Polestar 1 [Official] Polestar 1

[hoffmeister_fan]

I definitely see the appeal for this car, and how they are pursuing this project, I can understand why it's priced as it is. But at this price point, there are other options I'd rather explore.



The Polestar 1 has a chassis made from carbon and inspired by bugs


The Polestar 1 has a chassis made from carbon and inspired by bugs
The new hybrid grand tourer from Volvo's speed merchants promises to be real stiff and light-ish.


So, the Polestar 1 has been on people's radar for awhile now, and we've been ooh-ing and ahh-ing all over its gorgeous body and 600 horsepower hybrid drivetrain but one thing that we haven't heard much about, or more appropriately, seen much of is its unique chassis construction. Spoiler alert: It uses a bunch of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) -- which is cool -- but it also uses a chassis design that Polestar engineers are saying was inspired by a dragonfly.

So the Polestar 1 is more a high-powered grand tourer in the vein of an Aston Martin DB11 than an outright sports car like a Porsche911, but it's still gotta handle and that dragonfly chassis will help its cause significantly here thanks to the added structural and torsional rigidity that its unique design imparts in what is usually the floppiest part of the chassis, the middle. The dragonfly (and a great deal of the rest of the car) being made from CFRP means that not only is the structure rigid, but it's also light too.

Light weight is vital in a car that needs to perform, particularly if you're going to whack a great big battery pack somewhere in it. Saving weight elsewhere becomes a priority, and CFRP is a great way to do that without going to something totally crazy expensive and exotic like pre-preg carbon fiber that needs to be autoclaved or vibranium from Wakanda.

"Carbon fiber is crucial in meeting our design, engineering and performance goals with the Polestar 1," said Thomas Ingenlath, Chief Executive Officer at Polestar. "The result is a beautiful, technological package that remains faithful to the original design with its elegant and low silhouette. It looks as good as it is to drive!"

The body of the Polestar 1 is carbon fiber as well, which combined with all the chassis CFRP means that the car is more than 500 pounds lighter than it would be if it were made out of high-strength steel. Plus, saying your car has a carbon fiber body feels cooler, right?

Anyway, not only is the Polestar 1 fast and pretty, it's also high tech and kind of light-ish? Not bad for a $155,000 Volvo. Sign us up for a drive.

 

[Rainer271]

Configurator is now online:

Configurator | Polestar

 

[TommenStiks]

Holy crap that car looks amazing! So glad to see companies release some more hybrids with some oumff haha

 

[bmwz4coupe]

Is it only me or is the Polestar Coupe very similar to Ford Mustang (and the new BMW serie 8)?

 

[SCOTT27]

Is it only me or is the Polestar Coupe very similar to Ford Mustang (and the new BMW serie 8)?

For me it's the 2013 Volvo Concept Coupe

Looking forward to Polestar 2 @ Geneva which seems to be either a Model 3 facilismile?, 5dr Coupe or an SAC?

 

[Rainer271]

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[tristatez28lt1]

Saw the car in Geneva 2018. It was by far the most exciting product there (together with the Ruf new yellow bird). Immaculate execution and stunning to look at. People were drooling over it more than any other car it seemed.

 

[Centurion]

^^
It should be offered with a Volvo badge and an ICE. Currently it's simply unobtainable as a 6 figure hybrid.

 

[mihc]

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[tristatez28lt1]

New Polestar 1 prototype review

We went to Sweden to try out a prototype version of the new 599bhp Polestar 1, the first model from Volvo's new sub-brand
Verdict 4/5

The Polestar 1 isn’t cheap, and its design does little to hide its Volvo connections. But there’s not much currently on sale that can match its combination of fast cruising pace and emissions-free running. Its wealthy early adopters will get a stylish, well-finished grand tourer that’s swift, capable and comfortable. If anything, though, the coupe could be too good a commercial for an accomplished hybrid powertrain that Polestar has no further plans to use.
As a launch vehicle for a new brand, the Polestar 1 is quite the statement: concept-car looks, a 599bhp hybrid powertrain, carbon-fibre bodywork, four-wheel drive and a price tag of £139,000.

In fact, the new 2+2 coupe is the first and only vehicle from Volvo’s offshoot to feature a combustion engine (a four-cylinder turbo and supercharged unit with 304bhp). From the next model – the Polestar 2 hatchback – all of the brand’s cars will be purely electric.

The first deliveries of the Polestar 1 (left-hand drive only) aren’t due until the final quarter of 2019. But we’ve been allowed a quick spin in a verification-prototype vehicle on damp Swedish roads, as well as around Volvo’s test track in Hällered.

On the outside, the car sticks closely to the original looks of Volvo’s Concept Coupe, revealed in 2013. There’s muscle over the rear arches, although the front still carries the Volvo look. Inside is where the Polestar struggles most to escape its connections; the steering wheel is the same as an XC40 SUV’s, except for the badge, and the portrait infotainment system is familiar as well. So are the heating and ventilation controls.

Still, there are neat touches that will help the Polestar stand out. The sturdy-looking connectors for the car’s electrical systems are not just visible, but actively showcased behind a screen in the boot – celebrating the powertrain instead of masking it.

And the Ohlins dampers can be manually adjusted by clicking small dials at either side of the bonnet and above the rear wheels. It’s too fiddly a process to perform regularly, but it will allow customers to adjust the stiffness of their individual vehicle through nine separate stages.

Our car was in roughly the middle of the damper parameters, in what Polestar will recommend as ‘Sport’ settings to buyers. But even on the standard 21-inch wheels, the coupe – which is based on Volvo’s larger SPA platform – feels pretty assured and comfortable as we escape Gothenburg traffic to find some empty country roads.

This is a 2.3-tonne car – a 34kWh battery more than blunts the weight savings made by the carbon-fibre bodywork. But the powertrain has, in theory, enough shove to take it from 0-62mph in a whisker over four seconds. That’s because the engine is assisted not only by an integrated starter-generator (67bhp), but also by two electric motors at the rear that add an additional 228bhp. The total system output is 599bhp, along with a whopping 1,000Nm of torque.

Soaking-wet conditions mean we’re unable to test the claimed standing-start figure, but even so, the powertrain feels more than comfortable with the 1’s mass. It stops short of delivering the stomach-churning shove you get in a Tesla Model S, but torque vectoring through the rear axle allows us to push hard at the drenched test track, with aggressive inputs bringing increased speed rather than understeer.



If anything, it’s the 1’s assured nature that impresses most; it disguises its bulk well as you throw it around, resisting body roll and responding neatly to steering that’s short on feel but reassuringly precise. The brake modulation – always a big challenge for a hybrid – is nicely resolved, too.

Even on pockmarked back roads, there doesn’t appear to be a massive trade-off for this agility. There’s a bit of tyre roar from those wheels and a firmness at lower speeds, but in the main, the overall ride is comfortable enough for a mid-sized GT car.

There’s little noise – not only when in ‘Pure’ electric-only mode, under which the car can run for up to 80-odd miles and keep pace with motorway traffic – but also in the settings that call on the engine. If you favour a throaty soundtrack over the potential for pure-EV miles, then save yourself £10k and buy an Aston Martin Vantage or Mercedes-AMG S 63.

 

[Sunny]

I don't get it. How is this not going to suffer the same fate as i8 or NSX except 5 years later when it is even less relevant?

I get why established sports car manufacturer's are doing hybrids to soothe the transition to an electric era. But for a family wagon maker to invest in a new hybrid sports car with no history in this day and age makes no sense what so ever, what are they trying to prove?

Having said that, the interior is out of this world - Tesla, take note, how you do a simple futuristic quality interior.

Can't wait for the Polsestar 2. They should just focus on that. And oh, please make it a wagon!

 

[Cashmere]

^ Agree. Hybrids make no sense as we approach the end of the decade.

Having said that, the interior is out of this world -Tesla, take note, how you do a simple futuristic quality interior.

The good news is that Ian Kettle who was responsible for desiging modern Volvo interiors was poached by Tesla last year. I hear we're going to see some of his infulence on the upcoming pickup truck so really excited to see what that will look like.

 

[Centurion]

I don't get it. How is this not going to suffer the same fate as i8 or NSX except 5 years later when it is even less relevant?

I get why established sports car manufacturer's are doing hybrids to soothe the transition to an electric era. But for a family wagon maker to invest in a new hybrid sports car with no history in this day and age makes no sense wh...

The best feature of the interior is that the entire infotainment is based on Android Auto. It's an industry first. I would love this in all my cars.

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[klier]

The best feature of the interior is that the entire infotainment is based on Android Auto.

Horrible. Google trying to take over cars now too.

I wonder when they are going to spit these tech giants. Unhealthy as F&*^

 

[Centurion]

Horrible. Google trying to take over cars now too.

I wonder when they are going to spit these tech giants. Unhealthy as F&*^

Having integrated cuts out hassle of having to connect to Android Auto when entering a car. It won't be long before apple offer a car OS that's also integrated.

 

[dalab]

It's a beautiful car, nobody can discuss that, but 2,300 kilos? Exorbitant price? and also limited edition, I see no merit whatsoever, anyone can do it, 600 hp of an ICE plus electric motors plus a lot of heavy batteries, should not be either good in real autonomy, or in performance, unless have something magical that make it have an impossible handling for the specs.

I mean, welcome a Volvo coupe but there's nothing here to do so much show "only 150" they should make it more low profile in my opinion.

 

[SCOTT27]

Horrible. Google trying to take over cars now too.

I wonder when they are going to spit these tech giants. Unhealthy as F&*^

Facebook,Twitter and Google made the mistake by involving themselves into politics. It's Politics that will undo them.

 

[tristatez28lt1]

I get the concern about data but this is the right approach. Apple, Samsung, google they’re the best in UX/UI because that’s what they do. Audi spent €700M on MIB and it was not nearly as good as a normal iPhone. This is the future and I’m sure we’ll see more of it.

 

[tristatez28lt1]

It's simply beautiful...

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[dalab]

The more than 2,300 kilos must be felt despite all the electronic aids, until someone discovers ways to reduce the weight of the batteries, in my opinion we returned to the stone age, where cars like this one to be able to function and handle as what any respectable ICE did, must weigh like a cargo ship and cost hundreds of thousands of dollars