Polestar 2 pricing confirmed, newcomer to take the EV fight to Tesla Model 3

The Polestar 2 will launch in February with three models and pricing from $59,900 plus on-road costs – matching the pricing of its prime rival, the Tesla Model 3.

And the high-performance top-of-the-range Dual Motor Long Range version of the new mid-sized fastback crossover will undercut the rival Tesla Model 3 Long Range with a $69,900 price tag.

In between is a long range single motor variant.

All will be covered by a five-year unlimited kilometre warranty and have the first five years and 100,000km of servicing included in the price.

It makes Polestar – which is owned by Volvo and its Chinese parent Geely – the most serious competitor yet to the Tesla EV domination.

FULL REVIEW: Polestar 2 Standard Range and Long Range
READ MORE: Polestar confirms new models: Polestar 3 large SUV, Polestar 4 mid-sized SUV and Polestar 5 GT
SPECS COMPARISON: Polestar 2 v Tesla Model 3 v Hyundai Ioniq 5 v Kia EV6 v Volvo XC40 EV

It also means two of the three Polestar models can take advantage of the NSW and Victorian $3000 EV rebates, while all three can benefit from the NSW stamp duty exemption that is worth up to $3000. In NSW the rebates and tax exemption can save up to $5500.

“True to the Polestar brand identity, our aim is to offer a premium, all-electric solution at an attainable level for a great proportion of Australian motorists,” says the head of Polestar Australia Samantha Johnson.

Sustainability is a big part of the Polestar sales pitch. While leather is available, the EV newcomer comes standard as a vegan car (just like Tesla). And it uses innovative recycled materials, the percentage of which will soon be declared as part of the brand’s transparency around environmental friendliness.

But it’s the price that is the talking point for Polestar.

It makes the Polestar 2 one of the most serious contenders in the EV space, not only taking the fight directly to the Tesla Model 3 but also the upcomining Kia EV6 and Hyundai Ioniq 5.

Polestar 2 Standard Range Single Motor: $59,900

The entry-level Polestar 2 Standard Range Single Motor uses a 165kW/330Nm electric motor to power the front wheels.

Claimed energy consumption is 17.1kWh/100km and the WLTP range is 440km from 61kWh of useable battery capacity (the total capacity is 64kWh).

The Standard Range completes the 0-100km/h dash in 7.4 seconds.

It comes with 19-inch wheels, smart key entry, powered tailgate and heated and partially electrically-adjustable front seats. Safety systems include auto emergency braking (AEB) and speed sign recognition (which can work with the cruise control).

There’s also a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and an 11.15-inch central infotainment screen running the Android Automotive operating system (it leaves all infotainment functions to Google and its third-party apps).

A $6000 Plus Pack brings a heat pump to reduce energy use when heating the cabin (it uses heat being generated within the battery and electric motor rather than creating its own heat) with the potential to increase the driving range.

That Plus Pack also brings heated rear seats, heated steering wheel, panoramic sunroof, wireless phone charging, vegan trim (called WeaveTech), wood trim, fully electric front seats and a 13-speaker Harman Kardon sound system.

Another option is called the Pilot Pack, which is $5000 and adds a 360-degree camera, blind spot warning, rear cross traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, headlights that steer around corners and rear auto braking.

Other options include leather ($6000), metallic paint ($1400) and 20-inch alloy wheels ($1400).

Charging for the Standard Range Polestar 2 is done via an 11kW Type 2 AC plug or a 116kW CCS combo plug.

AC charging takes about seven hours while a 10-80 percent DC fast charge can be done in as little as 35 minutes.

There is a 405-litre boot as well as 35 litres of under-bonnet storage.

Polestar 2 Long Range Single Motor: $64,900

From there it’s a $5000 step up to the Long Range Single Motor – $64,900 plus on-roads – which gets 540km of WLTP range and the same single motor setup driving the front wheels.

There’s more weight from a 78kWh battery pack (with 75kWh of usable capacity), but that battery pack can also deliver more electricity to the e-motor, boosting the maximum output to 170kW and 330Nm. The 0-100km/h of the Long Range is identical to the Standard Range at 7.4 seconds.

The Long Range Single Motor can also be optioned with the $6000 Pilot Pack and $5000 Plus Pack.

The Long Range Single Motor has the same 11kW AC charging setup as the Standard Range, but its larger battery capacity means a full charge takes an hour longer, for about eight hours in total.

DC charging can be done at up to 155kW, which allows the Long Range to hit the same 35-minute 10-80 percent charge time.

Polestar 2 Long Range Dual Motor: $69,900

Those wanting more punch can choose the Long Range Dual Motor (it’s not available with the smaller battery pack).

It’s priced from $69,900 and gets the same twin-motor setup of the Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric, which is more expensive – at $76,800 – but comes with more standard equipment.

The Long Range Dual Motor makes 300kW and 660Nm and is claimed to hit 100km/h in 4.7 seconds. The WLTP range is 480km.

The Long Range gets the same equipment levels as the other two, as well as the optional Plus Pack and Pilot Pack.

But the Polestar 2 Dual Motor can also be optioned with a Performance Pack for another $8000.

It brings 20-inch forged alloy wheel with Continental SportContact 6 tyres, Bembo four-piston brakes and cross-drilled discs, brake calipers painted gold and Ohlins manually adjustable dampers.

What is Polestar?

Polestar is owned by Chinese car making giant Geely and Volvo but it’s currently in the process of becoming a publicly listed company.

It’s tapping into the best of those two companies.

Polestars sold in Australia will initially come out of China, utilising cheap manufacturing and increasingly good quality.

But the engineering and safety expertise is largely coming from Volvo; the CMA architecture, for example, is the same one used under various Volvos, including the XC40. The two also share batteries and major electrical components.

Similarly the design ethos and attention to detail has plenty of Scandinavian flair (Polestar has its headquarters in Sweden).

So think of Polestar as Volvo’s Tesla fighter. A premium brand to take on the tech-focused EV might of the world’s top-selling EV brand.

Polestar 2 sales

Clearly the Polestar 2 is targeting the Tesla Model 3 – but it’s not going to sell in anywhere like the numbers initially.

Polestar Australia is guarded on how many it will sell in 2022 and beyond, other than to say production has been locked in and it is not expecting delays from the semi-conductor shortages hitting the entire industry, from Tesla to Toyota.

The best indication is Polestar’s global sales forecasts. This year it plans to sell 29,000 Polestar 2s. In 2022 it is forecasting 65,000 Polestar 2s.

To put that in perspective, Tesla sold 386,181 cars in the first half of 2021; most were the Model 3 and its SUV offshoot, the Model Y. It’s planning to hit one million global annual sales soon.

And in Australia Tesla is expected to sell somewhere between 7000 and 10,000 cars this year (it doesn’t release sales figures, but accurate estimates can be calculated).

So best guesses are Polestar might tap into one or two thousand sales for 2022, but it is expecting “exponential growth” in 2023 and beyond.

“We are confident that the Polestar brand experience will hit the right note with Australian EV enthusiasts,” says Johnson. “And we anticipate that the Polestar 2 with its compelling ownership proposition will attract many more Australians to all-electric mobility.”

The brand certainly appears to be starting strongly.

And there’s plenty more to come. Polestar has committed to three new models – taking the lineup to four – by 2025.

Where do you buy a Polestar?

Online is the easiest way.

Polestar won’t have dealerships but Spaces … which look a lot like dealerships.

They’ll be focused on the major metro centres to start with.

But the company is using a “digital first” sales model, so all the purchasing can be done online.

Being intertwined with Volvo means Polestar is planning to leverage the Volvo service network, which gives broad Australia-wide coverage.

Polestar 2 Standard Range single motor specifications

Price: $59,900, plus on-road costs

Basics: EV, 5 seats, 4 doors, compact liftback crossover, FWD

Range: 440km (WLTP)

Battery capacity: 61kWh

Battery warranty: 8 years/160,000km (guarantee of 70 percent of original battery capacity)

Energy consumption: 17.1kWh/100km (WLTP)

Motors: 1 front, 165kW/330Nm

AC charging: 11kW, Type 2

DC charging: 116kW, CCS

0-100km/h: 7.4 seconds (claimed)

Pilot Pack ($5000): Heat pump, Adaptive Cruise Control, Pilot Assist, 360-degree camera, front and rear parking sensors, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with steering support, Cross Traffic Alert with brake support, Rear Collision Warning and Pixel LED headlights with LED front fog lights

Plus Pack ($6000): Panoramic sunroof, 13-speaker Harman Kardon audio system, WeaveTech vegan upholstery, Black Ash trim panels, heated front seats with memory, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel and heated wiper nozzles

Other options: Nappa leather trim ($6000), metallic paint ($1400), 20-inch wheels ($1400)

Polestar 2 Long Range single motor specifications

Price: $64,900, plus on-road costs

Basics: EV, 5 seats, 4 doors, compact liftback crossover, FWD

Range: 540km (WLTP)

Battery capacity: 75kWh

Battery warranty: 8 years/160,000km (guarantee of 70 percent of original battery capacity)

Energy consumption: 17.1kWh/100km (WLTP)

Motors: 1 front, 170kW/330Nm

AC charging: 11kW, Type 2

DC charging: 155kW, CCS

0-100km/h: 7.4 seconds (claimed)

Pilot Pack ($5000): Heat pump, Adaptive Cruise Control, Pilot Assist, 360-degree camera, front and rear parking sensors, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with steering support, Cross Traffic Alert with brake support, Rear Collision Warning and Pixel LED headlights with LED front fog lights

Plus Pack ($6000): Panoramic sunroof, 13-speaker Harman Kardon audio system, WeaveTech vegan upholstery, Black Ash trim panels, heated front seats with memory, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel and heated wiper nozzles

Other options: Nappa leather trim ($6000), metallic paint ($1400), 20-inch wheels ($1400)

Polestar 2 Long Range dual motor specifications

Price: $69,900, plus on-road costs

Basics: EV, 5 seats, 4 doors, compact liftback crossover, AWD

Range: 480km (WLTP)

Battery capacity: 75kWh

Battery warranty: 8 years/160,000km (guarantee of 70 percent of original battery capacity)

Energy consumption: 19.4kWh/100km (WLTP)

Motors: 1 front, 1 rear, 300kW/660Nm

AC charging: 11kW, Type 2

DC charging: 155kW, CCS

0-100km/h: 4.7 seconds (claimed)

Pilot Pack ($5000): Heat pump, Adaptive Cruise Control, Pilot Assist, 360-degree camera, front and rear parking sensors, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with steering support, Cross Traffic Alert with brake support, Rear Collision Warning and Pixel LED headlights with LED front fog lights

Plus Pack ($6000): Panoramic sunroof, 13-speaker Harman Kardon audio system, WeaveTech vegan upholstery, Black Ash trim panels, heated front seats with memory, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel and heated wiper nozzles

Performance Pack ($8000): Ohlins manually adjustable dampers, Brembo four-piston brakes, forged 20-inch alloy wheels, ‘Swedish gold’ details inside and out

Other options: Nappa leather trim ($6000), metallic paint ($1400), 20-inch wheels ($1400)