A New Chapter
of Performance

The Polestar 1 marks the start of Polestar’s journey as a standalone performance brand driven by electric power.

olestar, the dedicated performance arm of Volvo Car Group, is set to be a standalone electric performance brand. A new purpose-built production facility in China in place, Polestar will start production of its first car, the Polestar 1, in mid-2019 with a further two models to follow not long after.

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Aiming to blaze new trails not only in performance, but also ownership experience, Polestar will offer a new, customer-focused route to market with all-inclusive subscription-based services that will set a new industry benchmark for performance car buyers.

Bringing new technology and performance attributes to the market, Polestar will act as a technology spearhead for the Volvo Car Group. In return, Polestar is able to leverage upon technological, engineering synergies, and the significant economies of scale of Volvo Cars.

The Polestar 1

The company’s first car, Polestar 1, will enter the market in mid-2019 with a maximum production output of 500 cars per year. It is a two-door, 2+2 seater Grand Tourer Coupe with an Electric Performance Hybrid drivetrain.

Platform

Showcasing Polestar’s role as technology spearhead, the Polestar 1 is based upon Volvo’s Scalable Platform Architecture (SPA) but with approximately 50‍‍‍% new and bespoke components created by Polestar engineers.

Compared with the 5.15m-long S90 sedan, the Polestar 1 measures 4.5m in length. This involved removing 320mm from the wheelbase and another 200mm from the rear overhangs to create the car’s powerful, sporty proportions.

230kg weight reduction‍‍‍‍‍‍

45% increase in torsional stiffness‍‍‍‍‍‍

lower centre of gravity

Overhang 200mm‍‍‍ shorter

Wheelbase 320mm shorter

‍‍‍4.5 meters‍‍‍

5.15 ‍‍‍meters

“Polestar 1 is the first car to carry the Polestar on the bonnet. A beautiful GT with amazing technology packed into it – a great start for our new Polestar brand. All future cars from Polestar will feature a fully electric drivetrain, delivering on our brand vision of being the new standalone electric performance brand.”

– Thomas Ingenlath, CEO of Polestar.

Major body parts of the Polestar 1 are made from carbon fibre. This lightweight material more commonly found in supercars gives the car three significant advantages – 230kg weight reduction, 45% increase in torsional stiffness, and a lower centre of gravity.

Powertrain

‍‍‍“The Polestar 1 is a Performance Electric Hybrid, but with the longest pure electric range of any hybrid car in the world, we consider it an electric car with support from an internal combustion engine. All future cars from Polestar will be Electric Performance Vehicles, but the Polestar 1 bridges today’s technology with the future, offering the perfect drivetrain for a Grand Touring Coupe that’s likely to be used over longer distances as well as shorter, faster, enjoyable journeys.”

– Thomas Ingenlath, CEO of Polestar.

Chass‍‍‍is

The Polestar 1 further differentiates itself from its electric-powered competitors around the corners, where Polestar’s experience of fitting Ohlins suspension to all its previous road cars is being harnessed. The Polestar 1’s state-of-the-art chassis is fitted with the all-new Ohlins Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension (CESi) – the world’s first car to incorporate this advanced chassis technology.

Each absorber is fitted with an electronic valve that constantly monitors driver inputs and road surface conditions, reacting in two milliseconds to immediately change the ride characteristics to prevailing demands. The driver can also constantly adjust suspension settings to tailor the chassis damping and ride quality to one’s own requirements.

PA‍‍‍ST

PRESENT

FUTU‍‍‍RE

A Timeline of Polestar Cars

‍‍‍“Being part of the Volvo Car Group enables Polestar to design, develop, and engineer our cars using the processes of a well-established car company, but at the same time enables us to experiment with new technology in lower volume cars outside the mainstream segments. This pace of development means as we announce the future of the company, we also already confirm that a portfolio of three Polestar cars will be on sale with the next four year timescale.”

– Thomas Ingenlath, CEO of Polestar.

Ownership by Subscription

All Polestar cars will be offered on a subscription basis, with customers benefiting from the convenience of a single, all-inclusive payment that can be topped up by additional on-demand services if required.

This all-inclusive, no deposit, flat monthly payment ensures that the customer need never concern themselves with the inconvenience or cost of depreciation, insurance, and maintenance.

The subscription includes pick-up and delivery servicing where Polestar contacts the customer to arrange a convenient time for scheduled maintenance.

For ad hoc motoring requirements, Polestar on-demand services are available and can simply be ordered online or through a Polestar app with the relevant fees added to the monthly invoice.

Through the range of services provided, Polestar customers can request anything from temporary installation of an accessory, such as a roof box, or the extended loan of a larger Volvo car if a bigger vehicle is needed.‍‍‍

Main enabler of Polestar’s concierge services is an easy-to-use app available on Apple and Android devices that gives the driver access to the car without needing a key if required. Through the Phone-as-Key app, the owner can remotely grant access of the car to a third party to facilitate convenient collection of the car to recharge, service, or other concierge services.

The Polestar subscription will be for a fixed term of two to three years. At the end of the contract, the car is returned to Polestar to be refurbished and leased out again as a high-quality pre-owned Polestar car.

“Our vision is that the Polestar subscription model and services that we will offer will define the Polestar brand as much as our cars will. Services that exceed the needs, desires, and expectations of the premium performance car customer are at the heart of Polestar, removing the inc‍‍‍onvenience of ownership and allowing customers to purely concentrate on the pleasure of driving a Polestar car”

– Jonathan Goodman, COO of Polestar.

The Polestar Space

All elements of the Polestar experience, from test drives, subscription offers, to on-demand services, are ordered online. The customer never needs to visit‍‍‍ a Polestar environment if they do not want to. Yet, as a new entrant to the electrified automotive segment, Polestar recognizes that customers still want to physically engage with the brand.

To that end, Polestar’s digital approach will be complemented by a network of stand-alone retail Spaces across the world. These Spaces will be staffed by product experts who can assist in demonstrating and explaining the various features of a Polestar car and facilitate test drives should the customer wishes to do so. Polestar facilities will be separate from existing Volvo showrooms.

‍‍‍Aftersales servicing work will, however, be carried out by selected Volvo retaile‍‍‍rs, giving customers the peace of mind that their car will be looked after by a fully-trained and professional network, but without the need to ever visit the premises thanks to pick-up and delivery servicing.

Target date for the opening of the first Polestar Space is the first quarter of 2019, followed by a ramp up as volumes grow.

Polestar Production‍‍‍ Centre in China

Time to shut those jokes on ‘Made in China’ goods. Polestar’s sole production facility in the world is being built in Chengdu, China, and is due for completion in mid-2018 ahead of the Polestar 1’s scheduled roll out.

The new Polestar Production Centre has been carefully created together with international award-winning architects, Snohetta from Norway. It will house one of the first Polestar Spaces, with a customer test track constructed within the campus to enable potential customers to evaluate the car’s extreme limits in a safe environment.

When complete, the new Polestar Production Centre will be the most environmentally-responsible car factory in China, and one of the most efficient in the world, with a target of Gold status in the global-recognized Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) ratings.

“Our new Polestar Production Centre is no ordinary car factory. It is designed for the low volume production of Polestar 1, but is also being designed to cater for the larger volumes of the future. The Production Centre has also been designed to act as a strong representation of our brand as well as a state-of-the-art production facility.”

– Jonathan Goodman, COO of Polestar.‍‍‍

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍The Polestar 1’s Electric Performance Hybrid system features an all-new double electric motor system driving both rear wheels. Producing 218hp plus the support of an Integrated Starter Generator, the Polestar 1 in Pure mode can function as a rear-wheel drive Electric performance car with up to 150km of range – the longest full electric range of any hybrid car in the market, and ensures that many customers will only ever use the car in full electric mode.

The double electric rear axle motors are connected by a set of planetary gears, and they provide a torque vectoring function separating power from each of the rear electric motor to drive the car through corners rather than braking the inner rear wheel like conventional traction control systems that instead slowed the car in bends.

Increased range is provided with support from its two-litre four-cylinder Volvo Drive-E petrol engine powering the front wheels. In Power mode, the Polestar 1 delivers 600hp and 1,000Nm of torque, placing the car firmly within the performance segment.

Polestar 1 Feature‍‍‍