Lucid brings home the bacon, with its Air electric vehicle winning in the best luxury car category. The California-based automaker faced some stiff competition this year, and surprisingly, it didn't even involve a certain company that starts with a “T.”
Whenever people talk about the top EV companies based in the States, two automakers usually come to mind: Tesla and Lucid. Tesla is the more popular name of the two. From its vocal CEO Elon Musk to having a lineup that spells “S3XY,” it's quite hard to miss what the company's been up to over the years.
Of all the top EV companies in America, Tesla is also among the most tenured, having started way back since 2001. However, six years after its founding, a company called Atieva came into the picture, drawing as much attention as an EV driving by. It wasn't until that battery tech firm changed its name to Lucid Motors in 2016 that it started making waves. Along with that re-branding came the debut of its Lucid Air – a luxury EV built to take on the likes of the Tesla Model S.
With the goal of becoming the best EV in the world in terms of aerodynamic efficiency, the Lucid Air set out to disrupt the luxury EV market with its blistering performance. It didn't take long before this Tesla-esque vehicle started garnering a number of superlatives under its description. This includes having the best EV car range with an estimated range total of 516 miles, as well as being the fastest charging EV given its over 900-volt ultra-fast recharging capability. Did we mention it also accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in under two seconds, does a quarter-mile in the low nines and comes with upwards of 1,200 horsepower?
It wasn't just against the best EV cars
Photo: Lucid Motors
For a car associated with words like “air” and “dream,” Lucid's EV certainly sounds like a nightmare for Tesla. While that may be fine if the Lucid Air was simply aiming to win the award for the best EV car in America, it wasn't just against other local EV companies. In fact, Lucid was up against some of the most recognizable marques in the world, including BMW, Hyundai, and Land Rover.
In March, the 2023 World Car Awards announced its top three finalists, with Lucid earning a spot in three categories: World Car Design, World Electric Vehicle, and World Luxury Car. Although Lucid failed to nab the first two awards mentioned, those honors went to Hyundai's Ioniq 6; it did win in the World Luxury Car category. To be eligible, candidates should have luxury car pricing, a minimum volume of 5,000 units per year and availability covering at least two continents.
Photo: Lucid Motors
Other luxury cars that the Lucid Air went up against included the BMW i7 and the Genesis G90. If you pit all three cars against each other, it becomes clear why Lucid got the nod, at least in terms of their respective price-to-performance ratios.
Compared to the Lucid Air, the BMW i7 features a lesser range at 318 miles, a slower 0 to 60 mph at 4.5 seconds, and a lesser 536 horsepower overall. With a price starting at $119,300, the BMW i7 is even priced higher than the Lucid Air Touring – a mid-tier variant that still comes with more horsepower and range in comparison. Despite the Genesis G90 being the cheapest among the three, it also has the lowest power output at 409 hp, and that's already its highest-trim 3.5-liter V6-powered variant.
A long time coming
Photo: Lucid Motors
The Lucid Air competed against 16 other models from marques all over the world. Winning the award meant that an American-made EV could best the competition, in a category dominated by German luxury models, no less. Within the past five years, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche models made up the majority of the World Luxury Car category.
The most recent wins in the division went to Mercedes-Benz, winning two years in a row courtesy of its EQS and S-Class models. This victory was Lucid's first win in the prestigious event, continuing the winning streak of EVs in the top luxury car category.
What's even more surprising is that Lucid is the first American automaker to win the World Car Awards in a decade. The last time another American-made EV won was back in 2013, which was in the World Green Car category.
Photo: Lucid Motors
In case you haven't guessed it yet, yes, the Tesla Model S took home the win at the time and has yet to get another one since then. To be fair, Tesla did rack up a couple of wins at Kelley Blue Book's 2023 Brand Image Awards. Then again, Lucid was doing the same, winning the 2023 Newsweek Disruptor Award for its EV technology. Lucid's recent win wasn't the first time it was recognized as the best luxury car either.
The California-based firm held the top spot in the Best Luxury Electric Car category on US News & World Report's Best of 2023 awards – a list that didn't even include any Teslas whatsoever. Sorry Tesla, perhaps you'll have better chances next year.
Kyle still remembers the times when people read magazines, after all that's what sparked his passion for cars and tech. In 2016, he's turned that passion into a journalism career fueled by a unique view afforded by his mix of philosophy and business degrees. Full profile
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