--- title: "Tesla Competitor Lucid Beats Model S Prototype Record on Racetrack" description: "According to raw video footage uploaded to YouTube on Thursday, Lucid completed a lap of Laguna Seca in a blistering 1:33 using a tri-motor Air prototype." date: "2020-09-18" modified: "2020-09-18" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-competitor-lucid-beats-model-s-record-racetrack" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "lucid motors" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # Tesla Competitor Lucid Beats Model S Prototype Record on Racetrack ![According to raw video footage uploaded to YouTube on Thursday, Lucid completed a lap of Laguna Seca in a blistering 1:33 using a tri-motor Air prototype.]() *\Image: The Kilowatts\* ## Record Breakers About a year ago, Tesla's Model S set the "record for fastest 4 door ever at Laguna Seca" in California, [according to CEO Elon Musk](). The move was likely intended to throw the gauntlet at Porsche's feet, as the record was set mere days after the German carmaker's announcement of the Taycan — which turned out to be a [worthy competitor](). But now Player 3 has entered the game. Lucid, a startup competitor to Tesla in the electric vehicle space, just proved that its Air, an all-electric luxury sedan, can keep up just as well. ## Measuring Contest In fact, according to [raw video footage]() uploaded to YouTube on Thursday, the company completed a lap of Laguna Seca in a blistering 1:33 using a tri-motor Air prototype, [as spotted by *Electrek*](). That means that it shaved two seconds off Tesla's Model S prototype's time in 2019. Earlier this month, Lucid also [claimed to have beaten]() a Tesla Model S in a quarter mile race, covering the distance in just 9.9 seconds. https://youtu.be/VWG3Mj9Squk ## Tri-Motor Performance While Lucid has made a major splash with its [recent unveiling]() of its Air sedan, an even more powerful tri-motor variant with a rumored 1,200 horsepower powertrain has yet to be announced. Similarly, Tesla has also yet to announce its [Model S Plaid variant](), also featuring a tri-motor powertrain. According to *Electrek*, rumor has it that the carmaker is launching it during the company's [Battery Day]() next week. **READ MORE:** [Lucid beats Tesla Model S Plaid prototype on racetrack with its own tri-motor Air test vehicle]() \[*Electrek*\] **More on Lucid:** *[Lucid Motors Claims to Have Beaten Tesla Model S on Drag Strip]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()