Polestar 1 hybrid coupe completes first test programme

The first Polestar 1 hybrid coupé prototype has completed its maiden dynamic shakedown test in the Arctic Circle.

The 592bhp machine from Volvo's performance arm completed around two weeks of testing, with a focus on its drivetrain, batteries and torque vectoring system. Polestar conducted the tests in the Arctic Circle to place the hybrid system under pressure in temperatures that reached -28deg. 

Polestar boss Thomas Ingenlath said the torque vectoring system enhanced the 1's cornering responsiveness and accuracy, adding: "This is a driver's car."

The car, which will be on display at the Beijing motor show, is available to order now for a deposit of €2500, equating to around £2221 (Rs 206,472). It will initially be sold in 18 countries, including Britain. Most of the markets fall in north, west and southern Europe but China, the US and Canada are also included.

Polestar chose to increase the availability of the model at launch from 12 countries to 18 due to high popularity.

The car made its European debut at the Geneva motor show in February and is going on a brand-building world tour before its public launch in the middle of next year. Once productions begin, only 500 examples of the 1 are due to be sold each year.

Before the opening of order books, Polestar said that more than 6000 potential customers had expressed an interest in the car, which will cost around £116,000 (Rs 1.07 crore).

According to Ingenlath, who also remains Volvo’s design director, Polestar will become Volvo’s “technological spearhead” that, after the 1 hits the market, will make only all-electric performance cars. The company is preparing for an early 2020 launch of the all-electric Polestar 2 crossover saloon, which bears a very close relationship to Ingenlath’s Concept 40.2 that has already been seen at motor shows. A full-sized Polestar 3 SUV will arrive after that.

The 1 coupé has an all-carbonfibre body based on a shortened S90 platform. It will produce 592bhp from a front-mounted 2.0-litre turbo engine, plus twin electric motors on the rear axle, and is very much a halo car. In Geneva, the 1 was shown to a group of more than 100 potential customers who were then invited to confirm their interest by submitting a deposit. The car will make more European appearances — possibly including a public driving debut at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed — before heading to the US and then China, where a special manufacturing facility capable of handling carbonfibre structures is already under construction close to Volvo’s existing plant at Chengdu.

The 2, with an all-steel hatchback saloon that shares Volvo’s smaller CMA platform, will go into production late next year. It will be made in both left and right-hand drive. Ingenlath won’t say where the car will be built but is keen to point out its suitability as a rival to Tesla’s Model 3. Polestar is understood to still be deciding on details of its powertrain design, although two electric motors (one front, one rear) are suggested. The car should cost “from €40,000 (Rs 32.5 lakh)” and have a practical driving range of about 200 miles (321.8 km).

The 3, a radically styled, low-roof SUV that will use the next generation of Volvo’s SPA big-car platform and have a mixed aluminium and steel body construction, is understood to be heading for a 2022 launch and is likely to be made at the Chengdu factory. When all three models are selling as anticipated, Polestar volume could reach 80,000-90,000 cars annually (with the 1 accounting for 500 and the 2 for around 50,000). Ingenlath says further models are being considered in areas that wouldn’t be mainstream enough to suit Volvo.

As well as developing its rule-breaking new models, Polestar is working on a bespoke marketing set-up aimed at increasing convenience for owners and moving beyond the traditionally adversarial customer-dealer relationship. Cars will be paid for by a monthly 'subscription' that includes insurance, servicing and possibly customer hire days (in case they need a van or fancy a sports car for a few days, for instance). Cars will be picked up from customers’ homes or workplaces and delivered back after servicing.

Polestar commercial director Jon Goodman expects to choose about 80 Polestar 'spaces' around the world to sell its cars, with an expected eight in the UK.