Polestar targets China as its main goal

Polestar, the sub-brand of Volvo, is preparing its landing in the Asian country with three models: a plug-in hybrid and two fully electric vehicles.

Polestar, the premium brand dependent on Volvo, will focus on China. The carmaker’s plan is to sell battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles in the Asian country. For now, it has been revealed that there will be up to three different models. One of them will be a plug-in hybrid (Polestar 1), while the other two will be fully electric (Polestar 2 and Polestar 3).

China, the main target of Polestar

The goal of Polestar is for half of its sales to come from China. The start date for this target is 2021. From that year on, the premium brand will have launched the three projected models. However, the European and United States markets will need to make up the other 50% of sales.

Thomas Ingenlath, the brand’s CEO, commented on the lack of variety in electric cars on the market. “The point is to offer enough variety and choice for users,” Ingenlath added about the goals for the electric vehicle market. For this reason, Polestar sees a business opportunity and thus aims to compete in the Chinese market with Tesla, the leader in the electric car segment, Mercedes-Benz and Audi.

The strategy of Polestar is to bet on production and network service with Volvo and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the Chinese company it has partnered with. This will allow the premium carmaker to become profitable and move more quickly in the market than the rest of the electric models in China.

Production of the Polestar 1 will begin in mid-2019

The models projected by Polestar are three: one plug-in hybrid and two fully electric vehicles. Ingenlath’s brand’s initial plan is to start production of the Polestar 1 in mid-2019. Production of the plug-in hybrid would be between 50,000 and 100,000 units per year at its Chengdu (China) factory. This model was presented at the Guangzhou Auto Show in November.

The sports coupé of Polestar will feature in its first model a combustion engine and an electric motor. This will deliver a combined output of 600 CV and 1,000 Nm of torque. A full battery charge provides a range of 150 kilometres in electric mode. Likewise, this three-door model will have four seats arranged in a 2+2 layout. The plug-in hybrid’s price would be around 137,000 euros.

The company’s next step will be the mass production of the Polestar 2, the brand’s first fully electric vehicle. The construction of the saloon will begin in 2020 at its Shanghai factory. The goal of Polestar is to compete head-to-head with the Tesla Model 3, although it has not yet been unveiled to the public.

Finally, the carmaker’s plans are to develop the Polestar 3, a SUV of the D segment, that is, large-sized. Like the saloon, this vehicle will be fully electric and will compete with other models such as the NIO ES8, NIO ES6 (announced for mid-2019), Audi e-tron, Mercedes EQC 400 or Tesla Model X.