All-new Polestar 2 to battle Tesla Model 3
Pure-electric Swedish Polestar 2 gets rakish fastback looks, 300kW and decent 500km rangeVolvo's fledgling premium brand, Polestar, has released its first core model, the Polestar 2, that will fight it out with the Tesla Model 3.
Featuring a design inspired by the flagship Polestar 1 and core Volvo models like the S90 sedan, the Polestar 2 has been touted as the car that will take the brand mainstream.
Confirmed for right-hand drive production, the Model 3 fighter is set to be priced from €39,900 ($A64,000) for the entry model Polestar 2.
Set to be produced at a factory in China, sales of the pure-electric sedan will commence worldwide from early 2020.
Initially, Polestar says for the first 12 months of production the car-maker will mirror Tesla's marketing approach of only selling a fully-loaded launch edition that will see the Polestar 2 priced at a hefty €59,900 ($A95,000).
Based on the same Volvo Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform, that's currently used on cars like the Volvo XC40 and Lynk&Co 01 the Polestar 2 packages two electric motors that drives both axles providing all-wheel drive.
Placing its 78kWh lithium-ion battery beneath the floor, engineers claim that the batteries act like a structural member boosting rigidity while handily slashing road noise by 3.7 dB compared to a petrol or diesel-powered rival.
Combined, the twin motors produce 300kW and 660Nm of torque, Polestar claim its 2 can hit 100km/h in "less than five seconds" but haven't released a specific time.
Important for those with range anxiety fears, the Polestar 2 can cover almost 501km under the tougher WLTP cycle which places the small sports sedan among the best for driving the furthest distance between charges.
Inside, the Polestar picks up where the latest XC40 left off with a clean minimalist look that sees a large 11.0-inch tablet style infotainment system in pride of place.
Harnessing the power of tech giant Google's latest services, the Polestar 2 offers the driver Google Assistant and Google maps, plus specific apps designed for the battery-powered sedan.
The Polestar 2 also offers the car-maker's latest Pilot Assist semi-autonomous driving aids, plus an advanced new LED matrix adaptive lamps.
The Swedish car-maker says it will make the traditional key history with the Polestar 2 as it uses your phone to lock and unlock it.
Following the recent trend, buyers will also be able to order their car with near endless amounts of ways to tailor the interior to their individual tastes and, following the recent trend, the standard car's cabin gets bright yellow seatbelts and has been created to be vegan-friendly.
Finally, for those who fancy a zero-emission M3-rivalling sedan, Polestar will happily oblige and offers a Performance Pack that adds Ohlins dampers, big gold-painted Brembo brake calipers and larger 20-inch alloy wheels.
Polestar says its 2 is available for online ordering now despite there being no word on when Australian deliveries will commence.
Following the launch of the Polestar 2 the brand will launch the Polestar 3 -- an SUV-coupe that could be priced to go head-to-head with the Tesla Model X, giving the established US car-maker yet more opposition on a segment it has, until now, dominated.
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