Polestar

While the Polestar 2 is no slouch in terms of performance, it was never really able to match the Model 3 in terms of outright performance. That’s about to change, thanks to a software update introduced by the Swedish EV maker.

Once Volvo’s version of the AMG, Polestar has made a name for itself as the new EV division for Volvo. The first Polestar showed the market what a sports EV sedan should look like, and the new one is not any different. It has the proportions of a sedan but the ride height of a crossover, much like Forester stance save for the rear estate body. At $47,200, it’s cheap (for an EV) and a clean-cut looker, but the latest iteration of the Polestar is not just a pretty-faced environmental ambassador.

The famous Swedish performance brand Polestar has been owned by another car manufacturer for pretty much its entire existence - mainly Volvo. However, the storied tuner will now be able to be owned by the average person as well, as it’s about to go public.

If you got all excited about a possible collaboration between Koenigsegg and Polestar, like we did yesterday, it’s time to calm down because they’re not working on a state-of-the-art vehicle together. According to Polestar, the teasers the two brands shared on social media are just for a promotional video for the Gemera and the Precept concept.

Koenigsegg took the supercar world by storm in early 2020 with the Gemera, a four-seat grand tourer with a hybrid drivetrain that generates up to 1,700 horsepower. Around the same time, Polestar, Volvo’s performance division, unveiled the Precept, a fully electric sports sedan that previews at least one production model.

What do these companies have in common? Not much apart from the fact that both are from Sweden, but their latest Instagram posts suggest they might be working together on a car project.

Remember the sleek-looking Polestar Precept concept shown earlier in February? We were supposed to see it in the metal in Geneva, but with that out of the question, Polestar dropped some more info on the prototype that’s set to influence a lot of the brand’s next SUV.

Dubbed Polestar 3, the SUV comes to complement the existing Polestar 1 plug-in-hybrid coupé and all-electric Polestar 2 fastback with the same neat design cues we’ve been seeing on Polestar’s cars since day one.

The 2020 Polestar Precept is a concept car developed and built by Volvo’s high-performance division. Unveiled ahead of the 2020 Geneva Motor Show, the 2020 Precept is Polestar’s first concept car since it became more than a sub-brand that tuned performance-oriented Volvos.

The 2020 Precept is also the first Polestar concept that’s based on a Volvo. Created to preview the brand’s future direction and "a clear expression of intent," the 2020 Precept takes a new approach design-wise when compared to production models like the Polestar 1 and Polestar 2. The Swedish company says that the name Precept was chosen "to emphasize the vehicle’s role in setting out Polestar’s intent as the contemporary electric performance brand." Let’s find out more about that in the review below.

Volvo has been more than vocal about its electrification ambitions. By 2025, the Swedish company plans to generate 50-percent of its sales volume from its fully electric vehicles. In fact, the automaker has decided to turn its sub-brand, Polestar, into a fully-electric performance brand. The Polestar 2 was unveiled at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show and was rather well received, but does it have in it to take on the Tesla Model 3?

The scene may have been busy over the past few days, comparing the new Tesla Model Y and the very similar Model 3, calling them too similar, but the fact of the matter is, the new small Tesla crossover has a direct rival. I am, of course, talking about the Polestar 2, itself a strange model that’s neither a sedan nor a crossover - that’s right up the Model Y’s alley. These two cars are direct rivals if we’ve ever seen any, and while their styling may be radically different, they are undoubtedly targeting the same market segment. The Tesla is the more bubble-like of the two, with its strongly arched roofline, but it can seat two more people than the Volvo (in theory, at least), so at least there’s a purpose behind the hunchback design.

In terms of performance and range, the two are very close, at least if we compare the higher-spec Long Range or Dual Motor AWD versions of the Model Y to the Polestar and its single powertrain choice. You will be able to get the Tesla Model Y Performance model that will blow the Polestar 2 clean out of the water with its 3.5-second zero to sixty time, but the other two versions available from launch are comparable.

Polestar 2 is the second bespoke model under the new Polestar electric performance sub-brand by Volvo. After revealing a sleek plug-in hybrid coupe at last year’s edition of the Geneva motor show, this year the Swedish brand has returned with its first all-electric offering, one whose specs appear to have been benchmarked against the popular Tesla Model 3.

Volvo performance sub-brand Polestar unveiled its first mass production car called the Polestar 2. It is a high-riding electric sedan with a coupe-like roof, fastback layout, and plastic guards on its wide fenders. Polestar unveiled it as a Tesla Model 3 competitor with the entry-level price of $39,900 and performance that almost matches that of the best-selling luxury car in the U.S. in 2018. It is, arguably, the first compelling electric car from a credible and known manufacturer we’ve seen. This means that an average buyer of, say, a nice Mercedes C-Class would reasonably consider it.

It will be unveiled at the 2019 Geneva International Motor Show, and it is expected to draw enormous journalistic crowds to the Polestar stands. For a good reason. It is a really nice car - one that couples the forever green style of the Polestar 1 and effective layout that Volvo aced with the latest generation of its cars.

Polestar revealed the first photograph of what is to become its second model - the 2 - only hours ago. Scheduled for a full online reveal in a few weeks time and for a live reveal at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, the second Polestar vehicle will be a full EV. No hybrid nonsense here. While information about the Polestar 2 is still quite sparse, I have found a number of curious facts about the new four-door electric fastback that will go right after the Tesla Model 3. Heck, Polestar even mentioned the Tesla Model 3 in its PR about the Polestar 2 teaser. Let me tell you - this kind of PR is highly unusual. Apart from giving us a glimpse of the new car, we also got a few tidbits about the Polestar 2’s specs.

Polestar’s automotive lineup is slowly taking shape after the Swedish automaker unveiled a teaser image of the Polestar 2 sedan. The image doesn’t show much of the car other than a birds-eye-view glimpse of the rear section. It’s probably the most we’ll be getting until the next teaser rolls around. What we know at this point is that the Polestar 2 will make its debut at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show as an electric sedan that will compete directly against the Tesla Model 3. Pricing for the Polestar 2 is expected to slot somewhere between $45,000 to $50,000.

What does the future behold? There are countless future classics ready to slide out from under the sheets of which they’ve been covered, and it’s all set to happen in 2019. There will be new EVs, new muscle cars, and a complete evolution of luxury cars. One of America’s most loved sports cars, the Chevy Corvette, is set move into a mid-engine configuration - something that’s been in the works for decades. With that said, we have a lot to be excited for, and this is a list of the models that we just can’t wait any longer for.

Carbon fiber is a wonderful material. Offering both high strength and low weight, carbon fiber combines two characteristics seemingly at odds with one another to form a very desirable end product, something which is particularly valuable in an automotive application. After all, cars need to be strong in a crash, but lightweight to cover performance and efficiency. As such, we see the big makes utilizing carbon fiber across multiple segments. Now, Polestar (Volvo’s performance offshoot brand) is putting the value of carbon fiber on full display with this official crash test video of its latest Polestar 1 performance coupe.

Polestar may have wowed the crowd at the Goodwood Festival of Speed by bringing the high-performance Polestar 1 to the event, but the company’s second model, the Polestar 2, made waves of its own. No, it didn’t make an appearance at the event — it’s still being developed — but Polestar COO Jonathan Goodman talked a great deal about it, including its performance capabilities, proposed timetable, and expected price tag. It’s safe to say, then, that the Polestar 2 will be much cheaper than the Polestar 1.

The Polestar 1 is arguably one of the most highly anticipated cars in the business today. The performance coupe checks a lot of boxes on what you want out of the first offering from Volvo’s former performance division. Needless to say, the Polestar 1 has our attention. That much was clear when the coupe’s online configurator went live. We couldn’t wait to play around with it, and when we got the chance to do it, well, this happened.

Wouldn’t you like to know just how much weight a car would save if it had all carbon fiber body panels instead of steel? It seems that Polestar has the answer. When designing their gorgeous Polestar 1, the Swedish company, which is now a stand-alone brand next to Volvo, made extensive use of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer, saving 507 pounds of weight.

Recently, Volvo announced that they are aiming for 50-percent of their overall sales to come from EVs by 2025. In 2017, Volvo became the first manufacturer to declare that its entire model range would become electrified in at least some form: mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or fully electric; And then they come out with ridiculous pricing for the flagship car from their performance brand, the Polestar 1. $155,000 to compete with the likes of Tesla Model S. Seriously, Volvo?

Polestar has finally put a figure on the Polestar 1. Volvo’s new performance sub-brand has listed the Polestar 1 with a price tag of $155,000 in the U.S. The car will also sell for €155,000 in Europe. Those who are interested in the car will have to deposit $2,500 or €2,500 to secure a spot on the company’s reservation list. Pre-orders are now open for the Polestar in 18 different countries, including a number of European nations, China, and North America.