[dragracer567]

There are two EVs from Silicon valley that have been getting rave reviews from the motoring journos namely:

1) Rivian R1T
2) Lucid Air

For the longest time, I ignored these newcomers, mostly skipped their reviews on YT but eventually I checked them out and I was blown by how impressed most car reviewers were by both these vehicles.

This got me thinking, if you are on the market for an EV (assume you live in North America or Europe for the infrastructure), what would actually stop you from buying one of these cars over a Tesla? Offcourse, there is the Tesla supercharger network which other brand don't enjoy but this affects other traditional car makers as well such as Mercedes, Ford, VW etc. But what else? Would there be a lot of glitches during the initial years? Would the early adopters just be guinea pigs? How would the aftersales be (though EVs don't need as much service)?

So, assuming you had the money and lived in North America/Europe, would you consider a Lucid or a Rivian over a Tesla? Why/why not?

Some reviews of these cars:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxuB4H6uCq8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88_uV86GYAo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BmG0ZlnmHE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b92lqiBWbDo

[Viju]

Thank you for posting this. If I was in the US, and I could afford the Lucid Air Dream, I would have bought one eyes closed.

When I watched Jason Cammisa's review of the Lucid Air, I was literally mind-blown. He is one of the rare auto journalists I really respect, and his reviews are at a different level altogether.

I really look forward to the day when I can buy a car like this.

[GTO]

Not Lucid as I feel the company still has lots to prove. But I'd certainly consider the R1T. Love what Rivian is doing and all the unique, innovative touches in its trucks. Rivian also has the right partnerships & investors.

Although, in the longer run, unless these newbie brands differentiate, it's going to be difficult as the entrenched carmakers catch up on EV tech. Look what Ford did with the F150 Lightning; they literally hit it out of the park! The Taycan is a mega effort from Porsche too.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by GTO

Not Lucid as I feel the company still has lots to prove.

Initially I was under the same impression as you for the Lucid.

All that changed last week after watching that one episode of Jason Cammisa (first link in OP). Just take a look at the video and see the extent of engineering and attention to detail that has gone into the Lucid.

The Lucid packaging, the tech and the thought that has gone into the engineering is next level. That video shows the way the damn thing drives defies physics for a car of that size and weight.

[ninjatalli]

'Part A' is developing a finished product - the car.
'Part B' is providing service on that product to hundreds, thousands and at even tens of thousands (if the car is successful) of customers over a multi-year period.

Both have done great on Part A. Big big question-marks on Part B for both players. And that is the part we won't get a proper answer till a year or two pass.

[johannskaria]

Lucid Air is one magnificent machine that looks like its made and marketed by humans who know a thing or two about what EV buyers want.

Even Rivian trucks are making case for a solid business model even before its commercial launch.

Going up against the legacy manufacturers, Tesla, and the onslaught of new Chinese manufacturers they will have to be extraordinary to stand out in the grand scheme of things.
And all this is fueling innovation at an amazing pace which gives hopes for good affordable EVs for the mass market.

Though Lucid launch feels like Deja vu of Tesla speedster launch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgIKqkyWvT8

https://youtu.be/q3rI2Mj7hH8

[deetjohn]

I have been following both these companies for some time now! Both Rivian & Lucid took TIME to perfect those machines we see here. Learned from the mistakes Tesla made!

And both of them have an edge on Tesla currently.

Tesla did the hard work here, they charted the path and swung the momentum towards EV. Mighty kudos to them for that!

But that brought its own set of challenges when they had to be so bold and move so so fast while facing a lot of headwind.

Tesla got the first mover advantage and that infrastructure in place, but vehicle to vehicle, both Air & the R1T will blow the Model S and the long awaited cyber truck out of the water.

[Rocketscience]

I won't, car making is a much more complicated task than what can be achieved in a few years of R&D and most of that time spent in tech and maybe the drive train, ofcourse the motors and batteries are vital components in a car but there are thousands of other things and quality control and reliability of each one of them, not to mention acceptable level of ride, handling, ergonomics and what not, I'am not saying none of these companies can't succeed, they might one day, but in their initial years, atleast I won't be placing my money.

See how long it took Hyundai to be actually good at making cars, many people in India in the early 2000s mocked and didn't take their high end cars seriously (globally it had even worse reputation), for good reasons too, they got some things right but messed up many others, it was a 2 decade old company at that point mind you and had invested a substantial amount of money and effort in making those cars at that point.
Look at them now, only the harshest of critics or maybe those who are biased without actually giving them a chance criticise them now, they are actually somewhat global standard cars at this point but it took them years upon years and billions of dollars to get there.
How can we expect startups with sometimes a low R&D budget as compared to mainstream brands to make a certain level of car which can only be made by experience, huge investments and even success. (the more successful a brand is, the more it can invest and the more economies of scale apply and so they can price a car at a certain price point, without this even if a startup manages to build an actual great car, it won't be price competitive)

[vb-saan]

I think both these brands have the potential to make it big. Reasons:

1. They have Tesla as a template and ought to make it better. For example, Tesla went futuristic and got rid of the instrument cluster whereas these guys are going on conventionally futuristic route.
2. Conventional players are going with their existing templates and electrifying it (e.g., Mercedes, BMW, Volvo etc.). It could take a while for them to break away from the traditions and family look that they have kept for many years – say that plastic panel in front to replace the grille.

[Shreyans_Jain]

Why not? Tesla was nothing but an unknown Silicon Valley startup. Then, the Model S happened and changed the world.

Ideas are nobody’s monopoly, and these people can put together the financial muscle to back it up. So, yes, they can totally come up with another revolutionary product in the automotive sphere.

[kadanaJ]

The above 2 mentioned brands in th USA? Sure! It's a risk, but at least US consumer protection laws have some value.

In India, no way! Anything goes wrong, and if the company is unable/unwilling to support, I'll be more-or-less out of luck.

[shobhit.shri]

Voted yes. I think EV tech has reduced the entry barrier significantly and now it's more of a software and services play. The drive train in itself is no more a competitive edge than it used to be, and EV tech has kind of democratized the automobile industry. I think when it comes to software-driven innovation, tech startups have a better record than dinosaurs.

[dipdawiz]

Its difficult to just vote yes/no with all practical barriers India has; even if we add couple of assumptions like - have enough money, readily developed infra similar to US/EU or we are in US/EU etc.

If we have to make all these assumptions, it's always "Yes" - why not buy and try a thing, I do not care if it fails or works for me, because all assumptions backing me up on this decision. Without assumptions, I would always wait for a stable release, even from a big brand, so it would be tricky "Yes" or possible "No" for me. Just my thoughts.

[hagarthenormal]

Voted 'No'.

Cars are big purchases for commoners. Trusting new comers with hard earned money, without knowing whether they would be around for the next 10yrs to service these vehicles is hard. (This could be said of big auto makers too, but then they're seen usually as "too big to fail" by the state, and get bailed out of any tricky financial situations).

Plus the road safety of unproven getting-more-and-more-complex-by-the-day vehicles from inexperienced manufacturers is something to ponder upon.

That said, the early buyers with a lot of cash to spare, are to be respected as risk takers, for without them, technological progress would be quite hard. Much like seed investors / VCs.

[tanbeamer]

I would any day go and get something from Lucid or Rivian than get something from a company run by a boorish CEO (Elon Musk) who claims to be some messiah.

Having said that, even when it comes to EVs I would avoid getting/recommending something from a startup company or Tesla if I have options available from mainstream brands like BMW, Mercedes or Ford for that matter