Earlier this year, Lucid announced plans for three new, more affordable midsize models to join the Air and Gravity family, and now the automaker has given us a taste of what to expect from the first of these, which will be a crossover. Known only as “Project Midsize,” the Model Y fighter was teased as part of another announcement that could make Tesla nervous – Lucid is teaming up with NVIDIA “to deliver one of the world’s first privately owned passenger vehicles with Level 4 autonomous driving capabilities.” This will be made possible through the NVIDIA DRIVE AV platform, while the tech giant’s Industrial AI platform is also promised to unlock “next-generation manufacturing efficiencies.” In other words, this partnership should help enhance quality control and reduce costs, and we can already see some evidence of cost-cutting in this early teaser.
Conventional Door Handles And A Familiar Shape
The teaser image is shrouded in shadow, but brightening the picture reveals conventional door handles, not completely flush ones like the Air and Gravity. These will surely be cheaper to produce, but given how new safety rules may force the likes of Tesla and Rivian to redesign their door handles because they pose a potential safety risk, Lucid may be going old-school here for other reasons. A closer look also reveals muscular rear haunches that, from this angle at least, call to mind the Ferrari Purosangue, particularly with the slim taillights. That said, curvaceous rear three-quarters and slim tails are elements we’ve already seen on the automaker’s two current products. What we haven’t seen before is this sort of roof and rear-end shape, at least not on a Lucid. With a sloping roofline that culminates in a tall, upright back end (with a prominent Lucid script across the tailgate), the overall shape of the vehicle is reminiscent of the Tesla Model Y, the new Nissan Leaf, the Polestar 4, the next Toyota C-HR, or the Honda 0 SUV prototype. In other words, don’t call this a Tesla wannabe – everyone is styling their electric crossovers in a similar fashion.
What Project Midsize Might Be Called, And What It’ll Fight
Lucid Motors
A few months ago, Lucid trademarked the names Ocean, Space, and Earth, and the last seems likely to be applied to the production version of Project Midsize. Whatever it’s called, it will have some tough competition when it arrives sometime next year, when the Rivian R2 is expected to launch at around $45,000. Other rivals in the segment include the Ford Mustang Mach-E, the Nissan Ariya, the Volkswagen ID.4, and the Hyundai Ioniq 5, all of which are considerably cheaper than the sub-$50k price point Lucid is targeting for its midsize electric crossover. Still, with Lucid’s expertise in motor technology and battery efficiency, not to mention how stylish its cars have been so far, Project Midsize could have a real shot at success, especially if eyes-off, hands-off L4 autonomy is achieved. Lucid will use cameras, radar, and lidar, so the promise sounds realistic. Speaking of self-driving, the NVIDIA partnership “will bring additional new automated driving features to [the Level 2-equipped] Lucid Gravity.” 2026 should be exciting.
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