Brent Ellis’ Post

Last month it was time for #Polestar4 to shine in the spotlight at Hällered Proving Grounds for the first-ever test drives of some of our pre-production test cars (European version). This was my fifth such preview drive for Polestar. It never gets old! And so, 13 of the world's leading auto journalists joined us to get to grips with our latest EV - this time the SUV coupé that has already been dominating headlines thanks to its unique design. They drove both the full-fat 400 kW dual-motor version with the Performance Pack, as well as the 200 kW single-motor version with our new Pro Pack. 😎 So, what did they think? No real surprises there - this is shaping up to be yet another slam-dunk from our chassis engineering team, fronted in this case by Joakim Rydholm and Roger Wallgren. ❤️ Teknikens Värld in Sweden 🇸🇪 says "Polestar's chassis department has done it again", "few series-produced everyday cars have this kind of steering - responsive and precise" and "…the Performance-equipped car has sports car qualities, while the standard car is configured with an unusual amount of sense." From the US 🇺🇸, Autoblog says "Polestar may have created a new segment" and Car and Driver Magazine says "we were too enamored with its test-track manners to even care about the missing glass". From Norway 🇳🇴, Tek.no states "rarely have we had the experience of such an agile and nimble car weighing well over two tonnes" and from the Netherlands 🇳🇱, Autoweek states "you actually quickly forget that you are traveling with an unusual construction." The Brits 🇬🇧 were most descriptive. Autocar says "in both forms, the 4 changes direction with an alacrity and precision" while Car Magazine says it's "one of few EVs we can’t wait to drive again, just for the hell of it" and that "the tightness of the body control, which really is gobsmacking, leaves you scratching your head." The comments from Auto Express were however most staggering, from one of the industry greats: - "Polestar 4 is unquestionably the new superstar" - "Do not buy a sporting EV until you’ve tried this one" - "It’s also a cracking good car to drive, with an unusually strong emphasis on serious driver appeal. Not just for an electric car but for any kind of family-orientated car, full stop" - "Their exhaustive work has produced a car that rides, steers, handles, stops and drives with a precision that few others at this level can match, be they ICE or EV" - "It feels like a junior limousine in the back" - "It has one of the smartest, most intriguing cabins of any new car on sale right now" - "If all EVs end up being this good, we’re in for a treat" The cherry on top was how Joakim's driving was descirbed: "watching him slide a single-motor 4 is like watching Da Vinci doodle." What a compliment! 🥰 More great proof that we know what we are doing! Big thanks to all involved, as usual. 💪🏼 Fredrik Lina Miranda Ola Beatrice Svensson Christian Mattias Sofia Simon Gentex Corporation Joakim Craig

"Can you see me?" 👀 This has become a bit of a catch-phrase around the office after Joakim Rydholm and I showcased the digital rear-view mirror in #Polestar4 a few weeks ago (https://lnkd.in/dCfJ49Xz). That film did however raise additional questions about how the camera stays dry and clean, just how well it works in the dark, and especially for us in the Nordics, how snow build-up might affect it. 🤔 So, while up in the Arctic Circle over the last few weeks, we planned the follow-up to address the extra concerns. ❄️ Enjoy!

What happens when you build a bespoke ice track on a frozen lake, then throw a bunch of journalists at it with our first SUV, #Polestar3? Well... ...That's what we did in late February as we embarked on a second round of preview drives with some of the world's leading journalists. Why? Because sideways. And because awesome. 😁 Also because being up in Jokkmokk within the Arctic Circle - the home of our winter testing programme - shows just how amazing our cars are to drive in some of the most challenging conditions: temperatures regularly dip below -30°C; tuning the chassis of a performance car becomes infinitely more accurate and specific. ❄ The track earned the nickname "Joakim-ring" after our ever-happy Head of Chassis Development, Joakim Rydholm, who clearly designed his bucket-list winter wonderland. 🏁 Our top chassis engineers treated these journalists to Polestar 3 on ice. The impressions speak for themselves... 🇺🇸 Eric Tingwall from Motor Trend in the USA states: "Engineers taught it to neatly tuck its nose into corners under braking and gracefully rotate its tail under power" and "as the next step in establishing Polestar as a serious luxury performance brand, it could be exactly what the company needs." 💪🏼 🇦🇺 Feann Torr from Carsales in Australia says Polestar 3 "puts the ‘sports’ back into SUV," and "it doesn't feel like a 2.6 tonne SUV, it feels more like a little hot hatch." Stephen Corby from CarsGuide adds: "It just pivots like a mid-engine car." 🇳🇴 Kris Rifa from Norway, who drives a Taycan Cross Turismo as a daily, says "cancel your Porsche order!" while Vegard Møller Johnsen from Broom says, "I don't think I've ever experienced anything like it." 🇮🇸 Ragnheiður Tryggvadóttir from Vísir in Iceland says, "The car obeys everything," and from Coches in Spain, 🇪🇸 Joan Dalmau says that Polestar 3 gives a "feeling of driving a lighter and smaller car than it is." 🇧🇪 From Knack in Belgium, Alain De Jong says, "It steers like a gokart and is very easy to control in these slippery conditions," and lastly, Max Dockhorn from Efahrer in Germany actually went on to change his original headline to "Who wants a Porsche, Benz or BMW? Polestar 3 blows us away in the first test." Proof that Polestar 3 is shaping up to be one of the best electric SUVs - make that, best EVs overall - this year. With production now underway, I cannot wait to fully unleash this car to the world's press in a few months' time.🔋 Big thanks as always to everyone involved! Fredrik Huldt Carl Mårtensson Mercan Turkmen Roger Wallgren Aron Wikstrand Henrik Pihl Fredrik Lundqvist Per Jansson Anders Larsson Beatrice Simonsson Andreas Andreen Lina Fisher Miranda Fredriksson Fares Damlakhi Sofia Björnesson Simon Thor Thorsteinn Hannesson Jimmy Herkules Christian Falk Julie Mys Tobias Glauser Johanna Laune Isabel SALAS MENDEZ Daniele Caso Laurissa Mirabelli Kim Palmer Mike Ofiara Ingigerður Einarsdóttir Marlene Hyre Kristin Fjeld Anna Wesolowski et al.

Momentum is increasing. #Polestar3 is officially in production in China and will roll out in a few months' time. And as you know, we'll be producing cars on two continents with additional production in the USA coming later this year. Soon time for the world to embrace this exceptional SUV! 💪🏼🔋

Some days are more fun than others. Like this one, late last year, where Joakim Rydholm and I took two #Polestar4 test cars out into rare winter sunshine at Hällered Proving Grounds to investigate the headline-grabbing digital rear-view mirror - and see what it's really like. New technology can be intimidating - but this is something you get used to pretty quickly. 👌🏼 Have a look, and enjoy the supporting story by Petter Schmidt. 😎 Great day out with talented colleagues and creators including Fredrik, Hunter, Saga, Daniel, Patrick, Sam, et al.

Here's a fun walkaround of Polestar 4 with our design chief Maximilian Missoni. Enjoy!

Big day today as we take the next steps with #Polestar4. Our gorgeous SUV coupe is now on sale in Europe and Australia. Available online right now at Polestar.com! 💻 https://lnkd.in/dc9Kun_U Having revealed this car last year in Shanghai, and subsequently starting production and handing the first cars over to customers in China late last year, the next phase officially begins - rolling Polestar 4 out to all our markets. More to come in the following months, but what a great feeling to finally release the reins in Europe and Australia! 🌷 Proud to have taken our PR managers from all markets through the car earlier this week, supported by ad hoc cameraman extraordinaire Hunter. 🎬 Onwards and upwards! 💪🏼

It may be really late, but then I did come home from Vegas with serious "CES flu" and proceeded to cease living for a week - so you'll have to forgive me. 🤒 My first #CES was quite the eye-opener, indeed. In addition to announcing new features with our friends at #Google (https://lnkd.in/dc4U2RyF), we teamed up with a few of our great partners and had a few cars on display. 🔋 The Google team were the proud custodians of a Polestar 3 which was used to demo the new features within #GoogleMaps. Luminar Technologies exhibited Polestar 3 with their leading #LiDAR proudly displayed on its roof, and Mobileye showcased #Polestar4 with their clever "x-ray" installation that shows where the many cameras and sensors of their SuperVision system are located on the car. 🩻 Fantastic to meet so many familiar faces IRL for the first time - Rachel Bingham, Tom Granese, Aaron D'Angelo, MBA, Emily Shanklin, Milin Mehta, Austin Russell, Hannah Zakon-Tubi, Justin Hyde, amongst many others. 💛 Above and beyond our own presence and press interactions with Thomas though, it was superb to see some of our other valued partners in the flesh, all showcasing their current and next-gen this-and-that. Managed to spend time with Smart Eye, Acconeer AB, Gentex Corporation, Dolby Laboratories, ECARX, Qualcomm and NVIDIA - we sure are part of a fantastic technology ecosystem! 💪🏼 The cherry on top was certainly a little film production on behalf of Hunter Skipworth-Sandston where we used the new send-to-car feature in Google Maps to navigate a gorgeous #Polestar3 from the Vegas strip to the amazing Hoover Dam. That story and our film is below. 💦 Great job by all, and superb to spend valuable time on the ground with Thomas Ingenlath, Bojana Flint, Andrew Blair, Mike Ofiara, Taylor V., Jimmy Herkules, Ed Thiel, Simon Thor., Waqas Aslam, Per Norberg, Cindy Haun-Nevens et al. cc Martin Krantz, Lisa Strandvik, Magnus Gerward, Martin Karlsson, Craig Piersma, Ertunç Güzel, Tansy Teuten, Gareth Dean, Jana Dawes, Katie Young.

Every few years I get to interact with some of the world's leading auto and business journalists as we allow the first 'civilians' to drive our cars in prototype form. This is a huge moment that takes a lot of preparation, making unfinished, pre-production cars ready to be judged by the best brains in the business. 🤔 Polestar 1 took them on in June 2019 and in February 2020, Polestar 2. November 2023: Polestar 3. This being our first SUV, it was not just about handling and comfort, but also some off-road ability. Yes, a car with 22-inch Pirelli P Zeros can do a LOT more than you think - if it's engineered properly... 🌄 And, well... Wow. They think it's rather very good! 😎 It's an odd sensation - many of us within the company have driven all sorts of Polestar 3 prototypes already - from the roughest of early mule cars to near-perfect show cars. One reaction has been common for all of us though - this big SUV is one helluva car to drive. It feels light, agile and poised - not the sort of words one usually uses to describe a car that is this big or this heavy. 👀 But what do we know, right? Bias, and all that... 😇 Well, let's see. 🇸🇪 Teknikens Värld says: "Compared to comfortable competitors like the BMW iX and Audi Q8 e-tron, the Polestar 3 is a sports car…" and "there is no car of this size that can match the Polestar 3 when it comes to steering feel." ⚡ 🇳🇴 Dagens Næringsliv says: “Polestar 3 is right now the most exciting SUV in its class" and "Polestar 3 does not lack skills on the dance floor." 🕺 Then you have 🇩🇪 Süddeutsche Zeitung saying, "it feels like being in a real sports car" and 🇬🇧 Car Magazine stating their first impressions were "overwhelmingly positive". 😍 🇬🇧 Autocar says the steering is "unusually communicative" and 🇬🇧 Auto Express remarked at the car's "almost baffling amount of grip" - which was especially impressive given we did this on summer tyres on slick tarmac, thanks to a rapidly approaching Swedish winter. These comments are outstanding, prove that our SUV for the electric age is not like any other, and that we know a thing or two about how to properly engineer a car. 🔧 Big thanks to EVERYONE involved in making this event happen, and the unwavering support of our management and colleagues who fight the good fight with us and help make magic happen, including our special guest from BorgWarner and the awesome team at Hällered Proving Ground. ✨ If this is the starting point, there is no limit to where this car will take our special company in 2024! 💪 Thomas Ingenlath Maximilian Missoni Maria Uggla Ruben Rodriguez Bosch Carl Mårtensson Graeme Lambert Lena Lai Matilda Lindblom Mattias Magnusson Ben Samuelson Tanya Ridd Fredrik Huldt Christian Samson Beatrice Simonsson Andreas Andreen Fredrik Doberauer Roger Wallgren Joakim Rydholm Sofia Björnesson Simon Thor Sven Rognelund Henrik Pihl Patrick Derner David Olofsson Thorsteinn Hannesson