by Famous automotive blogger Jason Fenske from the Engineering Explained channel, who decided to test the Lucid Air in real life, faced a series of serious problems that forced the manufacturer to buy back the car.
Problems began almost immediately after purchase
Last year, Fenske signed a three-year lease on a 2025 Lucid Air Touring. Almost immediately after receiving the car, malfunctions began to occur. Among them were problems with the door handles, the ‘phone as key’ function, and the cupholder. Lucid contacted the blogger and promised to resolve all issues.
A four-day trip that changed everything
A few months later, the blogger’s patience ran out. During a four-day trip, problems began to appear one after another. For example, the rear doors would not open, even when unlocked. The climate control system also failed.
Fenske noticed that his dog in the back seat was getting too hot. Checking the settings, he found that both sides were set to 65°F, but significantly hotter air was blowing from one side. Additionally, the parking lines on the rear-view camera screen would disappear, and Apple CarPlay often wouldn’t load at all.
Serious safety issue
The biggest concern was a problem with the car’s hold mode. Fenske used Stop Mode set to ‘hold,’ which is supposed to automatically keep the car in place without pressing the brake. One time, when the blogger engaged reverse and released the brake pedal, the car unexpectedly began to roll forward. If this had happened on a steep slope, it could have led to an accident.
Lucid’s decision: car buyback
After contacting Lucid, the company initially offered to replace Fenske’s car with a similar one so he could continue his lease. However, this plan fell through because Lucid could not find a suitable replacement vehicle. Therefore, the manufacturer agreed to buy back the problematic electric car and reimburse all payments the blogger had already made.
For Fenske, this turned out to be a favorable deal, but owners who face similar problems and do not have 4.2 million YouTube subscribers are unlikely to expect the same treatment.
This story demonstrates that even technologically advanced electric vehicles can have serious quality and reliability issues. Although the Lucid Air is considered one of the best electric cars on the market, the real-world ownership experience can differ significantly from advertising promises. Particularly alarming is that safety problems, such as uncontrolled vehicle movement, can occur even in the most expensive models. This underscores the importance of thorough testing and quality control, and also shows that even large companies can struggle to resolve issues when it comes to the complex software systems of modern cars.
