The Lucid Air has been in development for some time now, and while it has yet to be officially released, the car has been through some extensive real-world testing. Performance claims include a Chiron-equalling 2.5-second 0-60 mph time and an officially tested 235-mph top speed around an oval.

One more accolade this luxurious sporty EV can add to its list is the fastest EV lap time ever recorded around the demanding Laguna Seca Circuit in Monterey County.

Driven by a Lucid chassis and vehicle dynamics engineer, the Lucid Air managed a time of 1:41.67, which is around seven seconds quicker than the next fastest EV, the Jaguar I-Pace SUV. It also puts it ahead of seriously quick sports cars like the Aston Martin V12 Vantage S and supercharged V8 Jaguar F-Type R Coupe.

There are some caveats though... First, this particular car had swapped out its interior for a 6-point roll cage and fire-suppression system for safety and it was also fitted with upgraded brake pads and high-boiling point brake fluid, which should count for a few seconds on a track. Secondly, the Lucid Air is not actually in production yet, whereas the I-Pace was a totally standard model you can order today.

Still, Lucid Air is not claiming an EV lap record here, this was a test and development session, they are just pointing out what their car is capable of. And there is no taking away from the fact that the Lucid Air and EVs in general are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years. Something else to bear in mind is that the I-Pace was also piloted by a professional driver so there may be a quicker time to be extracted from the Lucid Air yet.

Wanting to see what difference a set of road-legal Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R track tires would make, they sent their engineer out again and this time he posted a time of 1:39.3, over two seconds quicker than before. Now that's quicker than a 500-hp Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio. We can't wait to see how the production model does against a Tesla Model S P100D.