All-new, all-electric large SUV won’t come cheap – and won’t arrive here until 2024
Polestar Australia has announced full local pricing and specification details – and opened the official order book – for the all-electric 2023 Polestar 3 via its public website, where $1000 deposits are now being taken.
As expected, Aussies will face a long wait for the all-new large electric SUV, which won’t arrive here until the first quarter of 2024, but the good news is pricing is slightly lower than the Chinese-Swedish EV brand previously announced.
Two all-wheel drive versions will be available, with a starting price of $132,900 plus on-road costs for the Long Range Dual Motor variant, and the beefed-up Long Range Dual Motor with Performance Pack flagship priced at $141,900 plus on-road costs.
That makes Polestar’s second model after the Polestar 2 fastback a direct rival for large electric SUVs like the Audi Q8 e-tron, BMW iX, Jaguar I-PACE and the upcoming Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV and 2024 Volvo EX90, with which it shares its SPA2 platform and is also due here in 2024.
However, unlike the seven-seat Volvo EX90, the 4900mm-long Polestar 3 will offer only five seats, and also giving it an unequivocally high-performance bent are muscular 380kW/910Nm outputs for the flagship version, which is claimed to hit 100km/h in just 4.7 seconds, and a handy 360kW/840Nm for the standard version (4.7sec).
Both variants are powered by a big CATL-sourced 111kWh lithium-ion battery pack – feeding a pair of electric motors – yielding a maximum effective (WLTP) driving range of up to 610km from a single charge.
A 400-volt electrical architecture allows a peak charging rate of 250kW and both Polestar 3 models have a 2200kg towing capacity.
Specification highlights for the Australia-bound vehicles include adaptive dual-chamber air suspension, a full-length panoramic glass roof, full LED lighting, retractable door handles with proximity sensing, rear torque vectoring, 14.5-inch infotainment interface with OTA updates, heat pump and 21-inch alloy wheels.
Apart from extra power and torque, vehicles with the Performance Pack, which will become a $9000 option, add Pirelli P Zero tyres on forged wheels and adaptive dampers.
Initial 2024-plated examples will also come with the eventually optional Plus and Pilot packs, which throw in a bunch of extra goodies like a 25-speaker 3D Bowers & Wilkins audio system, soft-closing doors, head-up display and Pilot Assist.
Bi-directional charging capability will also be included out of the box, offering vehicle-to-load (V2L) and eventually vehicle-to-grid (V2G) functionality.
Drivers, passengers and other road users alike will be protected by an arsenal of five radar modules, five external cameras and 12 external ultrasonic sensors as standard.
But the aforementioned Pilot Pack can be had with an optional LiDAR suite that adds another three cameras, four ultrasonic sensors and cleaning functions for the front- and rear-view cameras.
The catch is these LiDAR-equipped vehicles aren’t expected to arrive on Aussie soil until the third quarter of 2024 and will cost an extra $6000.
Other options will include premium paint colours among the six hues available ($2000), 1.3-megapixel HD LED headlights ($3000) and ‘animal welfare’ Nappa leather ($7500), which one of three interior trim options including wool and bio-attributed MicroTech vinyl.
Polestar Australia says it has received almost 7000 expressions of interest in the 3 between its unveiling in October last year and the opening of order books today.
“Polestar 3 is a highly anticipated addition to the Polestar range in this market,” CEO Samantha Johnson said.
“We know Australians want more electric vehicles that are ‘fit for purpose’ and with Polestar 3 we will deliver just that – a new, premium benchmark for driving excellence, technological integration and sustainability for the electric age.”
Allocation sizes and exact ETAs for the Polestar 3 are yet to be confirmed and will be announced in the lead-up to the model’s local launch.
The 2024 Polestar 3 will be quickly followed on sale by the Polestar 4 medium SUV, the 2025 Polestar 5 grand tourer and the 2026 Polestar 6 roadster.
How much does the 2024 Polestar 3 cost?
Long Range Dual Motor – $132,900
Long Range Dual Motor with Performance Pack – $141,900
* Prices exclude on-road costs
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Keyword: Polestar 3 pricing and specs confirmed