Wednesday 28th September 2022

Incoming Polestar 3 will deliver up to 517hp

Electric SUV is said to go 'deeper than just straight-line acceleration' - but will still be hugely fast

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It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Polestar regarding its upcoming SUV. We got our first glimpse of the 3 wrapped head-to-toe at the end of 2021, followed by a glossy prototype earlier this year with the promise of a full reveal by the end of the year. Here we are in September and Polestar has released yet another teaser of the car ahead of its production-ready debut. 

But sight of the shapely rear is not the big news here. The company has announced some of the SUV’s performance credentials, claiming that it’ll go “deeper than just straight-line acceleration.” All cars will come with a “rear-biased” dual-motor system, complete with dual-clutch electric torque vectoring on the rear motor. So while it shares its underpinnings with the gigantic Volvo XC90, it should feel more responsive when it comes to driving. Relatively speaking, of course. And while straight-line speed may not be a priority, the optional Performance Pack apparently cranks the motors up to produce 517hp and 671lb ft of torque. Which sounds pretty face-melting to us.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, the Polestar 3 will come with a trick suspension system for maximum comfort. It comprises adaptive dampers and dual-chamber air suspension, with a computer making tiny adjustments every two milliseconds to keep the SUV’s ride in check. According to Polestar chief Thomas Ingenlath: “It’s this instant ability to transform from a comfortable cruiser to a sharp, agile performance car in less than the blink of an eye that makes Polestar 3 special as an electric performance SUV. It also benefits from a low centre of gravity and wide track for ultimate stability, and an exciting feeling behind the wheel.”

Sounds promising, then. And judging by the teaser image, it should be a handsome-looking thing, too, with a predictably trendy body-wide light bar. The good news is we won’t have long to wait until we get to see what the production car has to offer, with the Polestar 3’s grand unveiling taking place in Copenhagen next month. “Polestar 3 defines the SUV for the electric age and in designing it, we addressed some of the fundamentals of the archetype: proportions, stance and aerodynamics”, says Ingenlath. Expect the obligatory sloping roofline, then.

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• Volvo XC90 | PH Used Buying Guide
• New Polestar 3 shown ahead of 2022 launch

[mersontheperson]

That’s quite pretty

[Inky81]

Thought that was the new Merc EQC from the rear. I'd hoped that EV's would permit more varied designs, seems I was wrong.

[P. ONeill]

It’s not a bad looking motor, pity it isn’t available now.

[greggy50]

Most of the specifications have already been leaked for the 3 to my knowledge.

£78k or £84k for 470/520bhp with a 110kwh battery and 380/350 miles.

Looks a good product to me especially given the battery size as a similar price BMW IX 40 is only 75kwh and circa 320bhp and this is far more attractive.

Really impressed with my 2 after 26k and I do like Polestar as a company and I am confident they will go from strength to strength. Most owners seem to love them (hardly any seem to be for sale 2nd hand) and the CEO even posts on the owners facebook group which I have never known before.

[mersontheperson]

My 94 Toyota was well ahead of the full length light at at the rear

[Howard1650]

great looking car, great company, if they can stop the price going too high, this will be a strong competitor in this sector

[big_rob_sydney]

I've never understood the need for stop lights to run the entire length of the rear. Just looking at it, if that thing was rear ended, the repair costs would surely go up as a direct consequence. And to what benefit? Would following people be unaware the car was braking if it only had the corner mounted stop lights?? Of course not. This is design for the sake of it, which is inefficient.

I'm also not keen on the sloping roof.

[J4CKO]

big_rob_sydney said:

I've never understood the need for stop lights to run the entire length of the rear. Just looking at it, if that thing was rear ended, the repair costs would surely go up as a direct consequence. And to what benefit? Would following people be unaware the car was braking if it only had the corner mounted stop lights?? Of course not. This is design for the sake of it, which is inefficient.

I'm also not keen on the sloping roof.

Cant imagine it makes much difference, repair costs are usually down to body shop labour, whiplash claims, hire cars and way more people getting involved to make their cut than is necessary, a plastic lamp strip wont make much odds and if it werent there it would be something else.

Its a good looking thing, the Polestars and Volvos these days do have some pretty decent styling, futher makes you wonder wtf BMW are doing ?

Side profile reminded me of a 3 door Fiesta, which is not a bad thing as thats a good looking car.

[Moonpie21]

Inky81 said:

Thought that was the new Merc EQC from the rear. I'd hoped that EV's would permit more varied designs, seems I was wrong.

I have a similar view... it seems like there are loads of start-ups or concepts with different designs that are unlikely to ever get made.

I can only guess that once these things get near mass production; cost, legislation and aerodynamics (credibility around efficiency and range) become too important to ignore and we end up with the same car with a few different accents.

That being said although it was rather basic in explanation, I did enjoy the Fully Charged walk around the Audi wind tunnel on YouTube recently. The explanation about increased priority on chasing ever smaller Cd seemed to me that until this is bottomed out or they can find a better way of generating more range with less batteries we aren't going to get anything too unique in the way of styling.

That being said the Polestar looks good for what it is, but I will only be happy when they start making cars like the Alpha Motor Corporation: https://www.alphamotorinc.com/overview

[JackReacher]

Its a shame they don't do a Polestar 2 estate, surely not that difficult from an engineering perspective and wpuld be much cheaper than this will be, and it would have that market to itself as an estate EV sitting between the only other 2 options (MG and Taycan Sport Turismo)

I tried a 2 and it was a good car, but the boot was just too shallow for family use on trips away.

[Harry_523]

Moonpie21 said:

That being said the Polestar looks good for what it is, but I will only be happy when they start making cars like the Alpha Motor Corporation: https://www.alphamotorinc.com/overview

That's some Bahar era Lotus Vapourware if I ever saw some. 4 whole cars, 11 variants promised, not a single running prototype. I expect they will be listed on the stock market and be valued higher than Toyota in no time

[Filibuster]

JackReacher said:

Its a shame they don't do a Polestar 2 estate, surely not that difficult from an engineering perspective and wpuld be much cheaper than this will be, and it would have that market to itself as an estate EV sitting between the only other 2 options (MG and Taycan Sport Turismo)

I tried a 2 and it was a good car, but the boot was just too shallow for family use on trips away.

This! Especially as estates are Volvos core discipline (I do realize this is a Polestar).
A Polestar 2 estate would be a fabulous car!!

[boyse7en]

JackReacher said:

Its a shame they don't do a Polestar 2 estate, surely not that difficult from an engineering perspective and wpuld be much cheaper than this will be, and it would have that market to itself as an estate EV sitting between the only other 2 options (MG and Taycan Sport Turismo)

I tried a 2 and it was a good car, but the boot was just too shallow for family use on trips away.

My mate has got a Polestar 2 and I was amazed at how small the boot is for such a large car. So shallow we struggled to put a few rucksacks and a small box in it. I can get more in the boot of my Saab convertible, even with the roof taking up half the space.

[budgie smuggler]

It looks fine, but as somebody who got into cars in the late 80s, I still find it remarkable to be reading about a 500+ BHP car and find myself thinking "meh"

[greggy50]

boyse7en said:

JackReacher said:

Its a shame they don't do a Polestar 2 estate, surely not that difficult from an engineering perspective and wpuld be much cheaper than this will be, and it would have that market to itself as an estate EV sitting between the only other 2 options (MG and Taycan Sport Turismo)

I tried a 2 and it was a good car, but the boot was just too shallow for family use on trips away.

My mate has got a Polestar 2 and I was amazed at how small the boot is for such a large car. So shallow we struggled to put a few rucksacks and a small box in it. I can get more in the boot of my Saab convertible, even with the roof taking up half the space.

The boot isn't that bad its about 440l plus the small space in the front so maybe 460/470l overall.

A 3 Series is 480l and is about 2cm longer the 2 isn't a big car at all it just looks it.

A 9-3 Saab boot is 250/350l depending on the roof is up or down so it certainly isn't bigger...

My colleague with a 330e commented he wished his boot was as big as that really is small!

[gianlu]

Wait, i'm confused, the side view is the same as the Lotus, right? Which would not be a surprise being the same group. But that is a specific bev platform, while this is XC90 based?

[url]

[kuiper]

Moonpie21 said:

I will only be happy when they start making cars like the Alpha Motor Corporation: https://www.alphamotorinc.com/overview

Now those are stunning...

[anonymous-user]

Looks really good I think. Nice mix of modern but restrained styling. I like that they’ve got a big commitment to reducing CO2 emissions too - I like what Polestar are doing in general.

[SgHawk]

Moonpie21 said:

I have a similar view... it seems like there are loads of start-ups or concepts with different designs that are unlikely to ever get made.
...
That being said the Polestar looks good for what it is, but I will only be happy when they start making cars like the Alpha Motor Corporation: https://www.alphamotorinc.com/overview

Those Alpha motors do look great, but I can't help feel they're one of the "Start-ups that never get made" that you mentioned yourself. zero production cars delivered but offering 16 different pre-orders.

If it was priced keenly I'd have a wolf on the drive immediately. I'm waiting for a basic, electric, utility vehicle.
Had my eye on the Xbus for a while but that seems to be stuck in preorder only status.
https://www.crownxbus.co.uk/modules/

[poo at Paul's]

I dont get this push for power on these vehicles. 517hp is relatively pointless as a road car, surely as these cars are developing, the development should be almost entirely on range?
They don't have as many NVH issues as ICE, 200hp is plenty, so why not work on the packaging and efficiency to get proper ranges out of them.
Cynic in me says it is relatively easy to get HiPo from electric and by doing so, they can charge premium prices for the vehicle, which would cost pretty much the same to build and sell in a lower power form.