But they’ve rationalised their timelines & goals, responsibly.
In stark contrast to some of its competitors, electric-vehicle startup Lucid Motors has admitted to the media (again) that it’s running a little low on funding. As a result, the ‘Air’ hyperfast-luxury saloon that has captured the imagination of car fans and EV admirers the world over, will see its production timeline pushed back slightly.
Lucid CTO Peter Rawlinson spoke to Automotive News to explain why the Air’s production timeline has had to be revised. “We don’t have the money in place,” he said. “That’s why we need to secure Series D in order to execute this. It would be irresponsible to start moving earth or start anything until we have a financial runway to execute that professionally and confidently.”
While we appreciate the CTO’s candor on the matter, it’s slightly worrying that the financial health of the company doesn't seem to have improved since the LA Auto Show late last year, where it made similar statements about its finances. Even if it were to get its finances together, Lucid has said before that it will take 24-months before they’d be prepared to manufacture production cars. Rawlinson said that they will break ground on a new production facility in Casa Grande, Arizona within the first half of this year, with production kicking off in 2018.
The timeline adjustments mean that Lucid will fall behind Tesla and other EV startups, though Rawlinson is confident that the Air will perform strongly once it arrives. “I have secured many of my key players,” he said, talking about the employees that followed him from Tesla to Lucid. “All my vehicle directors are with me at Tesla on Model S. So the team that’s doing this knows how to do it.”
When the Air hits the market, the base model should retail at about US$60,000 (or a whisker under $80,000 in our money), with top-spec models selling “well north of US$100,000.” Of all the EV startups jostling to steal Tesla’s crown, Lucid Motors seems to have things sorted best, and we’re hopeful that they’ll find the funding they need to bring the Air to fruition.
You can read our previous stories on the Lucid Air’s launch here, and its sales commencement here. Stay tuned to CarShowroom for more information as it comes.
