Tuesday 13th March 2018

Polestar 1 available to pre-order now

The hybrid coupe is coming to UK shores, but you'll have to be even quicker than it is if you want one...

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Last year Volvo announced it was to split in-house performance brand Polestar from the rest of company, repositioning it as a stand-alone marque producing upmarket electrified models. In short it went from being its Nismo to its Infiniti - and then some.

Its first creation in this new era is the Polestar 1, the company's first, and last, hybrid car - with the upcoming 2 and 3, as well as all subsequent models, set to be electric only. A two-door, four seat GT, the 1 is powered by a hybrid drivetrain based around Volvo's four-cylinder Drive-E engine and is capable of 0-62mph in just 3.8 seconds thanks to the 600hp and 728lb ft produced by that setup.

Although it may be built on Volvo's Scalable Platform Architecture, and bear more than a passing resemblance to the S90 coupe concept, roughly 50 per cent of the car is new and bespoke to Polestar. Construction of major structural components from carbon fibre has completely counteracted the 230kg weight penalty incurred by the batteries versus a standard S90 saloon, while also serving to increase torsional stiffness by 45 per cent.

The 1 is also the first car be equipped with Ohlins' Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension, whereby each damper is fitted with an electronic valve to constantly monitor both the driver's inputs and the road surface, appropriately adapting the car's dynamics to suit the situation in just two milliseconds.

A fixed term, zero-deposit, subscription programme had previously been touted as the only way to get the car but, while there's no word from the company on whether that is still planned, the €2500 (£2200) deposit currently required suggests a change of direction. As does the fact that it can be ordered here at all. Originally just six countries - China, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the USA - were set to get the 1, but the UK is one of an additional 12 markets that have since been added to that list. Left-hand drive remains the only option.

Polestar expects to build just 500 examples of the 1 per year once production at its new Chengdu factory gets up to speed in mid-2019. Although it has been mooted that the initial production run of 1,500 cars could be significantly increased to meet demand. The pre-order form is now live on Polestar's website, and with over 7,000 people having supposedly already registered their interest, you'd better be quick if you want a chance of being amongst those early adopters.

[wab172uk]

No mention of price I see. Guessing it's a rather silly price then?

[99dndd]

Article said:

Last year Volvo announced it was to split its in-house performance brand Polestaroff from the rest of company, repositioning it as a stand-alone marque producing upmarket electrified models. In short it went from being its Nismo to its Infiniti - and then some.

Surely that should have read "and beyond."

[J2daG1990]

wab172uk said:

No mention of price I see. Guessing it's a rather silly price then?

£116,000

STATS
Engine / CylsHybrid Power 592bhp
Displacement 2.0ltr Torque 1000 Nm
Engine Position Front Top Speed 160mph
Drivetrain AWD CO2 n/a g/km
MPG n/a mpg Retail Price £116,000
0-62mph 4.0secs

[wab172uk]

J2daG1990 said:

£116,000

STATS
Engine / CylsHybrid Power 592bhp
Displacement 2.0ltr Torque 1000 Nm
Engine Position Front Top Speed 160mph
Drivetrain AWD CO2 n/a g/km
MPG n/a mpg Retail Price £116,000
0-62mph 4.0secs

Yup ! Silly price

[defonsecca]

I went to the Geneva Motor Show last week & had a chat with the main Marketing Manager for Polestar Brent Ellis on their stand and very pleasant he was too. He said they will definitely be selling & supporting the Polestar 1 in the UK and are looking to set-up one or possibly two exclusive distributors & service centres, location dependant on where the demand comes from (so Mayfair it is then.....).

He was at pains to say they will be totally separate from Volvo / won't be sharing an existing Volvo dealership as they want Polestar to be a completely separate brand, as we all know anyway. He said their idea is to make the 1 to create a "high bar" for quality, image etc and then launch future Polestar models further down the price range but still have a high "brand value" created by the Polestar 1, a bit like Toyota / Lexus I guess.

I asked about price, he was very cagey saying there's no definite price list yet but when pressed he said "no more than 150,000 euros is the aim". You can only buy it online, he said you won't be able to just walk into the showroom and buy one (which I can't get my head around). Their idea is you buy it online & pay for it monthly which includes servicing etc.

I think it looks stunning and really hope it's a success. I really take my hat off to Polestar for flying in the face of current trends and producing such a free-flowing beautiful & non-aggressive shape absent from spoilers, scoops, air diffusers etc which Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley etc seem to be going down the road of. It really is a beautiful car especially seeing it on a Stand.

[kambites]

wab172uk said:

J2daG1990 said:

£116,000

STATS
Engine / CylsHybrid Power 592bhp
Displacement 2.0ltr Torque 1000 Nm
Engine Position Front Top Speed 160mph
Drivetrain AWD CO2 n/a g/km
MPG n/a mpg Retail Price £116,000
0-62mph 4.0secs

Yup ! Silly price

Doesn't seem toooo bad for the performance to me. Remarkably pretty thing, too.

[tankplanker]

kambites said:

Doesn't seem toooo bad for the performance to me. Remarkably pretty thing, too.

Agreed, if it weighs the same as the current S90 that puts it at about 1800kg, the Tesla Model S is about 2250kg. All that carbon isn't going to be cheap but it is great to see the weight reduction of over 400kg.

A basic Model S P100D is going to be about the same price, but the P100 is probably closer in performance, and about £12k cheaper once fully optioned out.

If the interior in the Polestar is as good or better than the S90 it'll be much better than the Tesla inside and out.

[kambites]

It's not really a competitor for the Tesla though. One is a 2+2, the other is the 5+2.

[croyde]

Looks like the S550 Ford Mustang.

[ducnick]

Stick the mustangs coyote V8 in there and dispose of all he hybrid gubbins and I’m in! It looks gorgeous.

[tankplanker]

kambites said:

It's not really a competitor for the Tesla though. One is a 2+2, the other is the 5+2.

I think it'll end up being closer to a true 4 seater rather than a 2+2 if its based on the S90 concept, that car is massive.

Not a fan of the boot seats in the S, can't say I'd want my kids sitting that close to the rear glass even for short journeys:


I would hope most people needing more than 5 seats would be buying the X these days, so the S would end up being a closer competitor to the Polestar.

[Kenny Powers]

Goodness gracious, that is a handsome automobile

[kambites]

tankplanker said:

kambites said:

It's not really a competitor for the Tesla though. One is a 2+2, the other is the 5+2.

I think it'll end up being closer to a true 4 seater rather than a 2+2 if its based on the S90 concept, that car is massive.

Possibly but it's still only got two doors and I doubt the storage space will match the Tesla so it's not really competing in the same market space any more than a 6-series coupe competes directly with a 7-series.

[ZX10R NIN]

It looks great but how much the engine alone makes? At 116k I'd be looking at an S Class Coupe.

[SpeckledJim]

Very handsome indeed. Looks like a great option at £50k.

Not sure changing the name from Volvo to Polestar is going to be sufficient to make up the gap to £116k.

[tankplanker]

kambites said:

Possibly but it's still only got two doors and I doubt the storage space will match the Tesla so it's not really competing in the same market space any more than a 6-series coupe competes directly with a 7-series.

Funny you should mention the 7 and 6 series, a neighbour recently switched from a 7 to a 6 series, even though he has the same number of kids as before. I don't think it is as clear cut as they are completely separate choices as say a 7 series and a Lotus Exige 430 would be and that a significant overlap exists.

[Burnham]

99dndd said:

Article said:

Last year Volvo announced it was to split its in-house performance brand Polestaroff from the rest of company, repositioning it as a stand-alone marque producing upmarket electrified models. In short it went from being its Nismo to its Infiniti - and then some.

Surely that should have read "and beyond."

Someone give this guy the job.

[SturdyHSV]

99dndd said:

Article said:

Last year Volvo announced it was to split its in-house performance brand Polestaroff from the rest of company, repositioning it as a stand-alone marque producing upmarket electrified models. In short it went from being its Nismo to its Infiniti - and then some.

Surely that should have read "and beyond."

Have a

[Kenny Powers]

SpeckledJim said:

Very handsome indeed. Looks like a great option at £50k.

Not sure changing the name from Volvo to Polestar is going to be sufficient to make up the gap to £116k.

This wouldn’t exist at £50k. It would never have left the first board meeting. You’re better off in 1982 if you want to pay that sort of money for such cars

[culpz]

kambites said:

Possibly but it's still only got two doors and I doubt the storage space will match the Tesla so it's not really competing in the same market space any more than a 6-series coupe competes directly with a 7-series.

I presumed that the comment on it not being able to match the Tesla would be more to do with the fact that it's a hybrid and not a pure EV.