There's no shame if you've never heard of Polestar yet. But here's everything you need to know to have the inside scoop on this growing electric car brand.
What is Polestar?
If you happen to be driving one, it's a question you'll get asked constantly. In short, Polestar is a Swedish electric performance car brand. The name stems from the Polestar racing team, which was also a Volvo performance tuner. Volvo bought the performance tuning portion of the company and the Polestar name. Polestar began producing high-performance Polestar Engineered versions of Volvo cars, created Polestar as a standalone brand and spun it off as a standalone company with an IPO in June 2022.
Who owns Polestar?
It's complicated. Broadly, Volvo is the biggest shareholder, with just under 50% of Polestar. Affiliates of Geely chairman Eric Li own a little under 40%. Of course, Geely owns more than 80% of Volvo, and Eric Li is Volvo's chairman. Polestar shares are traded publicly on the Nasdaq.
Financial maneuverings aside, Polestar will still be heavily partnered with Volvo. The companies will share technology, platforms and production facilities. Polestar will sell sportier cars and take on sportier development projects that (at least theoretically) wouldn't be a fit with Volvo branding.
Current Polestar Cars
Polestar 2
- Horsepower: 455
- Torque: 546 lb-ft
- Range: 300 miles
- Starting MSRP: $50,000 (est)
The Polestar 2 is the brand's first EV that entered production in 2020. The Polestar 2 straddles the lines between sedan, hatchback and SUV. Polestar calls it a liftback. The Polestar 2 is getting some significant updates for 2024. The single-motor version switched from FWD to a more powerful and more performance-oriented (299 hp and 361 lb-ft) RWD motor. It also receives a 10% bump in range.
Polestar 3
- Horsepower: 517
- Torque: 671 lb-ft
- Range: 300 miles (targeted)
- Starting MSRP: $83,900
Polestar unveiled the all-new Polestar 3 SUV in October 2022. It's launching with a potent dual-motor AWD powertrain that can put out up to 517 horsepower and 671 lb-ft of torque while still delivering around 300 miles of range. And it starts with an ambitious price point of $83,900.
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Polestar 4
- Horsepower: 544
- Torque: 513 lb-ft
- Range: 300-plus miles (targeted)
- Starting MSRP: $60,000
The Polestar 4 debuted in April 2023. Polestar is calling it a "new breed of SUV coupe." It slots between the Polestar 2 and the Polestar 3 for both size and price. It's also Polestar's most powerful and quickest EV to date with up to 544 hp from the dual-motor setup and a 0-62 mph time of 3.8 seconds. The Polestar 4 also, controversially, has no rear window.
Future Polestar Cars
Polestar 5
The Polestar 5 will be a flagship, four-door grand tourer that should rival the Porsche Taycan. It Polestar'sk a lot like Polestar’s stunning Precept concept car from 2020 and be far more than a tuned-up Volvo. Reports have the Polestar 5 getting new battery technology and a rigid, lightweight bonded aluminum platform — a feature typically reserved for supercars. Polestar is targeting a nearly 900 hp output. The car will go on sale in 2024.
Polestar 6
Polestar released a sharp-looking O2 convertible sports car concept in February 2022. The concept is a two-door, four-passenger convertible that runs on a bespoke versio5'sf the Polestar 5’s platform. It also featured a built-in cinematic drone that can tail the car at speeds up to 56 mph.
Polestar plans to bring the O2 concept into production in 2026 (presumably without the drone) as the Polestar 6. The limited run LA Concept edition has already sold out.
Former Polestar Cars
Polestar 1
Polestar is an electric car brand. But they debuted with an off-the-wall plug-in-hybrid, 600-plus horsepower, limited production supercar, the Polestar 1. The Polestar 1 has sleek but oddly sedate Volvo-esque styling — sort of like if Volvo made a muscle car. And its price tag, starting around $155,000, is $20,000 more than a Porsche 911 GTS. Polestar is ending production this year.
