Polestar 2 Kiwi pricing confirmed - look out, Tesla
Friday, 1 October 2021
Polestar has confirmed the price for its Tesla Model 3 rival, and it looks like game on for the two electric four-doors.
The Polestar 2 will be available here later this year in three forms; the standard range single motor, long range single motor, and long range dual motor.
Both the single motor models will qualify for the full Clean Car Discount rebate of $8625, with their starting prices set at $69,900 and $78,900 respectively. Meanwhile, the long range dual motor will start at $93,900. All those prices include on-road costs.
The standard range single motor version will feature a 165kW/330Nm electric motor and a 69kWh battery pack while the long range single motor version increases battery capacity to 78kWh and includes a 170 kW/330Nm powertrain.
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Absolute ranges are to be confirmed for the base model but rated at up to 540km for the long range version. Meanwhile, the long range version will have a 300kW/660Nm dual-motor powertrain as well as the 78kWh battery pack with a range of around 500km.
Polestar will also offer three upgrade packs.
The Pilot Pack includes advanced safety and driver assistance features, such as the Pixel LED headlights with LED front fog lights, driver assistance with adaptive cruise control and pilot assist, a 360-degree surround-view camera, all-round parking sensors, and driver awareness including blind spot information system with steering support, cross-traffic alert with brake support, and rear collision warning.
Polestar hasn’t specified what sort of safety kit will come standard.
The Plus Pack adds high-level premium equipment like a full-length panoramic glass roof, premium Harman Kardon audio system with 13 speakers, WeaveTech vegan upholstery, Black Ash deco panels, fully-electric heated front seats with memory, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel and heated wiper nozzles.
Plus Pack buyers can also upgrade the seats to ventilated Nappa versions.
The optional Performance Pack remains available for the Long range Dual motor variant only and includes adjustable Ohlins dampers, Brembo brakes, forged 20-inch alloy wheels and signature ‘Swedish gold’ details inside and out.
Other specific options include metallic paint, 20-inch alloys and a semi-electric folding tow bar. Each Polestar 2 can tow up to 1500kg.
Compare those figures to the Tesla Model 3, which comes in one single-motor version and two dual-motor.
The entry Standard Range starts at $66,900 ($68,732 including ORCs), while the Dual Motor Long Range starts at $82,900 ($84,732 including ORCs) and the Dual Motor Performance asks $95,900 ($93,732 including ORCs).
As for performance, Polestar says the fastest version should be able to hit 100kmh in less than five seconds. Meanwhile, Tesla says the Model 3 Performance will hit 100kmh in 3.3 seconds (subtracting a foot of rollout, of course).
Going off price, Tesla has both the cheapest and most expensive models, with Polestar sitting in the middle. Two of Polestar’s options are beneath the $80k threshold for the Clean Car Discount compared to just the one Model 3.
However, Tesla does seem to have the performance advantage on paper, with more power across the board. It will be interesting to see if that translates into real-world performance.