The first test drive of the Polestar 4: an impressive family electric car
Polestar's tailless windshield miracle might be the sporty, family-friendly electric car you've been looking for
We need a new vocabulary to describe an electric car like the Polestar 4. The Swedish automaker called its fourth product an "electric SUV coupe," but that didn't help much. In my opinion, and maybe you think so too, an SUV is the kind of car that we used to call a 4X4 or an off-road vehicle.
The Polestar 4 has a relatively low roof (for an SUV, but it's not an SUV) and has sleek lines that look more like a sedan, but slightly taller than a regular sedan. It's a lot like the equally indefinite Jaguar I-Pace, but with the Jaguar I-Pace coming out of production and no successor, such comparisons are pointless.
New cars may no longer be objectively bad, but soon, they become extremely difficult to define. We can call the Polestar 4 a "car without a rear windshield" because it was the first car in a limited-edition, track-focused supercar to have no rear windshield. You'll be shocked when you see it for the first time, just as Formula 1 introduces an aura to protect the driver's head, but just as similarly, you'll soon forget about it.
As long as you're happy to watch the video in the center mirror, rather than looking at the reflection, so you can see the road behind you with a wider and clearer view without having to look at the rear seats, you'll quickly get used to it. Unless, of course, you need to check on your child, but Polestar has taken that into account and you can always turn the screen into a mirror/child monitor with the flick of a small lever. Of course, driving in the trunk with a dog won't work.
The rear windshield was removed not to make a splash (I don't think the Swedes would have done that), but to increase the headroom for second-row passengers. The rear seats are really very comfortable, with a roof lining that arches around the back of your head, wrapping you around like a seat at the tip of a long-haul flight.
The overhead and front view is unobstructed by sweeping skies, and the subtle ambient light behind the headrests compensates for the lack of lighting in the rear windshield. It's a groundbreaking rewriting of the rules of automotive design, but I think it's a no-brainer for a Swedish startup.
Polestar takes simple, reliable and proven technology – the camera and screen – and shows how it can be used to improve basic features like rear headroom. This means that the 4 can maintain its coupe-like aesthetics instead of turning into a high-roof SUV.
I know aesthetics are a subjective issue, but I think it's a car that looks good, both inside and out. It has the iconic Polestar front end, as well as the company's admirably restrained approach to surface detailing.
There are two models to choose from. The first starts at £59,990 and is billed as a "long-range single motor". Polestar likes to keep it simple when it comes to naming. This single motor drives the rear axle, producing 200 kW (268 horsepower) and 343 Nm (253 lb-ft) of torque. That's enough for it to accelerate to 60 mph in 6.9 seconds, while the WLTP range is claimed to be 385 miles.
For an extra £7,000 you can get a 'long-range dual motor' with the same 100 kWh battery pack, the same 400-volt system architecture, the same 200 kW maximum charge rate and the same 124 mph top speed.
The difference is in the second motor, which is mounted on the front axle and boosts the total output to 400 kW (537 hp) and up to 686 Nm (506 lb-ft) of torque. All of this power reduces the 0-60 mph acceleration time to a supercar-like time of 3.7 seconds. The range has decreased, but the claimed 367-mile WLTP range is still respectable. Drivers of both models can fully charge the battery from 10% to 80% in about 30 minutes on a fast public charger.
You may be tempted to spend a fortune on a more powerful model, as such a significant performance boost is relatively inexpensive. But unless you live in a climate where all-wheel drive is used a lot, or you really need extra traction, i.e. 2,000 kg vs. 1,500 kg of traction, I'd recommend sticking with the single-motor model. It's the one I drive, and while I'd love to try a faster model, I suspect a regular car will never feel undercut in everyday driving.
Whichever one you choose, you'll be the proud new owner of an electric car that tries to blend sporty balance with everyday practicality and quickly lays the groundwork for Polestar to build a strong competitor to existing brands.
I didn't test drive the 4 for long, but I was immediately impressed with its ventilation, stylish cabin, precise steering, and good shock absorption. You'd hardly expect the car to weigh more than 2,200 kg in single-motor mode, and it exhibits a pleasantly lightness from your first steering input.
There is actually another key difference between the two versions of the Polestar 4. The single motor uses passive shock absorbers, while the dual motor uses active ZF shock absorbers. If you add a performance package, it comes with stiffer springs and anti-roll bars.
I'm intrigued by the active shock, especially since the base already drives well, and I'm wondering if the stiffer performance package is worth the extra £4,000. If you're weighing that, this package also includes a set of 22-inch wheels, Brembo brakes and "Swedish Gold" seat belts, valve covers, and brake calipers.
Inside, Polestar has resisted the cost-saving trend adopted by other companies by removing the driver's display and moving the speedometer to the central screen. Thankfully, the 4 has a 10.2-inch readout behind the steering wheel for speed, battery, range, and navigation tips, and there's also a 15.4-inch display on the dashboard for everything else. The screen has a different landscape orientation than the Polestar 3's portrait screen, but it's not clear which method is better.
Like other Polestar screens, the 4's screen is crisp and responsive. Some drivers will certainly still miss the physical temperature control, but at least the Polestar's interface is one of the most intuitive on the market. It runs Google's Android Automotive system and provides native access to Google Maps, Google Assistant, and Play Store, as well as Spotify music and 5G connectivity. It's an admirably smooth system, and iPhone fans will be happy to hear that Apple CarPlay is included as well.
The interior of the 4 is really great. Clean and clean, but without feeling cold and austere, it embodies everything we've come to expect from Polestar's restrained yet refined approach to car design and ergonomics.
Traditional indicators, wipers, and gear selector levers are also very popular, as their role is fortunately not relegated to the touchscreen or tactile buttons on the steering wheel. But that's not the case with the mirror controls, which can be accessed with just a few taps of the screen and a set of unmarked buttons on the steering wheel. It's annoying at first, albeit just a trifle.
As soon as you hit the road, the Polestar 4 feels good. It has the rigidity of an electric car that we're all used to, but other than that, it's a great driving experience. The steering is great, and there's even a delight hidden beneath the Scandinavian-style surface.
I only test-drove the single-motor, rear-wheel drive version of the Polestar 4. It's fast, but it won't overwhelm you like the dual-motor version. Do you want your family car to do the same? It seems like a lot of early EV adopters want this, but for most buyers, the lower price and extra range of the standard version should make it a better option.
Polestar is now in the heyday of its development, and with the 3 and 4, it has quickly grown from a single-bike startup to a full-fledged electric car company with three great models. If you don't need the height of a suitable SUV like the larger and more expensive Polestar 3 and want to stand out from the crowd of midsize SUV crossovers, then the Polestar 4 is the way to go.