Polestar 4 Electric Performance SUV Launched In Shanghai Without Rear Window

At the Shanghai Motor Show, Polestar unveiled the fourth model in its short history as a standalone brand, the creatively badged Polestar 4. As with the 2, 3 and all other forthcoming vehicles from the Volvo spin-off brand, the 4 is a battery electric vehicle with a bias towards performance, in this case with the form factor of an SUV coupe that becomes available later this year starting in China.

The Polestar 4 is surprisingly close dimensionally to the 3 that debuted in fall 2022 but is actually on an entirely different architecture. Compared to the 3, the 4 is about 2.4 inches shorter overall but has just over half an inch more wheelbase. It’s also just slightly wider but it’s also just over 3 inches lower. While the 3 has a slightly more wagonish profile, the 4 is clearly going for the sleeker coupe roofline, but with four doors and a rear hatch.

For anyone that has driven any of the current breed of coupe-ish SUVs, one of the biggest annoyances of the sloping rear hatch profile is rear glass that has a remarkably short vertical distance between the top edge and the bottom. The Volvo C40 Recharge is a prime example of this. Look up at the rear view mirror and the view rearward is roughly comparable to looking through a mail slot but with rear headrests blocking even much of that vestigial view.

Polestar designers have looked at this and decided, why even bother with the rear glass? Why indeed. Thus the rear hatch of the Polestar 4 is completely solid, devoid of a window. In addition to eliminating something that didn’t provide much actual utility, this also eliminates the need to install a rear wiper which improves aerodynamics, reduces weight and complexity and is one less thing to break.

In place of the rear glass, the Polestar 4 gets a standard rear camera mirror system, a feature that is becoming increasingly common but is now mandatory on this vehicle. While the lack of rear glass may seem like it would leave rear seat passengers sort of entombed, the side glass extends back all the way to rear headrests and a full glass roof panel is standard. Optional on the glass roof is an electrochromic coating that can vary the opacity if it’s too sunny out.

While the 3 retained some of the blunt nosed style of the Polestar 2 and its Volvo predecessors, the 4 is the first production model from the brand to start rolling out the sharper look that debuted on the Precept concept a few years ago and will be coming to other future models. Among the visual changes are the separation of the upper and lower portions of what Polestar is calling its dual blade front lights, but are clearly carried forward from Volvo’s Thor’s hammer look. There is now a slim strip of body color between the two sections.

Inside, Polestar designers are also continuing to slowly evolve their visual DNA away from Volvo. There are more recycled and low-carbon materials being used throughout the cabin and Polestar is doing full lifecycle assessments on components with a full report to be published in 2024.

One of the challenges of recycling interior components of vehicles is that many of them are made up of multiple diverse material layers that aren’t easily separated. For the Polestar 4, engineers are relying on a single base material for all layers so no separation is needed. Among the materials are a custom, knit textile made from 100% recycled PET plastics.

Like other Polestar and Volvo models, the 4 continues with the Android Automotive OS based infotainment running on a Qualcomm Snapdragon Cockpit platform. The 4 is the first Polestar to switch from a portrait style center touchscreen to a landscape display measuring 15.4-inches. Like the other models, the Polestar 4 has the Google Automotive Services suite with Maps, Assistant, and the Play store to download apps. Unlike GM, Polestar is continuing to include support for Apple Carplay projection as well.

The Polestar 4 will be available with either single or dual motor configurations using a 102-kWh battery pack in the new Sustainable Experience Architecture developed by Geely, the parent company of Volvo, Polestar and many other brands. The first car to launch with this platform in 2022 was the Zeekr 001. The dual motor variants will produce 544-hp and 506 lb-ft of torque, enough to push the 4 to 62 mph in 3.8 seconds. The front motor has a disconnect clutch to reduce the drag when operating under light load conditions. With a single motor at the rear axle, output is cut in half to 272-hp and 253 lb-ft of torque, a configuration that is projected to yield a range of over 300 miles on the EPA test cycles.

While the Polestar 3 shares the SPA2 platform with the Volvo EX90 along with its Nvidia-powered suite of driver assist features, the 4 will carry over the corresponding features already launched on the aforementioned Zeekr 001. That means no Luminar lidar or Nvidia Orin. Instead it gets the Mobileye Supervision system with hands-free driver assist. Supervision is effectively the camera-only subsystem from the fully automated driving system that Mobileye is developing for robotaxis and delivery vehicles. It uses 12 cameras including 8 high-resolution 8MP cameras to provide surround vision processing and hands-free highway driving that is geofenced with Mobileye’s Road Experience Management crowd-sourced map platform. Like hands-free systems from other automakers it uses a driver monitoring system to ensure the driver is remaining attentive and ready to take over control when needed.

When using Supervision, the 10.2-inch instrument cluster display in front of the driver shows a virtual environment with the other road users around the car along with the usual vehicle information like speed, battery state of charge and range. A 14.7-inch heads up display also provides information projected out in front of the driver.

The Polestar 4 will be produced in Hangzhou Bay, China starting in November 2023 and go on sale in the Chinese market shortly after. It will arrive in North America later in 2024 with a price expected to start around $60,000, slotting it in between the 2 and 3 in terms of price.