Is the Lucid Gravity Really the Best New Luxury Car?

The Lucid Gravity was named the World Luxury Car for 2026, which certainly sounds like a weighty title. Take it with a grain of salt, though, as it is a purely subjective accolade that is the result of a survey of a pool of journalists, not all of whom spent much time with it. It has prestige in the automotive industry, however, and is featured heavily in the Gravity’s advertising. But does it deserve it? After driving one for a week over several hundred miles, I have two cents to add to the discussion.The Gravity is Lucid’s second model and a key addition to the lineup. The Air sedan that launched the startup American electric automaker in 2021 was more of a calling card meant to showcase its engineering talent with incredible style and performance. but it had a limited addressable market. The Gravity is a large three-row SUV with broader appeal and far higher sales expectations.The Gravity is roughly the same size as a Lincoln Aviator, but its body is shaped more like a minivan’s for greater interior space. Swing-out, instead of sliding, rear doors maintain its SUV categorization. Minivans are selling well these days, but the stigma of driving one is still too much for many to bear. That’s particularly true at the Gravity’s $81,550 starting price, which gets you an entry-level Touring, while the top-tier Grand Touring I recently tested lists for $96,550.Both feature dual motor all-wheel drive systems and are largely differentiated by their power outputs and battery capacities. The Touring has a potent 560 horsepower and 337 miles of range, while the Grand Touring is rated at a somewhat absurd 828 horsepower and 450 miles of range.Those range figures are the maximum for each trim. As with all vehicles, gas or electric, they vary significantly with the different trim, wheel and tire options available. My test car, for instance, was rated at 386 miles. That’s still best in class, and the Gravity is one of the most efficient vehicles of any type on sale.That is partly due to its styling, which streamlines from a blunt front end to a tapered rear like the mid-century modern idea of a 21st century high speed train. A slash of silver trim along its roofline keeps it from looking like a featureless blob.The interior continues the theme with a trapezoidal OLED digital display across the dashboard that could’ve been pulled from the supervillain’s lair in a 1960s spy movie. A secondary touchscreen mounted on the center console within the driver’s reach acts as the primary control interface and the windshield that wraps up and over the front occupants’ heads like a sci-fi starship’s cockpit.The Gravity’s interior was designed to maximize passenger and cargo space. LucidThe Grand Touring’s front seats are heated and ventilated and can provide a massage, while legroom in the second and third rows is adequate for six-foot-tall passengers in all seats. The Gravity comes standard with seating for five, while the optional third row adds two. The trick is that they can be folded flat to the floor like a minivan’s to create a far larger cargo space than any similarly sized SUV’s.Even with the seats in use, there is a lot of room behind the third row. The Gravity also has a front trunk under the hood with a sill that is low enough to use it as a bench seat when the vehicle is parked. Lucid sells a padded insert for exactly this purpose. Drive-in movies will never be the same.Speaking of cushioning, the Gravity uses an air suspension that can lift and lower the vehicle by a few inches and cossets better than steel springs. Computer-controlled shocks keep the body from bouncing around. The ride quality is blissful and easily on par with traditional luxury vehicles. Available rear-wheel steering allows it to make turns as tightly as a compact car.For those who consider time a luxury, the Grand Touring can accelerate to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds. That’s quick enough to beat a V8-powered Ford Mustang in a drag race and quite hilarious to experience in a vehicle the Gravity’s size. Punch the accelerator pedal at any speed and the experience is like jumping to hyperspace in the Millennium Falcon, despite it weighing three tons. That is also how much it can tow.The Gravity doesn’t waste much time charging, either. The Grand Touring is built around a 900-volt electrical architecture and is capable of charging the battery with 200 miles-worth of electricity in 11 minutes at the most powerful public fast charging stations, while the 670-volt Touring needs 15 minutes.There are a few quirks that require getting accustomed to, including a rectangular steering wheel that makes it easier to see the dashboard display. You’ll also find the door locks, headlight and windshield wiper controls on a touch-sensitive section in the far left of corner of that screen, rather than on buttons and knobs.The windshield may be the most foreign element. It is tinted above the passengers’ heads, but not darkly enough to block out strong sunlight, and it’s odd seeing the visors floating up there in the middle of the glass expanse. Clip-in mesh shades to cover the top section are provided, but not an elegant solution. Lucid will be offering a traditional steel roof option in the future, which I expect will be popular in sunny Arizona, where the Gravity is built.One of the vehicles the Gravity beat in the Luxury Car of the Year award voting was the Cadillac Vistiq, which costs approximately the same. It is another electric three-row SUV that’s longer than the Lucid, but has far less interior space and 305 miles of range. The Vistiq is a great vehicle to drive, but, all things considered, the Gravity is the one I’d vote for with my wallet.

Is the Lucid Gravity Really the Best New Luxury Car?

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