Lucid is (apparently) still alive after the company posted a video showing its Air electric luxury sedan taking to Laguna Seca.
The electric sedan clocked a lap time of 1:41.67 at the track known for its tricky corkscrew. While the time isn't particularly impressive when looking at some of the track's fastest laps, the company doesn't explicitly say it was shooting for a specific record, either. Instead, the video description claims the company booked track time to put the Air through "high-speed dynamic testing."
In July 2017, Lucid was able to clock a 235.44 mph unrestricted top speed at Ohio’s Transportation Research Center. One of Lucid's target markets, Germany, happens to feature a network of highways with no speed limit whatsoever. Thus, high speed and composure at such speeds are important, Lucid said.
It's unclear which variant of the Air sedan is seen in the video, but the company has described two models in the past. A base model will come with an electric powertrain making 400 horsepower and 240 miles of estimated range allegedly starting at just $40,000. A second model will boast 1,000 hp and 400 miles of range, but the company hasn't floated pricing.
Lucid Air
Although, not all has been well at Lucid. This past summer, reports surfaced suggesting the company was open to a sale. After noting it needed $240 million to begin production, and $700 million to reach full-scale production of the Air, a Bloomberg source claimed the company approached Ford. The U.S. automaker declined the offer but reportedly remained opened to a purchase in the future. Most recently, Lucid has been the target of Saudi Arabian investment.
The Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund has reportedly been in talks with Lucid to invest $1 billion to gain control of the company. The rumored deal would provide $500 million up front and series of investments along the way as Lucid achieves milestones. It's the same fund that Tesla CEO Elon Musk spoke with about the possibility of taking his company private.