I drove a Lucid Air Pure EV for a week and I was blown away — here's why

I’ve already driven the Lucid Air Pure, but it was only for a single day. This time around, I got to spend a full week putting one of the most efficient EVs on the market to the test — to see if it can indeed reach Lucid’s efficiency claim of 5 mi/kWh. That's an ambitious mark, but it’s not out of reach given that the best efficiency I got to date was 4 mi/kWh with the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e Premium.

Beyond efficiency, however, the Lucid Air Pure has a challenging road ahead in trying to convince people to buy it over other, much cheaper EVs on the market. It’s classified as a luxury EV, but the entry price you’ll need to shell out is $69,900. That’s a lot, but not unobtainable with today’s crop of luxury EVs.

I drove a 2025 Lucid Air Pure for a week to find out if this unassuming EV can live up to its claim of being one of the most efficient electric cars on the market — as well as finding out what it offers against the competition. Spoiler alert: it’s not one to overlook! And surprisingly enough, I get to test the base version of the Lucid Air Pure.

2025 Lucid Air Pure: Specifications

2025 Lucid Air Pure: Testing summary

Considering that efficiency is one of the core pillars of the Lucid Air Pure, reaching its estimated rating is what I was after most with my week’s worth of driving. After driving a total of 393.5 miles, I was able to reach an efficiency of 4.3 mi/kWh — which to date beats everything else I’ve tested this year.

Even though it’s short of Lucid’s claim of 5 mi/kWh, I’m just happy that it sets a record with my real world testing. Best of all, it proves that EVs can be long-distance marathon runners. This is important because there are still a lot of electric vehicles that barely reach 300 miles of range, so for this to reach 4.3 mi/kWh efficiency gives it just as good of a range against gas-powered hybrid cars I’ve tested like the 2024 Hyundai Elantra.

Just as important, I charged the Lucid Air Pure at home with Level 1 charging. Few EVs I’ve charged at home exceed a rate of 1 mi/hr, but the Lucid Pure Air broke a record, gaining back 65 miles of range in 13 hours and 13 minutes of Level 1 charging. This calculates to a rate of around 4.91 mi/hr. Even if you don’t get a Level 2 charger installed at home right away, you’ll still get a decent amount of range charging it overnight.

• 393.5 driven in total
• Averaged 4.3 mi/kWh in total
• 65 miles of range added back in 13.2 hours with Level 1 charging
• 4.91 mi/hour recharge rate with Level 1 charging

2025 Lucid Air Pure: What I Like

Sporty meets luxury design

With its low to the ground clearance and elongated chassis, the Lucid Air Pure is unlike most sedans you’ll see on the road. The design perfectly blends sporty and luxury into one package, which is made better by how it looks futuristic. These two qualities play an important role in making it the most efficient EV I’ve tested this year, while also making it visually unique to set it apart from other sedans.

Cool startup light animation

Another delightful part about the design that draws my attention is the neat light sequence that happens whenever you unlock the vehicle with the fob.

The entire sequence kicks off with the Lucid logo on the front bumper as it begins to glow. The light then cascades down to the rest of the bumper with the headlights switching on and is eventually capped by turn signals going into a breathing pattern. It's a cool detail I love whenever I unlock it, plus there’s a similar sequence with the rear lights.

Outstanding efficiency

Like I mentioned already, the 2025 Lucid Air Pure has the best efficiency in any electric car I’ve tested this year. With its 4.3 mi/kWh efficiency, it sets a benchmark for all other EVs going forward. By comparison, the 4-door BMW i4 M50 Gran Coupe gave me an efficiency of 2.9 mi/kWh.

For the average person, this simply means you’ll be able to drive it over long distances without the worry of having to recharge along the way. Considering how 3 mi/kWh is the average efficiency I’d like most EVs I drive to achieve, the 2025 Lucid Air Pure sets the bar very high and makes me spoiled in not having to worry about charging it as often as other EVs.

Large, usable frunk

When I drove the Ford F150 Lightning earlier this year, I was hopeful that more EVs would have usable frunks. Sadly though, the vast majority only offered storage that was probably enough to store their Level 1 chargers.

Due to how Lucid designs its EV, the electric motor sits closer to the rear — which paves the way for the biggest frunk I’ve seen in a sedan. Even though it doesn’t match the cave-like size of the F150 Lighting, it’s still sizable enough that I’m able to do my usual grocery shopping and store everything in the frunk. The only thing missing is an electronic mechanism, which would've been an extra treat.

Spacious interior

The Lucid Air Pure is deceptively spacious. Usually it’s the SUVs that offer the most legroom, but there’s an insane amount of room with the Lucid Air Pure. The backseats have so much legroom that I can almost stretch out my legs before they touch the front seats. Just look at the photo above to see how much room there is.

Meanwhile, I have no problem driving for long periods of time due to how comfortable it is in the driver’s seat. My only criticism is that the low clearance of the roof results in tinier windows that I sometimes smack my head getting into the driver’s seat.

Neat retractable display

One stark design choice I notice inside of the Lucid Air Pure is how it has a minimalist design. There are very few physical buttons around, so it’s dominated by a lot of displays around the dashboard.

Most notably, I love the smaller retractable pilot panel screen underneath the main dashboard. It complements the larger 34-inch Glass Cockpit Display that spans a good chunk of the dashboard, but the way it can be retracted when I’m not using it is just another small detail that makes it unique.

Smooth ride meets zippy acceleration

Another aspect that makes the Lucid Air Pure so fun to drive is its zippy acceleration, due to its powerful 430 hp performance. Combined with its low profile design, it makes for a fun ride with its intense acceleration and tight steering. From a dead stop, I’m able to quickly launch into cruise speed without all of the gear shifting of traditional gas-powered cars. In fact, I had almost had just as much fun driving it as the BMW i4 M5 Gran Coupe.

Traffic Drive-Off Alert

I still get distracted by the smallest things in every new EV I drive, like trying to figure out how to adjust their side mirrors, but what I like about the Lucid Air Pure is it keeps tabs on the traffic conditions ahead of me when I'm not paying attention.

Part of its DreamDrive Pro package includes a feature called Traffic Drive-Off Alert that tells me when the car ahead of me is pulling away while I’m stopped. This audible and visual tone lets me know to start moving the vehicle, so I don’t have to hear someone behind me yanking hard on their horn.

2025 Lucid Air Pure: What I Don't Like

Poor video quality from blind spot cameras

Admittedly, I felt safe driving Lucid Air Pure for the entire week, but for a luxury car, I’m a little disappointed by the poor video quality from its blind spot cameras. Yes, the sensors are enough to alert me when there’s a vehicle in my blind spot. However, the video feed that pops up in the cluster gauge of the dashboard is low quality versus other EVs I’ve tested.

Not only is the quality of the video feed soft, but what’s more distracting is its slower frame rate. The video looks choppy at about 15 to 25 frames per second from my guess. It’s made worse at night though when the video quality gets even noisier.

No way to disengage regenerative brake

I’m a confident driver who's used to how EVs handle, even when they have an aggressive regenerative braking system. But I know there are others who still prefer the traditional driving experience.

One thing you should know about the 2025 Lucid Air Pure is that the regenerative brakes are always on, with the option to adjust the braking level. Part of the reason why the Lucid Air Pure is able to get better efficiency is due to how the regenerative brakes play a critical role in optimizing the battery, but there’s no way to disengage it to act like a normal car. Meaning, when you let go of the pedal, you will instantly feel the car braking.

2025 Lucid Air Pure: Bottom Line

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

(Image credit: Future)

I know very well that the 2025 Lucid Air Pure is out of my budget, but you’re paying more for its outstanding efficiency, ability to go farther than most EVs, luxury features, spacious size, and of course, its eye-catching design. Given how there are more SUVs on the road, this full-sized EV sedan catches attention both for its handling and charming looks. Range is undeniably one aspect about EVs that make car shoppers hesitant about buying them, but the Lucid Air Pure proves that it can go farther and longer than some hybrid cars.

• I test drove a Lucid Air Pure for an entire day — it has better range as my gas-powered car
• Sorry, EVs — I test drove my first PHEV and it’s the perfect blend of electric and gas power
• I drove a Ford F150 Lightning for a weekend — here's my pros and cons