Top Car of 2021: Polestar 2
Wednesday, 5 January 2022
Yes, it literally slipped through at the very end of the year, but the Polestar 2 was definitely worth the wait.
Just how good is the Polestar 2? Well, put it this way, if the Tesla Model 3 is considered the benchmark in the EV segment, then the Polestar almost matches it for energy efficiency, betters it for back road fun, and runs rings around the American car in terms of quality and luxury.
But if you ignore the fact it is an EV, it is also up there knocking on the door of established European mid-size sedans like the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. However, it is also considerably cheaper than those highly-regarded ICE models.
The Standard range single motor variant kicks off the range at $69,900 (including on-road costs and before the $8625 Clean Car rebate), while the Long range single motor variant lands here at $78,900 and the Long range dual motor tops the range at $93,900.
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Polestar is a close relation to Volvo (both being under the Chinese giant Geely’s umbrella), and that shows through in mostly good ways, in terms of the excellent quality and focus on safety tech, but if we had a criticism, it would be that the styling is a little too close to Volvo to be truly distinct.
But that doesn’t mean the Polestar 2 is a bad looking car – far from it, in fact – and we think the initially odd-seeming blend of liftback, sedan and SUV works brilliantly well in the metal.
It also happens to look fantastic on the inside as well, with a brilliantly minimalist feel and excellent quality materials used throughout.
The Polestar 2 runs Google’s new automotive operating system, which is a brilliantly intuitive thing made even better if you have already embraced all things Google – signing in with your Google account gives you access to all of your calendar, music and saved Google Maps locations via an onboard SIM card in the car, complete with a four-year data plan.
But even if you haven’t let the Internet giant into your life or are a committed member of the Apple infrastructure, you can still use everything in the system. It just gets a little bit less fluid. Or intrusive, depending on you point of view on Google…
Depending on the model, the Polestar 2 is available with two different battery sizes (69kWh and 79kWh), with a range of between 470km and 540km. The two single motor variants pump out 170kW of power and 330Nm of torque, while the dual motor long range model cranks that up to an impressive 300kW and 660Nm.
Which, yes, does make it an absolute blast on a back road, with instant power and some serious mechanical grip on offer for blasting out of the corners. And if you want to get even more serious about this, then the dual motor version is available with an optional Performance Pack that adds manually-adjustable dampers. Yes, really.
However, it is the two variants that slip under the Clean Car Discount $80,000 cutoff that make the Polestar 2 so compelling – for a smidge over $60k and $70 respectively after the rebate is applied, the value for money argument gets even harder to ignore when you start looking at what comes standard for that money.
The entry car packs 19-inch alloy wheels, a 12.3-inch digital driver display, a 15-inch touchscreen infotainment system powered by Android Automotive OS and online connectivity for three years, an electric tailgate, keyless entry, dual-zone climate control, heated, partially-electric front seats, LED headlights and tyre pressure monitoring.
It also includes full safety assistance package that includes collision avoidance and mitigation, forward collision warning, lane keep assist, road sign recognition, driver alert monitoring, post-impact braking, as well as eight airbags.
The Long range single motor variant includes the ‘Pilot Pack’ that includes blind-spot monitoring, cross-traffic alert, rear collision warning and mitigation, a 360 degree surround camera, pixel LED headlights with adaptive high beam and active cornering, and adaptive cruise control with Volvo’s ‘Pilot Assist’ Level 2 semi-autonomous assist.
You can, of course, tick the box for the Pilot Pack on the base car as well, adding $4000 to its asking price and keeping it well below the Clean Car cutoff still, while you can also option it up with the ‘Plus Pack’ for a further $5500 and get a heat pump, heated rear seats, a heated steering wheel and heated windscreen washer nozzles, ‘Weave Tech’ vegan upholstery, high-level interior illumination, a panoramic sunroof, fully-electric front seats, a wireless phone charger and rear privacy glass. All still keeping the entry car under that all-important $80k mark.
Regardless of how you want to configure a Polestar 2, all models are built to an incredibly high standard, are great to drive and look fantastic. Oh yeah, and they happen to be EVs with good ranges, all of which is more than good enough for us to pick it as our Top Car for 2021.