SonofaBish

I understand that I'll probably get a VERY biased opinion here, but hopefully there's a few folks that have owned both, or even better, still do.....

My wife and I travel 3-4 weeks a month for work - - we live in Western PA and travel 270 miles to Upstate NY, stay at our apartment for 2 nights, then travel home. For 6 of the last 7 years, I've been driving a Toyota Prius back and forth, simply b/c of the cost of maintaining it was unbeatable - 40mpg, and while putting 30K miles a year on it, I just change oil and tires - even in the nasty Erie/Buffalo weather corridor, its a perfect commuter. For the most part, I've just not wanted to put that kind of mileage on an expensive car and get crushed by the depreciation. Now at 289K miles, I bought a Lexus GS350 last summer and it's been a fantastic commuter, sans 1 item - the gas mileage blows (22-24mpg). I'm heavily considering a EV b/c the low operating cost (cheaper than gas per mile, lower maintenance costs, etc.) is a nice offset to the depreciation I'm going to feel from logging so many miles. Setting the stage for making a decision a little further, we own:
- 2016 Cayenne GTS... don't trust putting tons of miles on this, b/c as much as I LOVE Porsche, Cayenne reliability and operating cost sucks
- 2015 911 Turbo S w/ ES850 package... so when I need to get my performance jollies, i have a good option.

I'm planning to wait 6-9 months with expectation that costs will drop another $10K.

I'm considering both a Taycan Turbo and a Lucid Air GT... here's my layout so far...
- Taycan - Pros: stellar looks, haven't driven one but have sat in a couple and it just feels right.... Cons: Range is better than stated but still not great, online feedback implies that the UI is slow and outdated, driver/sport focus comes at the loss of space, can you even fit golf clubs in the back?
- Lucid Air GT - Pros: faster, looks good, drove one and thought it was nice, tech is supposedly pretty stellar (a little glitchy), range is A+, most reviews say interior is higher quality than the Porsche, supposedly very comfortable, lots of room for stuff (golf clubs, etc.)... Cons: good looking not beautiful, handling not as good,


While tesla might benefit over these from a charging network standpoint, they both use the same charging stops - is it as bad as i keep reading about? I'd be able to charge at home, and there's Electrify America ultrafast charging stations along my route in Erie (80 miles from home) and Buffalo (200 miles from home). My expectation is that i stop in both these locations for gas/restroom normally, so i'm not going to add significant time to my travel because i normally stop anyhow.

Does anyone currently own (or has owned) both that can share some perspective?
or i could just buy a model X p100d for half the cost and live with the poor quality - afterall, i have been driving a prius

whiz944

Look at the plugshare (https://www.plugshare.com/) reviews for the charging stations you might be using along the way. Use the filters to filter out everything but 'CCS/SAE'. Though if you can't charge at your apartment, you could add other lower speed options, like "J-1772", to the mix for destination charging.

Eventually both Taycan and Lucid will get access to the Tesla Supercharger network. Lucid will be limited to 50 kW peak charging speed though. So will Taycan - unless it is equipped with the 150 kW @ 400V charging option.

I'd take a Model X over a Prius any day of the week. If you consider that route, you might want to focus on a "heat pump" car (2021+) for better winter range. (Lots of other improvements under the hood as well.)

kort677

the Lucid pricing cannot be beat, that said the Taycan handling is a smidge better, if you aren't an overly aggressive driver you probably will not notice much of a difference.
you cannot top the looks of the taycan.
as for range, the Lucid can have a top range of 500+ miles on an air gt with 19 inch wheels and that is tops, but reality is that at normal highway speeds you won't get too much more than 420 miles or so. other versions of the air give you lower but still impressive range.

the other compelling thing about the range is to consider is that while on a road trip the first huge range boost that you get from the larger battery is lost once you need to start to recharge.
from what I've seen on many you tube videos is that both the tesla and taycan handle L3 charging a bit faster than the Lucid.

for me I am thrilled to go 4 hundred miles before needing a charge because 90% of my road trips are under 400 miles.

so I am selling/turning in my taycan at the end of the lease and have leased an air GT, saving a huge amount of money on the monthly payments with only giving up the panache of driving a porsche

hitmonlee

Can you charge at/near your NY apartment by any chance? If so you can get the Lucid and not worry about public charging infra at all.

SonofaBish

thanks! i had been looking on google maps and i KNEW there had to be a better solution out there...

i would consider myself an aggressive driver, but you can only be so aggressive when sitting at 75mph for 4 straight hours. It will get used in a DD fashion of course, but if i want to be super aggressive, i've got other options that make a bit more noise

good question - using the site above, there's two J-1772 locations within about a 5 min walk from my apartment... looks like the one is 7kW based on the feedback. there's also a j plug one in my wife's parking garage

CodyBigdog

I commuted for 11 years to work in a 2010 Prius IV. As you said, it’s a pretty good commuter car. Congestion was for most of my commute, so the speed was typically in the 35-45mph range, and typically averaged (except in the Winter) 62 mpg. I figure I saved over $20k (compared to the car I had been driving (which recommended premium gas) during the 11 years.

I drive my EV from Annapolis to Chicago, and from Annapolis to Boston every year in my EV (none of the cars you mentioned) that replaced the Prius. I’ve had no problems re-charging at EA on any of those trips. But with that said, if I was traveling any of the back roads in W Pa, or up-state NY with any kind of regularity, I probably would stick to a hybrid, or plug-in hybrid. Then you have complete flexibility and no angst if you decide to detour on some back roads….lot of hybrid and pug-in hybrid options these days.

Ultimately, it all depends on your priority. If you want worry-free driving, with reduced commute expenses, then hybrid is the way to go. But if you want speed and good looks, then either of the EV’s you mentioned work.

NOTE: A Toyota Prius (or something similar) will hold its value (if you are worried about depreciation) a LOT better than either the Taycan or Lucid. Insurance will also be a LOT cheaper.

raydog9379

Here's my take, an honest one...

I love the look / feel of the Taycan. Driven one as a loaner when my Cayenne S E-Hybrid was in for service. I'm contemplating buying one as we'll use it around town to replace the Cayenne. The worry I have is all the problems people have had, and the range is not really better than my teenager's model 3 base.

Lucid is on the verge of dying, they came out yesterday and said they're going to make 9000 cars in 2024. Their stock is all but dead, but you never know. I'd be cautious as that could impact things like service down the road. Porsche isn't going anywhere in that regard, and will be around to service your vehicle should you go the Taycan route.

If you are looking at the refresh, the Taycan would be the way to go with the further range than the current model.

All in all though, if I was in your shoes and stuck on electric... I'd just buy a Model Y Long Range or Model X. Yeah the fit/finish isn't Porsche (I see that between the Cayenne and our Model 3), though it seems like many of the issues folks are having here with Taycan's aren't fixed over the air (heater, electrical, etc.).

Or maybe look at an E-Hybrid. We're getting like 54 MPGe with the Cayenne on average. Though I'm guessing highway miles you'd get prob. half that. But you would be comfortable and not have to stop for gas or charge.

Scrappy1972

^ agreed re: Lucid. I'd approach with caution unless you like living dangerously. A Tesla would be the safest bet in my opinion.

daveo4porsche

Lucid has world class EV engineering and mediocre design - quality is lacking - I was in one with 8,000 miles felt like it had 120,000 - _ALL_ the fancy tech and motorized interior options were broken/non-functional - you'll have problems getting it serviced - and they are small time player with lack of resources vs. the established players

Lucid Sapphire is world class performance/handling

if you like the looks more power to you - beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it's not my eye and I wouldn't be caught dead in a 1980's EV Buick look alike

Lucid is superficially appealing but once you get past the shimmer it's not a very deep vehicle and will age badly - both style wise, quality wise, and depreciation wise…

You're better off with a Tesla Model S Plaid or a Taycan - but Lucid a huge leap of faith and I honestly dont' think it's that good - but I could be wrong

Lucid makes no sense to me but I'm 100% biased

Zcd1

A Model Y Performance would also be a big step up from the Prius in comfort and performance, still at a reasonable cost.

Any Tesla will have wider/better charging access than a Taycan or Lucid, even if in theory there are ultrafast EA stations along your route...

Plug your round-trip into www.abetterrouteplanner.com and try the various vehicles you're considering to get a best-case scenario of the trip for each of them.

The wildcard though is availability and actual speed of the non-Tesla DCFC options..."you never know what you're gonna get".

Of the two cars you mentioned, I'd vote Taycan CT so that you can fit clubs and stuff!

flygdchman

At least for the pre Highland Model Y the ride quality is not great and the road noise is excessive.

Zcd1

Compared to the OP’s Prius the Model Y is bank-vault solid and much quieter.

CarAholic

If you get a lucid I would lease it not buy for all the reasons previously listed. Hard to beat their current lease deals.

kort677

with their current lease deals depreciation becomes their concern, not yours. the numbers to lease a very well specced LUCID Air GT come to to costing more than $800 a month less than my current taycan which would be even costlier if I replaced it with a new taycan. for me was the deal maker
that's exactly what people said when I bought my '13 model S, YMMV

bingo

flygdchman

Compared the new Prius the Model 3 / Y is less refined.
The Model Y isn't in the same league as the other cars being considered in terms of refinement. The Highland model can't come soon enough.