Lucid pushed out UX 3.0 for the Air this week, a top-to-bottom redesign of the sedan's infotainment meant to close the gap with the newer Gravity SUV. The catch: if your Air is old enough, the update isn't a free download. It's a $950 trip to the service center.
Own a 2025-or-newer Air? You're fine. UX 3.0 arrives automatically through Lucid's 2.11.0 over-the-air update, no hardware required.
Own a 2022, 2023, or some 2024 models? Then getting the new system means a $950 processor upgrade, a figure that includes installation in the U.S. Lucid says pricing for other markets is coming later. A Lucid spokesperson said only some 2024 cars need the retrofit, because the company switched to its second-generation infotainment processor partway through the 2024 run.
The short version: early adopters who paid a premium for the Air get to pay again to run the current software.
Lucid says UX 3.0 makes the Air faster and more intuitive. The redesigned home screen uses swipeable cards for frequently used features, which Lucid says drivers can swipe onto the vertically oriented "Pilot Panel" to open the full app. Lucid says a new set of quick controls lets drivers swipe down from the top of the Pilot Panel to reach common settings.
The most meaningful change addresses a genuine gripe. The upper Cockpit display and the lower Pilot Panel were previously linked, so you couldn't run separate content on each. Now you can, according to Lucid, letting drivers "move more smoothly among navigation, media, vehicle controls, and apps across the Cockpit and Pilot Panel displays." Put a map up top, work the music below. It's the kind of basic multitasking the Air should have shipped with.
Lucid says route planning now lets drivers set preferences around charging networks, expected arrival range, and adapter compatibility. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, per Lucid, should run more reliably and display larger on the crescent-shaped screen.
All welcome. Whether it's worth $950 to owners already in the club depends on how much that split-screen annoyance has been grinding on them.
[Images: Lucid Motors]
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