New American car company Lucid has announced pricing for its first model - the 'Air' - will start from $52,500 (– approximately £42,000).

This price takes into account a $7,500 US Government tax credit for electric vehicles but Lucid executives were also keen to ‘clear the air’ regarding the highly-specced car that had been shown publicly, which led to speculation that the starting price would be over $100,000. The entry-level car, however, is said to be ‘well appointed’ and, according to Lucid, will provide 'superior comfort, a better user interface, and better performance than comparably priced BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes'.

Standard features on the base model all-electric sports saloon include a 240-mile range, 400 horsepower (rear-wheel drive), necessary hardware for autonomous driving, 19-inch wheels, a ‘huge’ interior space and two boots (one in the front and one in the rear) with a combined storage capacity of over 906 litres.

Inside, 12-way power front seats will be joined by four screens, with interactive-touch surfaces on three, a 5-seat configuration with a rear bench seat, 10-speaker audio system and 10 advanced airbags.

Above the base model, there will be a number of available options, as demonstrated by the ‘alpha’ show car. Lucid says it doesn’t yet have all of the options and packages ready to be announced - however the options list will include 315-mile and 400-mile-range battery options, up to 1,000-horsepower twin-motor configuration, with all-wheel drive as well as 21-inch wheels.

The price of a fully loaded Air, such as one of the 255 Launch Edition cars, will be over $100,000 - however Lucid has added that all prices and features described ‘are subject to change’. There is no word yet as to whether the Lucid Air will be available in the UK.