Polestar gearing up for back-to-back EV launches

Gothenburg-based electric car producer Polestar is preparing for back-to-back launches of its two new electric vehicles (EV), Polestar 3 and Polestar 4.

Polestar 3 is a midsize electric crossover designed based on Volvo’s SPA2 car platform. The car’s driving range is up to 610 kilometers per charging session. It features fast-charging technology, allowing drivers to charge its battery up to 80 percent in just half an hour.

Meanwhile, Polestar 4 is a midsize SUV marketed to rival Tesla Model Y. The new model does not utilise the SPA2 platform and instead uses the Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform, previously known as the PMA platform.

The Swedish startup will launch Polestar 3 in the fourth quarter of this year, with the release of Polestar 4 not even 12 months after that. Polestar initially planned to launch its third model much earlier, but an issue with the manufacturing process hindered the plan.

China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group takes care of Polestar’s manufacturing and logistics to ensure faster product distribution in the market. Geely also oversees the manufacturing process of its other brands — Volvo Cars, Lotus and Lynk & Co.

A software-related issue in the development of SPA2 caused a drawback in Polestar 3 production, forcing the startup to have back-to-back launches. Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath said the production of Polestar 3 would begin this summer.

“When everybody is scared of one launch, how can we launch two cars from an industrial point of view?” Ingenlath told Automotive News.

Polestar delivers 12,000 units in Q1

The carmaker announced Thursday that it had delivered 12,000 electric vehicles in the first quarter of this year. Polestar affirmed that it was on track to achieve its target of 80,000 deliveries this year.

The Q1 delivery rate was a 26 percent increase from the same period last year but down 21,000 units from the fourth quarter of 2022. The company explained that the usual seasonality caused the decline in deliveries.

Polestar has grown to be one of the market leaders in the EV industry with the release of its fully electric Polestar 2 in 2020. Last year, it delivered a total of 51,491 vehicles, beating its 50,000 target.