While Volvo has taken several steps in recent years to reinvent itself as an upscale and technological automaker, its newly created Polestar brand is about to show off how performance and electrification will work together in the future. The Polestar 1, shown Tuesday at an event in Shanghai, will go on sale in mid-2019 as a limited production sports coupe that will be the first of three new cars dedicated to Volvo’s new performance division.
But the Polestar 1 is about what’s under the skin. Volvo pledged to introduce only electrified vehicles from 2019, and that also includes the Polestar models. Therefore, the Polestar 1 has up to 600 horsepower through its gasoline-hybrid powertrain. Two electric motors at the back make a combined 218 horsepower with an estimated range of 93 miles on a charge. For more performance, the 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine up front teams with those electric motors for the full 600. Polestar says this car has the longest range of any hybrid on the market.
The performance aspect of the Polestar 1, however, is not limited to the engine, as it features a new Öhlins Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension that allows the driver to change suspension settings from inside the car for better ride or handling, depending on conditions.
Despite using the same platform as the 90-series cars, Polestar officials said the new car shares only half of its parts with the Volvo models. The new coupe makes substantial use of carbon fiber to reduce weight and lower the center of gravity, the company said.
It’s also more than two feet shorter than an S90 sedan, resulting in the Polestar 1 having tiny back seats and a much smaller trunk — both of which also allow it to look more like a sports car. The parts sharing becomes more obvious inside, where aside from bespoke details, the Polestar 1’s dashboard looks like it could come from any recent Volvo. That’s not a bad thing at all, since we’ve found Volvo’s Sensus infotainment system to be a snap to use.
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