EV maker Lucid Motors (LCID) is seeing a light at the end of the tunnel — and former Tesla (TSLA) buyers may be the reason.
The California-based company’s second product, the Gravity SUV, is now on sale, with deliveries to a wider swath of customers beginning in April.
Interim CEO Marc Winterhoff says there are new buyers coming in for both the Gravity SUV and Air sedan because customers want an alternative to Tesla.
“Definitely,” Winteroff said when asked if more Tesla owners were trading in their vehicles for Lucid EVs. Yahoo Finance spoke to Winterhoff following a Gravity event at the company’s showroom in New York City’s trendy Meatpacking District.
“Tesla buyers always were the source of our sales because they were already used to using electrical drivetrains, and they look for an opportunity to have something else, something better,” he said. “And now, with recent changes, obviously, since the beginning of the year, we see a clear uptick of interest in Lucid from Tesla buyers because they’re looking for another option.”
Winterhoff was alluding to the brand issues Tesla is facing of late. In addition to slower-than-expected new Model Y sales, CEO Elon Musk’s vocal support of President Trump and his role in the White House’s DOGE commission have also come at a price — the alienation of Tesla’s customer base.
Winterhoff said some customers were trading in Tesla Model 3s for Lucid’s luxury Air sedan, which in some cases cost twice as much.
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The Gravity could have an even stronger effect, as the Air sedan was always seen as a niche product, rather than a volume mover.
“Americans want to have an SUV. That’s the quintessential American car, the size of the pickup truck. It’s a much larger addressable market for us, and therefore much larger demand,” Winterhoff said about the Gravity.
If all goes well, Lucid is aiming to produce 20,000 vehicles by year end, and even at that level Winterhoff expects the Gravity to be supply, rather than demand, constrained.
While Winterhoff is optimistic, it must be noted that the cheapest Gravity will start at a pretty hefty $79,900, just under the price cap for the federal EV tax credit; however, if leased the price cap doesn’t limit usage of the EV tax credit.
What will also impact sales is competition from the likes of Tesla’s Model X; Cadillac’s full-size EVs, like the Vistiq and Escalade IQ; and even hybrid and traditional gas offerings from German luxury brands BMW, Audi, and Mercedes.
Lucid has one trick up its sleeve compared to foreign competitors: All of its vehicles are produced in Arizona, and thus are immune to President Trump’s 25% tariffs on foreign cars.
