Lucid Slashes the Air's Price, But It Won't Last Forever

• Lucid has slashed Air prices as part of a short-term offer.
• The EV startup has faced financial woes of late, and this move apes Tesla's strategy to boost demand.
• The Air Grand Touring's price has dropped more than $12,000.

Lucid announced on Saturday that it is cutting the prices of its fully electric Air sedan as a way of combatting the price war it finds itself in with Tesla. The price cuts are part of an offer to boost demand amid the company's financial struggles. According to a report from Reuters, the offer is valid as long as supplies last.

The Air is currently sold in three trims (with the high-performance Air Sapphire and a single-motor rear-wheel-drive version of the base Air Pure coming later), and the prices listed here include both destination and documentation charges. The Air Pure with all-wheel drive is currently the least expensive model in the lineup, and it gets a $5,000 price cut from $88,975 to $83,975.

More expensive Touring and Grand Touring models get a much bigger $12,400 price reduction, according to the report. Touring models now start at $96,575 and top-spec Grand Touring Airs are priced from $127,175. The price cuts come in the midst of high interest rates and the lingering effects of the supply chain issues that were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Lucid did not give Reuters details on how many vehicles in its inventory will be affected by the price cut, however.

Tesla had led the way on price cuts from EV automakers lately. It has slashed prices multiple times throughout the year across its lineup, and the Model S Plaid, the Air Sapphire's closest competitor, starts at $110,130. Even though that's before you tack on pricey options like the so-called Full Self-Driving package and the $20,000 Track package, it's still significantly less expensive than an Air Sapphire.

Edmunds says

The price cuts come at the right time for Lucid, which has been mired in financial struggles lately.