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Lucid Gravity Is Not Meant to Be a Rock-Crawler, Chief Designer States

It’s been a while since we last time we got news on the Gravity. Lucid’s SUV was photographed by the Twitter user CaCoastRedwoods on August 15, 2020, probably when the images Lucid released on September 9, 2020, were being taken. In March 2021, patent images emerged from the European Union Intellectual Property Office. Now, Lucid’s senior vice president of design and brand told Automotive News it would not be a rock-crawler.
Lucid Gravity 16 photos
Photo: Lucid
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Derek Jenkins explained that the seven-seater aims to “have a strength and a robustness” that are typical of SUVs and that it will have the option to present more ground clearance thanks to its air suspension. However, that does not mean Lucid’s goal is to make it a capable Rubicon Trail machine. That’s quite the opposite.

Built over the LEAP (Lucid Electric Advanced Platform), the same architecture used by the Air, the Gravity will be luxurious. In other words, its main competitors will be the Mercedes-Benz GLS, BMW X7, and Lexus LX. Since Mercedes-Benz would have already released the EQS SUV until late 2023, it will also be a contender to the Gravity.

Another ambition the Lucid SUV has is to be as efficient as the Air, which means it will have a range of more than 500 miles. So far, no electric SUV has presented such figures, but competitors may have enough time to pursue a draw or even beat the future Lucid.

What makes us wonder is why the SUV will take so long to reach the production lines. If the prototype is ready and the platform is already in a vehicle that is up for sale, it seems that the development process should be much shorter.

Another possibility is that the Gravity is ready but will have to wait until suppliers can deliver all the components and batteries the SUV will need. By the way, it is worth noting that Lucid announced on February 24, 2020, that its battery supplier until 2023 would be LG Chem, later renamed as LGES (LG Energy Solution).

Although SUVs are much more popular than sedans, which would mean the Casa Grande factory would work a lot more, the Gravity will still be an expensive machine. It may be the case that Lucid wants to make sure its new model will be as impeccable as it expects the Air to be.

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About the author: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo
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Motoring writer since 1998, Gustavo wants to write relevant stories about cars and their shift to a sustainable future.
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