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Lucid Motors (NYSE: LCID) stock rose over 5% yesterday after the startup electric vehicle (EV) company reported record deliveries for Q2. Here we’ll discuss how the company’s deliveries stack against other EV companies.
For Q2 2025, Lucid reported 3,309 vehicle deliveries, marking a 38% increase compared to the 2,394 vehicles delivered in the corresponding quarter last year. This represents Lucid’s seventh consecutive quarter of rising deliveries, and a fresh record high, even as the number fell short of the 3,611 that analysts were expecting.
Lucid Motors Reported Strong Growth in Deliveries
In the first half of the year, it delivered 6,418 vehicles, which is 50% higher than the corresponding period last year. While the company’s growth is coming from a much lower base, in percentage terms, it outperformed its peers by a big margin.
Rivian, for instance, delivered 10,661 vehicles in Q2, which was 22.7% lower than the corresponding quarter last year. It produced only 5,979 due to production bottlenecks. Both these numbers, especially the production, fell short of estimates.
In the first half of 2025, Rivian’s deliveries fell 30% YoY. Despite the temporary production constraints in Q2 2025 due to retooling and preparations for new models, Rivian has reaffirmed its full-year 2025 delivery guidance, targeting between 40,000 and 46,000 vehicles.
Lucid, on the other hand, previously gave a 2025 production guidance of 20,000 units, which means it would need to produce nearly 14,000 vehicles in the back half of the year. For context, the Q1 production was only around 6,100.
Tesla’s Q2 Deliveries Fell YoY
Tesla reported a 14% YoY fall in Q2 deliveries. It is the second consecutive quarter when the company’s deliveries fell in double digits. Meanwhile, while US companies are witnessing a slowdown in EV sales, Chinese EV companies reported strong growth in the quarter. Along with the domestic markets, Chinese EV companies are also targeting global markets despite tariffs in several countries.
Lucid Motors Expects Production to Double This Year
Lucid Motors expects its production to double this year, even as both Rivian and Tesla are expected to report a yearly decline in production. However, all these companies are working on low-cost models, which would help drive volumes.
Rivian is set to launch its low-cost platform R2 in the first half of 2026 and previously said that the bill of materials (BOM) for the model would be half of the R1 series of vehicles that it currently sells.
The R2 is designed to be a more compact and affordable alternative to Rivian’s current R1T pickup and R1S SUV. It will start at around $45,000, significantly lower than the R1 models. This price point aims to compete more directly with popular EVs like the Tesla Model Y, which was the best-selling car across EVs as well as internal combustion engine cars last year.
The R2 is critical for Rivian’s long-term success and profitability. By offering a more affordable and mainstream EV, Rivian aims to attract a larger customer base beyond the niche premium segment. Moreover, the model would help drive higher production volumes, which is essential for achieving economies of scale and improving gross margins.
Tesla Is Also Working on a Low-Cost Model
Tesla is also working on a low-cost model, which would complement its current portfolio, which consists of Model 3 and Model Y in the budget range, and Model X and Model S in the premium segment. The company also sells the Cybertruck pickup, but its sales haven’t taken off like Model 3 and Model Y.
Lucid Is Adding More Vehicles To Its Portfolio
Lucid also entered the market with its premium Air sedan and recently started delivering its Gravity SUV. The company would next work on low-cost models.
That said, the competition in the low-cost EV segment might intensify amid a flurry of new models that are set to hit the market over the next couple of years. This might lead to an escalating price war as these models compete for market share. There is some economic rationale behind companies cutting prices. For instance, as production volumes increase, manufacturers achieve greater economies of scale. Fixed costs are spread over more units, further reducing the per-vehicle production cost.
Lucid Motors Is Posting Massive Losses
Lucid Motors has been saddled with perennial losses ever since it went public. In Q1 2025, Lucid reported a GAAP net loss per share of $(0.24) and a non-GAAP net loss per share of $(0.20). The company also reported a negative EBITDA of $2.7 billion in the trailing twelve months and a cash burn of $590 million. While the losses and cash burn have narrowed, they are still quite high for comfort.
To fund this cash flow, Lucid has had to raise cash by selling shares at frequent intervals. The company is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is its biggest shareholder and has participated in all the capital raises since Lucid went public.
Notably, Lucid Motors is still posting gross losses even as Rivian has turned a corner on that metric. In Q1 2025, Rivian posted a positive gross profit of $206 million, marking the second consecutive quarter of positive gross profit and its highest to date. It was a substantial improvement from a gross loss of $527 million in Q1 2024. Of this, $92 million came from automotive and $114 million from software and services.
While Lucid has been able to fund its losses through capital raises, it needs to turn into a self-sustaining business, sooner rather than later. That transition might now only become more challenging as President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill scales back the EV tax credit.
