13 Burning Questions We Have for Volvo's 2020 Polestar 1

Timothy Cain
by Timothy Cain

By nature, we’re skeptics. It’s in the job description.

Thus, while it’s hard not to fall in love with the idea of Volvo’s new 2020 Polestar 1 offspring — I mean, just look at it — we also know how hard it is to kickstart a new luxury brand, regardless of whether Polestar wants to sit far outside the luxury mainstream or right at the heart of the matter. We can’t help but wonder whether the Polestar 1 is not representative of the ideal luxury brand launch.

As doubters, as pessimists, as cynics, as preternatural killjoys, as wary realists, we have questions about this new upstart premium automotive entity. Many questions.

  1. The Polestar 1 looks like the most attractive anonymous coupe to ever star in an insurance advertisement: why is there no badge in the grille?
  2. The Polestar 1 will be “sold” exclusively through the same kind of Care by Volvo program Volvo is launching with the XC40 — what if I just want to own it?
  3. It looks like a Volvo inside and out, so why isn’t the Polestar 1 a Volvo?
  4. Does the Polestar 1 look so much like a Volvo because it (along with its Polestar 2 and Polestar 3 successors) is built in China as part of Volvo’s Geely parent company? Because Geely knows a new, exclusively China-built lineup with no visual connection to Volvo might not be as accepted globally?
  5. If all of the Polestar brand’s successive models are going to be all-electric vehicles — a Tesla Model 3 rival and an SUV — why is the first Polestar hosting an ICE assistant?
  6. Is the limited production run (only 500 per year) caused by Volvo’s knowledge that the brand has proven to be largely unsuccessful at selling coupes over the last few decades?
  • Is “High Modulus CFRP Body/Optimized Carbon Fiber Layout” the most unnecessary badging ever placed on a car’s flanks, and will it be removed for production?
  • It’s not exactly Accord, 4Runner, or Wrangler, let alone Mustang, Quattroporte, 812 Superfast, or Marauder: why couldn’t Volvo/Polestar/Geely come up with any name for the car whatsoever? Honestly, just the 1? Not even the One?
  • Does the u-turn in Polestar’s mission from Volvo tuner to upstart luxo-EV brand mean the Polestar’s racing heritage falls to bits?
  • Why is Polestar so solemn, so gloomy, so dark about the company’s new status as an automaker?
  • The Polestar 1 is a handsome and classy coupe, but will a 737-lb-ft, carbon fiber-bodied, rear and all-wheel-drive opening gamut that lacks typical supercar cues and a supercar profile attract buyers of hi-po coupes?
  • Is Polestar — how can we broach this subject — a mildly inappropriate name for an automotive brand?
  • It’s six inches shorter than the BMW 4 Series coupe, or about the length of a Honda Civic: is that too tidy for a halo car?
  • [Images: Polestar]

    Timothy Cain is a contributing analyst at The Truth About Cars and Autofocus.ca and the founder and former editor of GoodCarBadCar.net. Follow on Twitter @timcaincars and Instagram.

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    • SilverCoupe SilverCoupe on Oct 18, 2017

      I like that it has no badging; it gives it a very clean look, as well as an air of mystery. Besides, I am not a fan of the diagonal band on the grilles of Volvos. Though I am a repeat coupe buyer,I expect that this will probably be priced out of my market.

    • Eaststand Eaststand on Oct 18, 2017

      I genuinely don't understand this. Make a gorgeous car, that's clearly a volvo, then call it a weirdly tacky phallic name.

    • Funky D The problem is not exclusively the cost of the vehicle. The problem is that there are too few use cases for BEVs that couldn't be done by a plug-in hybrid, with the latter having the ability to do long-range trips without requiring lengthy recharging and being better able to function in really cold climates.In our particular case, a plug-in hybrid would run in all electric mode for the vast majority of the miles we would drive on a regular basis. It would also charge faster and the battery replacement should be less expensive than its BEV counterpart.So the answer for me is a polite, but firm NO.
    • 3SpeedAutomatic 2012 Ford Escape V6 FWD at 147k miles:Just went thru a heavy maintenance cycle: full brake job with rotors and drums, replace top & bottom radiator hoses, radiator flush, transmission flush, replace valve cover gaskets (still leaks oil, but not as bad as before), & fan belt. Also, #4 fuel injector locked up. About $4.5k spread over 19 months. Sole means of transportation, so don't mind spending the money for reliability. Was going to replace prior to the above maintenance cycle, but COVID screwed up the market ( $4k markup over sticker including $400 for nitrogen in the tires), so bit the bullet. Now serious about replacing, but waiting for used and/or new car prices to fall a bit more. Have my eye on a particular SUV. Last I checked, had a $2.5k discount with great interest rate (better than my CU) for financing. Will keep on driving Escape as long as A/C works. 🚗🚗🚗
    • Rna65689660 For such a flat surface, why not get smoke tint, Rtint or Rvynil. Starts at $8. I used to use a company called Lamin-x, but I think they are gone. Has held up great.
    • Cprescott A cheaper golf cart will not make me more inclined to screw up my life. I can go 500 plus miles on a tank of gas with my 2016 ICE car that is paid off. I get two weeks out of a tank that takes from start to finish less than 10 minutes to refill. At no point with golf cart technology as we know it can they match what my ICE vehicle can do. Hell no. Absolutely never.
    • Cprescott People do silly things to their cars.
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