Polestar has unveiled the Polestar 2, its first pure electric car. Well, it's only really the second car from Polestar since it span out as a premium entity from Geely-owned Volvo and reinvented itself as a premium car brand.

The new model is being pitched as a rival to the Tesla Model 3; it's a five-door fastback design, showing all the hallmarks of Scandinavian design - a touch of Volvo here and there - while also being a huge homage to technology and sustainable mobility. 

It comes with a vegan interior, it runs on Google's new car platform as standard and it's promising some great performance specs too. Stick with us and we'll guide you through everything you need to know about the new Polestar 2. 

Can I watch the Polestar 2 launch online?

Yes, you most certainly can watch the reveal if you want to see it all happen. Be warned though - the show doesn't actually start until to 27 minutes into the video below, so be sure to fast forward to the action. If you don't watch all of it, be sure to watch the last 3 minutes. We don't want to ruin the surprise, but it involves a dog.

Polestar 2 battery and performance specs 

  • 0-60 in 4.7 seconds
  • 78kWh battery
  • 300kW/408bhp, 660Nm
  • 500km/310 miles (WLTP)

Starting with the easy details, the Polestar 2 sits on Volvo's Common Modular Architecture platform and the battery is made up of some 27 modules, shaped to fill spare space in the floor of the car. It's integrated with the cooling system and encased in an aluminium and steel shell for protection, providing a low centre of gravity and lots of rigidity through the floor of the car - to boost handling.

The battery is a 78kWh unit, with motors front and rear giving you 300kW - or 408bhp - of power. That should see you hit 60mph in 4.7 seconds. Polestar says that it is looking for 500km range from this battery.

Polestar says that it will setting up arrangements with big charging networks to provide easy access for customers.

Design and interior

The Polestar 2 has a fastback design - i.e. - sloping off towards the rear, rather than dropping off like a hatchback, while retaining a fully accessible boot. It's a five-door model, measures 4607mm long, 1800mm wide and is 1487mm high - so it's sort of Toyota Prius size. 

It shows hallmarks of Volvo design; you'll spot those Thor's Hammer daytime running lights and sitting in those headlight units you have an LED system that's smart, able to shut off the beam so that it doesn't dazzle oncoming traffic.

There's a huge light bar across the back giving distinctive looks, but check out the gallery for all the angles on the new Polestar model.

Shifting to the interior, at launch it was announced that the Polestar 2 would be vegan as standard, so there's no leather in there. New materials have been created - including something called Weave Tech. The overall aim of the interior is a minimalist Scandinavian design using natural materials. Several different colour options will be available.

The gold seatbelts come with the Performance Park, along with Brembo brakes and Öhlins dampers.

Google-powered infotainment

  • 11-inch vertical touchscreen
  • Android platform with Google Maps
  • Keyless entry

Sitting in the centre of the car is an 11-inch display. It looks a little like it's floating and Polestar says that the vertical orientation is the best for providing mapping. Volvo obviously likes this implementation as a huge central display like this appeared on the refreshed XC90 back in 2014 - and it's growing in implementation across other car manufacturers too. 

One of the big details for fellow geeks is that this is an Android-based system, the first to use the Google automotive solution. That means no struggling with in-house mapping or hokey voice systems because it uses Google Maps and Google Assistant. At the launch, it was demonstrated returning relevant search results like charging stations, so it's not just for entertainment.

The demos showed off Spotify being used for music, but with Google Play support - and confirmation that the Polestar 2 will be connected to the internet for music streaming and updates - we imagine other music systems will work too. We guess it will work seamlessly with your Android phone - but Polestar has made it very clear that there's full support for the Apple iPhone too. 

Not a huge amount has been said about sound systems, but we know there's an uprated Harmon Kardon system on the Launch Edition model.

Outside of entertainment, there are some other interesting technologies. There's keyless entry, using your phone's Bluetooth signal to unlock the car, but this has been limited to a 1.5m range. There's also no start button: instead there's a sensor in the seat so it knows when you're behind the wheel and ready to drive.

There are also onboard cameras to provide a full range of safety and other driving systems.

How much will the Polestar 2 cost?

It was announced that the Polestar 2 will start at €39,900, although this is a guide price and there may be some fluctuation. That may or may not be subject to local government incentives when it actually goes on sale.

However, for the first 12 months there is a special Launch Edition model for €59,900. This includes all-wheel drive, panoramic sunroof, Weave Tech vegan interior and a Harman Kardon sound system. Again, this is a guide price.

In the US it will be $55,000 (that's $63,000 - $7,500 federal incentive), and we assume that's for the Launch Edition again. Prices for the UK have not been confirmed, prices for China are still to be announced.

The launch territories for the Polestar 2 are Belgium, China, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK, USA.

When will the Polestar 2 be available?

Production will start in February 2020 with first deliveries expected in July 2020. Reservations can be placed via the website, where there is a full configurator to create your Polestar 2.

In the UK you'll be invited to put down a £1,000 deposit.