Aston Martin’s DB11 Volante Is Teased Before Its 2018 Release

Tesla may finally live up to one of Elon Musk’s long-standing promises and deliver a car to its customers for a bargain basement price. Speaking to Axios, Musk’s biographer Walter Isaacson has apparently revealed that Tesla plans to produce a small car that will retail for less than $25,000. Should the rumors be true, the compact electric vehicle would enter large-scale production at the end of 2024, and likely be delivered to customers in 2025.

The nature of the leak means we haven’t actually seen an image of the proposed vehicle, though there are some clues around as to what it could look like. According to the Axios report, it would have a futuristic design much like the Cybertruck. Concept drawings for an unknown Tesla model were displayed during a corporate video (embedded below) that the company released earlier in 2023. This has led to some people hypothesizing that the compact car in the sketches could be the bargain-priced Tesla we were promised.

Outside of discussing dreams, if you aren't familiar with what 'Lucid' represents in the world, don't worry; you're not alone, and we're here to help. In short, Lucid is the new Tesla... sort of. Lucid is an electric car manufacturer founded in 2007 under the name Atieva in part by former Tesla Motors VP Bernard Tse. Beyond their co-founder, Lucid's CEO, Peter Rawlinson, is also a former Tesla employee who served as chief engineer of the Model S at Tesla. Almost a decade later, in 2016, Atieva was rebranded as Lucid Motors and announced its first car, the Lucid Air, was set for production to compete at the luxury level against top-tier and expensive models from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and, of course, Tesla. But, Lucid's CEO recently interviewed with ABC News and announced that Lucid's newest project will target not only a much lower and affordable pricepoint but also the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y.
Lucid wants to appeal to your heart, not just your pocket
It seems clear that electric cars are the wave of the future, with a myriad of benefits to not only the world but also to our health as well. But, to get the majority of drivers on board, electric cars will need to offer more. Clearly aware of this, in the interview with ABC News, Rawlinson spoke reverently of the lure electric cars possess, saying, "The feeling of the road, the feedback through the steering, the instantaneous torque - there is romance with an electric car." Beyond just an emotional appeal, the other issue is cost.

Until recently, playing in the air of pure electric, was a rich person's game. The cheapest offering from Lucid currently is the Air Pure, which starts at a lofty $82,400. Asked about the idea of building a more affordable all-electric car, Rawlingson replied, "That is exactly why I go to work. I am not here to build an expensive car that only rich people can afford." He went on to explain that the reason Lucid began their company selling high-priced people movers was because it was "the only way I could make the business work financially."

Porsche wants 80 percent of its entire lineup to have fully electric motors by 2030 to meet the EV adoption target. So far, it has released only one fully electric model — the Porsche Taycan. However, it plans to introduce four new EV models to its lineup by 2026, including the Cayenne EV. Of course, Porsche will still offer hybrid models for those who love the high performance that comes with infusing a gasoline engine and an electric motor.

If you’re into SUVs or coupes, the 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid is more powerful than any Cayenne ever made. More succinctly, it's engineered with a twin-turbocharged V8 engine that can produce 591 horsepower and an electric motor that adds an extra 174 horsepower. In total, the 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid is a mean machine with up to 729 horsepower and 700 lb-ft. of torque. This is way more power than the 2023 Turbo S E Hybrid.