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The Swedish EV brand held a huge event at a Santa Monica airport hangar, announcing everything from tech partnerships to new models. We even got a glimpse of its upcoming roadster.
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Image: Daniel Golson
Last week, I attended Polestar Day, a massive event put on by the Geely-owned Swedish brand in a hangar at the Santa Monica airport.
The Volvo offshoot company invited hundreds of media, investors, and owners to experience the latest products and upcoming models and learn about a bunch of new technology innovations and partnerships that were announced at the event.
Polestar 3 SUV
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This was the media’s first opportunity to ride in the Polestar 3, the Porsche Cayenne-fighting SUV that will be built in South Carolina and go on sale in the US in the second quarter of 2024. I rode in a fully loaded 3 with the optional Performance package, which bumps output to 517 horsepower, adjusts the torque vectoring and all-wheel drive software, and adds unique chassis tuning and 22-inch wheels with performance tires.
On a 15-minute jaunt around Santa Monica, the 3 was impressive. The standard four-corner air suspension provides a comfortable ride, and the cabin is quiet and serene. My driver floored it out of a couple corners, with the car quickly hooking up and rocketing out of the turn without any adverse body movements or powertrain lag. The 3’s interior is a really nice place to be, certainly befitting of its $85,300 starting price, with tons of space, a nice mixture of high-end sustainable materials, and easy-to-use technology.
The 3 will be the first Polestar with bidirectional charging capabilities, and Polestar announced a collaboration with the California Energy Commission (along with other authorities in the US and Sweden) to create an implementation plan for vehicle-to-grid services.
Polestar is developing a virtual power plant (VPP) that connects participating cars to the grid and each other, calculating when to charge or discharge from the grid based on the best energy usage, battery health, grid demand, and owner monetization. All that owners will have to do is plug their car in, and Polestar’s VPP tech will take care of the rest.
Polestar 4 crossover
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The event also marked the first time the new Polestar 4 was shown outside of China following its debut at the Shanghai Auto Show earlier this year. It’s a crossover coupe that splits the difference between the compact and midsize segments, and it’ll carry a starting price of around $60,000 when it goes on sale later in 2024. The most headline-grabbing feature is the Polestar 4’s lack of a rear window, which you can learn more about in my ride-along feature.
A few new bites of news were given out surrounding the 4. While the crossover will enter production in China at the end of this year, starting in mid-2025, it will also be produced in South Korea for American and European markets through a partnership with Renault Korea Motors, which will help the 4 skirt the 25 percent import tariff on China-built vehicles. It was also announced that the 4 will be the first production car to have the Mobileye Chauffeur autonomous driving technology thanks to the use of Luminar’s next-gen lidar setup, which will be an option. And ahead of Polestar Day, the brand declared that the 4 will have the lowest carbon impact of any Polestar yet.
Polestar 5 sedan
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We’ve been getting fed information about the Polestar 5 since it was first revealed in 2020 as the Precept concept, and Polestar Day was the first time the brand has shown the production car’s design without any camouflage or concept frippery. It’s an absolutely stunning fastback sedan with dramatic proportions that are sized similarly to the Porsche Panamera, and like the Polestar 4, it lacks a rear window.
Sitting next to the design model was a fully functioning camouflaged prototype of the 5, which also had a full interior. We know that the 5 will offer up to 884hp and 664 pound-feet in top dual-motor spec, and there will also be lower-powered rear-wheel drive versions. The 5 will be built on a bespoke supercar-like bonded aluminum platform that’s being developed at its own facility in England.
Polestar also announced a new partnership with StoreDot to bring extreme fast charging to the Polestar 5. Using StoreDot’s XFC pouch cell charging tech, the Polestar 5 will be able to gain 100 miles of range in just five minutes of charging. This will not require any changes or advancements to battery pack design, as it can be integrated into battery packs that are already available. The Polestar 5 will have a 103kWh battery pack with an 800-volt architecture, with a targeted range of over 300 miles.
Polestar 6 roadster
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First shown last spring as the O2 concept, the Polestar 6 will be the brand’s flagship model, taking the form of a two-door sports car with a convertible roof. When the Polestar 6 goes on sale in 2026, it will use the same architecture and powertrains as the 5, with the brand targeting a 155mph top speed and a 3.1-second zero to 60mph time. The initial run of 500 cars will be the so-called LA Concept Edition, with a starting price of $200,000, though subsequent versions should end up cheaper.
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While the model on display at Polestar Day was still the concept car, at the end of the presentation, two images flashed on-screen showing the production version of the 6 in what seems like a track-oriented trim level. The overall design sticks extremely close to the concept, with minor tweaks to elements like the lights and roof structure, and the car in the images has large air intakes, vented fenders, a large rear wing, and aggressive splitters. No details were given, but this shows Polestar is serious about keeping its racing heritage and performance pedigree alive.
A few months ago, Polestar hit a major milestone when it surpassed 150,000 deliveries of the Polestar 2, which is currently the only model it sells. (The Polestar 1 was a limited-run hybrid coupe that’s no longer in production.) The 2 was recently facelifted with upgraded powertrains and new features, but it still only covers a small section of the growing EV market.
The introduction of these new models and technologies will be a boon for the design-forward brand, which is rapidly becoming one of the most exciting new automakers to watch.