The Polestar 1 was a niche but exciting product that helped to reframe Polestar as a new EV company, rather than Volvo's performance sub-brand. The all-electric Polestar 2 brought the automaker to the masses with an affordable luxury compact built to take on Tesla. And now, Polestar hopes to change the game with its first fully electric SUV.
The Polestar 3 is handsome and borrows heavily from the 1 and 2. Familial facial features like the five-sided grille and "Thor's Hammer" headlights carry over while the full-width light bar in the rear virtually mimics the Polestar 2's back end. But there are hints of the lovely Precept concept in this design, too, particularly in the upgraded spit lighting fixtures and the svelte coupe-like roof design, even the staggered 21- and 22-inch wheels look similar.
Polestar calls the 3 an "aerodynamic performance electric SUV" and it boasts a corresponding drag coefficient of 0.29. It's not the slipperiest in the segment, admittedly – the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV (0.20), Tesla Model X (0.24), and BMW iX (0.25) all cut through the air with more ease – but it's certainly a strong option in the race for efficiency.
Speaking of efficiency: underneath the Polestar 3's stylish, slippery body is a 400-volt EV architecture that houses a 111.0-kilowatt-hour (107.0-kWh usable capacity) battery pack and two electric motors. That gives the Polestar 3 an EPA-estimated range of 300 miles in the US with 250-kilowatt DC fast charging capabilities that will recharge the battery from 10 to 80 percent in just 30 minutes. That's the fastest in the class. A mechanical heat pump comes standard, which will maximize range and help precondition the battery, while the Polestar 3 also features bi-directional charging.
That dual motor setup gives the Polestar 3 a healthy 489 horsepower and 620 pound-feet of torque with the ability to hit 60 miles per hour in 4.9 seconds. Adding the $6,000 Performance package bumps those figures to 517 hp and 671 lb-ft, and helps drop the 60 time to 4.5 seconds, while the Performance pack also adds new 22-inch wheels, standard Pirelli P-Zero tires (265 front and 295 rear), gold valve caps and seat belts, and a range optimization drive mode. But the Performance pack also drops the estimated range to 270 miles.
Here’s how the Polestar 3 stacks up compared to other electric SUVs:
| Battery Capacity | Power | Range | Max Charging | |
| Audi E-Tron | 95.0-kWh | 355 HP / 414 LB-FT | 222 Miles | 150 Kilowatts |
| BMW iX xDrive50 | 111.5-kWh | 516 HP / 564 LB-FT | 324 Miles | 195 Kilowatts |
| Cadillac Lyriq | 102.0-kWh | 340 HP / 325 LB-FT | 312 Miles | 190 Kilowatts |
| Mercedes EQS SUV | 108.4-kWh | 536 HP / 633 LB-FT | 285 Miles | 200 Kilowatts |
| Polestar 3 | 111.0-kWh | 517 HP / 671 LB-FT | 300 Miles | 250 Kilowatts |
| Rivian R1S | 135.0-kWh | 835 HP / 908 LB-FT | 316 Miles | 220 Kilowatts |
| Tesla Model X | 100.0-kWh | 670 HP / 712 LB-FT | 351 Miles | 200 Kilowatts |
A 14.5-inch touchscreen graces the center console with the latest version of Polestar’s Android Automotive operating system. The setup features built-in Google Maps, Google’s voice assistant, over-the-air updates, and now, wireless Apple CarPlay functionality for all the iPhone users out there.
Both the Plus pack and the Pilot pack come standard on the dual motor long-range model at launch, with the former adding a 25-speaker Bowers & Wilkins system, soft-close doors, a heated steering wheel and rear seats, and fancier 22-inch wheels. The Pilot pack gives you access to Polestar’s latest and greatest active safety equipment, which includes Pilot Assist (Polestar’s advanced adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go up to 80 miles per hour), parking assist, and a head-up display.
The Polestar 3 will launch in the long-range, dual-motor trim exclusively. But rumor has it that more – hopefully, more affordable – models will be available down the line. For now, the Polestar 3 starts at $85,300 with the $1,400 destination fee included. The $6,000 Performance pack brings the total cost to $91,300.
Polestar is currently taking pre-orders for the 3, but the first customer examples won’t roll off the production floor until later in 2023.
