Speaking to Australian media from Shanghai, Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath has explained why the brand needs a volume seller like the Polestar 2 in its range, despite its march upmarket.
Responding to questions around car pricing and whether the Polestar 2 will continue to be important to the brand given its more luxury and performance aspirations for every other model it has revealed since, Ingenlath said: “Yeah, our product portfolio in the future, between Polestar 2, and 5 (the GT due for release in 2025), and 6 (the roadster due in 2026), obviously there is a mix of cars which go all the way between 50 and 120,000 Euros (AU$80,000 – $200,000).”
“This is where you have a much bigger customer target group. Of course, the groups get smaller the higher you go in price, and for that reason cars like the Polestar 2 and Polestar 4 which have naturally higher volume potential than cars like the Polestar 3 and 5.”
He said the higher pricetags of the Polestar 3 large SUV, Polestar 5 GT and Polestar 6 roadster would offset their lower volume, but that without volume sellers, Polestar, as a brand, just wouldn’t work the same.
“You have to have the right balance,” Ingenlath said. “You can’t just aim for the most expensive cars. You need a certain volume, as a brand, to cover infrastructure, as well as to carry a certain number of dealerships. So we just have to find the right spot.”
Right now, the Polestar 2 (the only car currently in the Australian market) can be serviced at select Volvo workshops, a process made easier as it largely shares the same hardware as the Volvo XC40 Recharge and C40 Recharge purely electric SUVs.
Things will become more complicated as Polestar introduces its own higher-performance drivetrain components, with a steep increase in cabin tech, like the lack of a rear window in the Polestar 4, which is replaced by a digital rear-vision setup.
The Polestar 2 currently costs between $63,900 and $73,400 before on-road costs, but is expected to become more expensive when a major update lands later this year.
Meanwhile, the Polestar 3 large SUV will cost between $132,900 and $141,900 when it arrives in October. The just-announced Polestar 4 is expected to wear a price-tag starting in the region of $100,000.
Ingenlath believes Polestar’s range is still well priced compared to rivals, however.
“In the segment we’re operating in; the premium luxury segment, I don’t think there’s now such a big gap left [between ICE models and EVs].
“To compare Polestar 3 versus a Porsche Cayenne, I actually think it is on a very competitive level when you consider the battery size that you get at the price we’re asking for now.
“A big question is how much can the cost of electrification in the mass market really come down? Can it be competitive with ICE cars? That’s a big challenge where the battery prices become such a crucial factor. That’s not really the task and the challenge of Polestar, because we’re simply not going into those volumes, and into that mass market production.”
But Ingenlath also wouldn’t rule out the possibility the Polestar 4 could, in fact, outsell the Polestar 2.
“Let’s face it, data from history doesn’t necessarily count anymore,” he said. “And I think we have to, as a new young brand, we don’t have a precedent there. So, we will have to see how this develops. It definitely has a great potential. I hope you agree.”
Keyword: Are electric cars too expensive? Why Polestar reckons its new $100,000-plus EVs are good value