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Volvo's Polestar performance brand has officially become a car maker in its own right today, with the unveiling of the Polestar 1 high-performance hybrid coupe. The car, which will be built in China, uses a 600hp plug-in hybrid powertrain, and is set to go on sale in mid-2019.
Thomas Ingenlath, Chief Executive Officer of Polestar said: "Polestar 1 is the first car to carry the Polestar on the bonnet. A beautiful GT with amazing technology packed into it - a great start for our new Polestar brand. All future cars from Polestar will feature a fully electric drivetrain, delivering on our brand vision of being the new standalone electric performance brand."
Polestar claims that the coupe has an electric-only range of 150km on a full charge, far in excess of any other plug-in hybrid model on the market right now. Although we have no specifics of the powertrain yet, it's almost certainly based on the 2.0-litre turbo and electric motor setup found in the current T8 plug-in hybrid versions of the S90 and XC90. Polestar claims a total power output of 600hp and 1,000Nm of torque.
Although it's based on the same SPA architecture as the XC90 and S90, Polestar claims that 50 per cent of the construction and components are new. The body is made of lightweight carbon fibre, and it includes a new Öhlins Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension (CESi) advanced suspension system. There will be two electric motors at the rear, one for each wheel, which will allow constant torque vectoring for even sharper handling.
The Polestar brand will follow the lead of Volvo's new XC40 (and owner Geely's other brand, Lynk&Co) in offering a subscription-based ownership model, with online sales only, and a zero-deposit, all-inclusive subscription rate, with the possibility to use other Volvo and Polestar models as needed.
Other Polestar models? Oh yes, Polestar is already planning a compact all-battery EV saloon and a mid-size SUV, as it looks to become a major rival to Tesla. Order books for this Polestar 1 coupe open tomorrow.