We have a reservation for an Air Pure as my wife's next car. She has never driven an electric car and still has reservations about getting one.
So we are going to rent a Lucid in LA and drive it up the coast to Monterey and back. We'll take four days, so she'll have lots of time to take in the Lucid experience. We are both in our 70s, so she wants a comfortable, quiet ride with good handling. She's not overly concerned about performance, though who doesn't like great acceleration when merging onto a Hiway 😁
So, any suggestions for the trip - places to stop, charging locations, good side roads to try out the Lucid handling, good restaurants, etc.
Thanks in advance. Really looking forward to seeing the California coast again.
Good morning Michael,
I made the seaside trip from the Seattle area to San Diego last January, sadly without the Lucid as I hadn't taken possession yet but I can recommend a couple of excellent and reasonably priced, in my opinion, stops along the way. Sadly Rte 1 from San Luis Obispo to Carmel looks closed due to weather and slide concerns. That's really too bad but maybe that's a good thing given your wife's inexperience with the EV. The lucid does handle exceptionally well though.
But if you can work out the charging stations along the way, I recommend stays in Moro Bay and Carmel.
The "Inn at Moro Bay" has nice rooms. My partner booked rooms off the water front on line because it appeared the water front rooms were priced quite high. When we arrived, we found the place practically empty and she negotiated a waterside room with a fireplace for $50 more. If they haven't reflected that in their on line pricing you might try that strategy. Rooms were clean and roomy enough. Do have breakfast at Dorn's Breakers Cafe. Delicious with great harbor views. A delightful couple we met at the restaurant last year told us they met Sam Elliot at the hotel and he recommended Dorn's to them. It didn't disappoint,
In Carmel, there is a small collection of nicely sized rooms at the "Vendange Carmel Inn Suites." There is a pleasant courtyard with attractive landscaping winding through the collection of suites. Rooms are spacious and it is a mere 8 or so block walk into town, It was surprisingly affordable for our stay; we arrived at the start of the ProAm golf tournament. Again, a breakfast recommendation: The Village Corner California Bistro. Right on the corner with indoor and outdoor seating. I believe it's at Dolores and 6th. From there it's a pleasant walkabout town for an after dining tour.
If you are truly interested in the Lucid, make sure you get your wife plenty of "behind the wheel" exposure. It does take some adjustment, imagine driving a very spirited electric golf cart for acceleration and braking similarity, I rarely tap the brake pedal and it pays huge dividends in miles per kilowatt. I average between 3.9 and 4.1 on trips with my GT on 19" wheels. I notice many other folks complain that they don't approach this figure. A hint, maybe a little more difficult in Southern California than up here in the PNW is to open up your following distance a bit. It allows you to take maximum advantage of regenerative breaking and makes for a much smoother ride for your passenger. My partner is very prone to motion sickness and this strategy keeps her quite comfortable.
I have the 500 mile range vehicle but as I am about your age, we enjoy regular coffee stops, so I plan them at charging stations whenever possible. I usually stop every 2-3 hours or so. Nice casual rides and absolutely no range anxiety; also keeps my passenger happy. Ain't retirement great!
Enjoy the trip. We may cross paths as I'm headed down to San Diego again this year next week to see my grand kids.
DC
