Driving Report Polestar 5: First Impression of the Track

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Polestar launches the Model 5 in the summer. The Grand Tourer is impressive— and at a comparatively fair price.

A good six years after the first model, the Polestar 5 is launched on the market this summer. The Volvo sister brand is thus venturing into the prestigious Grand Tourer class. The model, which is almost 16.7 feet long and costs at least $140,000 USD, will be up against competitors such as the Porsche Taycan, Audi E-Tron GT, the Chinese Lotus Emeya and the American Lucid Air.

In terms of performance, the five-wheeler from Polestar can easily keep up: In the standard version, the two electric motors together send 550 kW (740 hp) to the four wheels. The performance version goes one better with 650 kW (870 hp). The front motor is supplied by ZF, while the rear unit is an in-house development by Polestar. As is usual in this segment, the manufacturer relies on 800-volt technology, with correspondingly short charging times. The 112-kilowatt-hour (150 hp) battery should ensure the 416 miles range calculated according to the WLTP consumption standard.

The Polestar 5 is already available to order. In December alone, over 160,000 potential buyers took a test drive. But only virtually in the Gran Turismo 7 game. Potential buyers will not be able to get behind a real steering wheel until spring, when the first models are in the Polestar showrooms.

First Real Test Drive—As A Passenger

Polestar has now invited us to Austria's snowy Zell am See for an exclusive first lap in the passenger seat. Joakim Rydholm is at the wheel. Swede, quiet voice, clear sentences. He is responsible for chassis development and has tuned all Polestar models to date. Anyone sitting next to him quickly realizes that he is not driving to impress. Rydholm drives to feel.

Steering angle, body movements, the fine interplay between the front and rear axles: he repeatedly talks about the confidence that a car must give its driver. Confidence does not come from hardness or mere precision, but from balance.

Well-Balanced Chassis

The track is well developed, the asphalt is clean, almost too clean for a chassis that is designed down to the last detail for feedback and control. Although many subtleties disappear in the smooth surface, you can still feel how smoothly the Polestar 5 moves over bumps. No rebound, no body pitch, everything feels balanced.

Rydholm explains that this is precisely the core work of his team. If a wheel hits a transverse joint, a bump or a small stone, the car has to absorb this movement and stop immediately. The front and rear axles should come to rest in parallel. A single overshoot is one too many.

Adaptive Chassis With Magnetizable Metal Particles

Technically, there is an enormous amount of effort behind it. The first platform, developed by Polestar itself, features an extremely torsionally rigid aluminum body, which benefits the steering and dampers. The $167,000 USD performance version features adaptive dampers, similar to those used by Ferrari, Lamborghini and the Audi R8.

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While in conventional shock absorbers valves determine the flow of the damper fluid, the adaptive system uses magnetizable metal particles in the oil. If they are excited electromagnetically, the viscosity of the fluid changes in fractions of a second, up to 1,000 times per second.

However, the actual job of Rydholm and his team of five was to calm this technology down. Reacting too quickly would overload the driver with information. "We wanted to give the vehicle a natural, almost hydraulic feel," says the chassis professional. "The Polestar 5 should not feel nervous, but confident."

Solid Acceleration

Then a long straight and a powerful step on the electric pedal. The full 650 kW are suddenly available, pushing the large Gran Turismo effortlessly and pressing us into the firm seats. The acceleration is brutal, but not dramatic. No rearing up, no frantic intervention of the control systems.

The thrust is linear and controlled. For Rydholm, this is also a question of character. Power must be perceptible, but should neither overwhelm nor overtax the driver. The fact that the Polestar 5 sprints to 62 mph in 3.2 seconds is more of a side note than an end in itself.

Freely Combine Parameters for Dampers And Co.

The dampers, steering, drive and stability programs can be configured via the large, portrait-format touchscreen. Unlike many competitors, however, the parameters can be freely combined. Comfort with firmer steering, performance with softer suspension. "We don't want to patronize the customer," says Rydholm. His personal favorite is called "Nimble": a balance between comfort and sport that makes the most sense on public roads, especially where the asphalt is not perfect.

A little later in the rear seat, the impression changes from that of an active driver to that of a real ride-along car. The backrest can be tilted electrically and there is plenty of room for the legs. Not a trace of confinement, despite the flat body. The glass roof, which is over two meters long, floods the rear with light and the feeling of space is surprisingly generous.

As in the Polestar 4, the engineers have moved the roof structure further back. This eliminates the rear window, but leaves plenty of air above the heads. The view outside is unobstructed without having to retract your head. The massive roof pillar looks bulky from the outside, but hardly disturbs from the inside. Compared to the E-Tron GT, the rear feels more open, less like it is limited by embrasures.

Reduced Design With Quick Access

At the front, on the other hand, concentration prevails. The seating position is low, the cockpit clearly focused on the driver. As in the Porsche or Audi, a high center console separates the seats. Buttons or switches are nowhere to be found, but the Polestar-typical rotary volume control remains. The design remains reduced, almost austere, yet you don't feel lost like in the minimalist, empty Teslas. Although a lot is done via the central touchscreen, there are shortcuts for the most important functions, such as the cruise control or mirror adjustment.

In the end, the impression remains of a very well-balanced vehicle with impressive performance data and an attractive price compared to the German competition. A Gran Turismo in the classic sense, interpreted in a modern way. Developed by people who prefer to listen rather than explain out loud. (thg)

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