Lucid Air electric sedan zips by Tesla with EPA-rated 520-mile range

Ladies and gents, there’s a new top dog when it comes to electric car range, and it’s the Lucid Air. After promoting internal estimates of 500-plus miles of range, the EPA released its official estimates for the Air sedan showing it will do 520 miles on a full charge. For those not keeping score at home, that’s well over 100 miles more than the Tesla Model S Long Range, which delivers an estimated 405 miles.

The 520-mile range estimate is specific to the Air Dream Edition Range with 19-inch wheels. Buyers should know the optional 21-inch wheels drop the range to an estimated 481 miles. Still, that’s damned impressive. For those who select the Air Dream Edition Performance, they won’t be penalized too much with a lower range. The car still comes in at an EPA-estimated 471 miles with 19-inch wheels and 451 miles with 21-inch wheels. The trade-off is there’s 1,111 horsepower on tap with the Performance, compared to only 933 hp for the Range model.

The Dream Edition cars are two limited-edition choices Lucid sold out of a while ago, but don’t fret, there are other options. For now, the EPA also got its hands on the Air Grand Touring trim, which returns 516 miles of range after the feds’ tests. Even if you missed out on the Dream Edition Range, losing just four miles isn’t the worst thing in the world. Opt for the larger 21-inch wheels on this model and the range figure drops to 469 miles. This particular configuration also provides a no-less-substantial 800 hp. If you ask me, there’s nothing anyone’s compromising on here.

With final estimates for these first Casa Grande, Arizona-built models officially tallied, Lucid takes another step toward bringing its dreamy EVs to life. It’s not easy building cars, but if Lucid nails it, the Air feels like a big bundle of success. Production of the first customer cars is meant to start later this year, with prices for the Dream Editions starting at $169,000.