Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath is a bonafide car enthusiast. He pushed to make the base Polestar 2 rear- instead of front-wheel drive, and he’s shepherding the Polestar 5 four-door GT and Polestar 6 roadster into production. Ingenlath also helped turn the limited BST Edition 270 and Edition 230 of the Polestar 2 into reality. At the New York International Auto Show, Ingenlath confirmed to Motor1 that more BST editions are on their way.
He didn’t provide a timeline or specifics yet, but the previous BST edition cars give us an idea of what to expect. Essentially lower, stiffer suspension, stickier tires, and lots of styling tweaks to communicate the car’s increased performance. Both BST versions of the Polestar 2 had the same 476 horsepower as the regular dual-motor sedan, but paired that with stiffer springs, a lower ride height, unique Ohlins dampers, unique wheels, and a custom spec of Pirelli tire. Polestar made 270 examples of the BST 270 and—you guessed it—230 examples of the BST 230. Evidently, they were received well enough to keep the project going.
While both the Polestar 3 and 4 were delayed, Ingenlath says progress is good on the 5 sedan. He pulls out his phone to show us pictures he posted to Instagram of pre-production cars rolling down the assembly line.
We also asked about the perceived slowdown of EV sales in the U.S., and he had an interesting perspective on the situation. He doesn’t think people are souring on electric cars. “It's just simply a period in economic time where people, of course, are more cautious about a purchase decision,” he says. “That has to do with interest rates, it has to do with psychology, and Jesus, the world is not in an easy place.... For the first time, EVs [have] experienced an economic cycle.”
There’s also the fact that Polestar has different goals than other EV makers. “Let’s face it,” Ingenlath says, “we are not pitching for the million that Tesla is wanting to sell, we are not in competition with BYD. We are in competition with companies like BMW, Porsche and Mercedes.” He also argues that Polestar’s competition extends beyond just EVs—a Polestar 3, for example, needs to tempt someone out of a BMW X5, not just an iX.
With Polestar 3 deliveries beginning this summer and Polestar 4 deliveries planned for the fourth quarter, this is a big year for the brand in the US. Thankfully, both models are cheaper than initially anticipated, something Ingenlath credits to strong residuals for the Polestar 2. Still, 2024 is a make-or-break year for Polestar. Hopefully it’ll succeed, and we’ll get some more performance models.
