Lucid Just Made The First Prototypes Of Its Upcoming Mid-Size SUV

• The first prototypes of Lucid’s midsize EV have rolled off the assembly line.
• Lucid isn’t sharing much just yet, but says that it has “dramatically improved” manufacturability of the new platform.
• This could put the new EV on a path to profitability, or at least make for some seriously interesting competition later this year.

If you want to be a major automaker, selling fancy high-dollar flagship products like the Rivian R1, Lucid Gravity or Tesla Model S won’t be enough. To scale, companies need to build high-volume products. Tesla already did it. Rivian is trying to do it this year. Lucid is next in line. 

Lucid’s foray into a larger market share will be with its upcoming mid-size EV platform. This will spawn not one, but three different bodies (none of which will be sedans). And as of late last week, the first official prototypes have rolled off the production line.

Lucid Mid-Size SUV – Inline

Photo by: Lucid Motors

News of the first completed cars comes from Nick Twork, Lucid’s Head of Communication, via a post on X. Twork shared that he was hanging out in Lucid’s prototyping build area, watching the new EVs come together.

Without letting too much slip, Twork says that the cars “are going to surprise people” when folks finally get to see the finished products. He notes that the EVs share the same base DNA with Lucid’s existing lineup (the Air sedan and Gravity SUV) but are paired with “dramatically improved” manufacturability, which also means an improved cost structure.

The last part from Twork is really the quiet headline. Lucid has already proven that it can build some of the most technologically-capable EVs on the market today, but what it hasn’t proven—at least not at-scale—is that it can do it without lighting a big pile of cash on fire. Cost continues to be a pain point for the automaker, and choosing between an unprofitable vehicle or one priced out of consumers’ hands is something that it needs to solve. The midsize platform is where Lucid hopes the cash burn takes a turn.

Lucid has also been clear that this new platform is designed to be cheaper from the start. Analysts expect the company’s Model Y fighter will start somewhere in the neighborhood of $50,000, which is a pretty significant drop from the entry prices of $70,000 for the Lucid Air sedan or $80,000 for the Lucid Gravity SUV. 

Lucid says that Project Midsize, which is the brand’s actual codename for the vehicle, is slated to enter production in late 2026. That will put the EV right behind the Rivian R2, which is expected to start at a slightly lower $45,000.

That magic number is a bit on the high end of the segment (meaning that Lucid clearly still sees the opportunity to identify itself as a premium brand), but it brings the new platform in reach of more consumers who otherwise may have never considered a Lucid due to the price. But if the automaker can pull off even some of the similar range or tech-related feats it did with its other offerings, the competition spawning in the midsize electric SUV market could get really interesting this year.