Lucid Air Sapphire Beats Tesla Model S Plaid's Quarter Mile Sprint

With the more potentLucid Air Sapphire now production-ready, it is only a matter of time before the EV takes on a quarter-mile drag strip. That day has arrived, and Lucid Motors tapped British racing driver Ben Collins - alsoknown as The Stig- to do the honors in clocking a blistering quarter-mile time.

The time? 8.989 seconds at 155 mph at the Sonoma Raceway in California. That is close to the initial claim of 8.95 seconds at 158 mph. This makes the Air Sapphireone of the fastest production carsto run a quarter-mile, beating the 9.23-second time of direct rival Tesla Model S Plaid.

In the world of drag racing, two-tenths of a second is quite a margin already, and the EV did a sub-nine-second run - a club joined by the Rimac Nevera. Propelling the Air Sapphire is a tri-motor powertrain capable of generating 1,234 horsepower and 1,430 lb-of torque. Lucid claims the model can get from zero to 60 mph in just 1.89 seconds.

One of the factors that helped theLucid Air Sapphirepost a quick quarter-mile sprint is aerodynamics. The model isamong the most aerodynamic cars, which reduces drag on the strip. This also provides better range, with the EPA giving the EV an estimated range of 427 miles.