Polestar 3 EV Promises To ‘Bring Sport Back to the SUV’
Polestar 3 is going to be the brand’s first foray into making big money luxury SUVs.
Making big, luxury cars and selling them for big, luxury prices is where everyone wants to play these days. The latest brand to commit to an electric SUV with a premium price tag attached is Polestar, who announced Tuesday that the Polestar 3 will arrive in October and begin production early next year.
The Polestar 2 is a luxury car that, arguably, by having five doors is pretty large. The Polestar 1 was also a luxury car. The Polestar 3 will be bigger and more luxurious than either because someone, somewhere hasn't yet seen enough luxury electric SUVs.
This isn't a launch yet but just a teaser to say that there will be one in four months or so and details are fairly scant. But Polestar did say the quiet part loud by saying it wants to get in on the massive growth (and profitability) of the SUV segment.
There's also an image of the car, which looks like a luxury electric SUV if I ever saw one (and by now I have seen quite a few) in the determinedly flat Polestar white that makes me think, irresistibly, of the time I briefly worked in a Games Workshop.
Polestar's targeted range is "over 600 kilometers" which is a surprisingly unambitious 372 miles, for what's surely set to be an expensive vehicle delivered in 2023. It will have a dual-motor drivetrain, although there's no details of the configuration and the battery will be "large."
Maybe the most distinctive thing about what's been released so far is that the Polestar 3 will come kitted-out with LiDAR ready to drive itself. Tech from LiDAR makers Luminar and NVIDIA will be shipped in the Polestar 3 from the start, with what sounds like a plan to roll out greater and greater autonomy in software updates afterwards.
Thomas Ingenlath, Polestar CEO said the 3 will be a nod back to when Polestar was the motorsport brand for Volvo. “Our design identity evolves with this high-end large luxury EV, with a strong, individual brand character. With this car, we bring the ‘sport’ back to the SUV, staying true to our performance roots.”
The 3 will be built in China and the U.S. and Polestar's release says it's particularly angled toward North American buyers.
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