will in part act as a status symbol publicly differentiating those who can afford them from those who can’t.

Those wanting to find out more can do so here and here.

As a bit of a refresh here, Lucid Motors is the new name for the former lithium-ion automotive batteries and drivetrains firm Atieva. It is run by its Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Peter Rawlinson, a former exec at Tesla who worked on the Model S.

The company recently unveiled its first production model, the Air, which is an all-electric luxury sedan that will reportedly offer more than 400 miles of range per single charge; 1000 horsepower; a 0–60 mph time of just 2.5 seconds; and a very distinct and comfortable-looking back seat design (it will clearly be well suited to use as a chauffeur vehicle).

The Lucid Air will reportedly be manufactured at a new facility in Arizona, which is supposed to employ around 2,000 people. Samsung SDI is partnering with the firm to help manufacture the model’s lithium-ion batteries.

The Lucid Air is expected to be released sometime in late 2018.