Volvo's performance car brand Polestar has just revealed their first stand-alone electrified performance car. And the specs on this car show that they aren't messing around.
The Polestar 1 is a performance hybrid. That means two electric motors that make 218 hp. And those motors drive only the rear wheels. That means that in electric-only mode the car is rear-wheel drive. Up front is a 2.0L four-cylinder gas engine. The powertrains combine to make 600 hp and 737 lb-ft. This is a plug-in hybrid, and it can drive up to 150 km on a full charge. That makes it the longest EV range of any plug-in hybrid.
The Polestar 1 rides on Volvo's SGA platform. The one that underpins the company's latest vehicles. But Polestar says it's over 50 percent new for the Polestar 1. Fitted to that chassis, the major body panels are carbon fibre. Polestar says that saves 230 kg from the curb weight and still increases torsional stiffness.
Keeping the Polestar 1 planted is Öhlins suspension at all four corners. It's the first car to get the suspension company's Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension adaptive suspension system. Stopping the Polestar 1 are Akebono brakes with six-piston calipers in the front.
Polestar is a brand apart, but with a unique body platform, but the styling shares cues with some classic Volvo cars. The front 3/4 view and curve of the roofline say P1800, Volvo's sports car from the 1960s. The low roof, set in from the rear fenders, also bears a resemblance to Volvo's 262C, the 1977 coupe styled by Bertone. The car also wears the Thor's Hammer headlights from Volvo's current lineup.
The Polestar 1 is a 2+2 grand tourer. Production is set to start in mid-2019, but no more than 500 per year will be built.
The 1 will be followed by a Polestar 2, and a 3. The 2 will be a full-electric car. A midsize car that Polestar says is aimed at the Tesla Model 3. It will start production in 2019. The 3 will be an all-electric SUV. Polestar's cars will be built in China at a new production centre.
When the cars go on sale, they will be sold at Polestar Spaces. kiosks where product experts who will conduct test drives and inform customers. The facilities will not share space with existing Volvo showrooms.
Polestar says that order books for the 1 open today and that the company will take expressions of interest immediately.
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