- The first U.S.-made Polestar 3s have started reaching customers in North America.
- It joins the Polestar 2 to become the second model in the U.S. lineup, with the smaller Polestar 4 arriving soon.
- Polestar needs the two new models to do well, as the China-built Polestar 2 faces a 100% tariff.
Polestar has just started delivering its largest and most expensive model, the Polestar 3, in the United States and Canada. The Polestar 3 is the Volvo EX90’s sportier cousin, sharing its underpinnings but wrapped in a much more rakish-looking body.
For European and Asian markets, the Polestar 3 will be manufactured in China, but the one sold in North America is being built at Volvo’s U.S. factory opened in 2017, which also assembles the more practical Volvo EX90. According to Anders Gustafsson, Head of Polestar North America, “Polestar 3 plays a pivotal role in our brand’s expanding lineup as an SUV designed for the North American market, proudly assembled in South Carolina, and now being handed over to North American customers.”
The Polestar 3 will join the China-made Polestar 2 in the manufacturer’s lineup, and its success is vital. Since the smaller Polestar 2 now incurs a 100% import tariff, Polestar will either have to raise the price or eat the cost of the tariff. In either case, expect sales volumes of the 2 to decline. These are trying times for Polestar in the U.S. and Europe, and the Polestar 3 needs to deliver. A spokesperson for the company told InsideEVs that its focus is on the 3 and 4.
When we spoke to the now former Polestar CEO, Thomas Ingenlath, regarding the effect of the new import tariffs on Chinese cars, he told us that “All effects that come now, we have to analyze and see what works, and what doesn’t work. We need more clarity, and ultimately we [need to know] what are actually the rules.”
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The next model to debut, the smaller Polestar 4 (a Porsche Macan Electric and Tesla Model Y rival), is already in production in China, but it will also start rolling off the assembly line in South Korea through a partnership with Renault Korea. It’s these Korean-made Polestar 4s that will be exported to Europe and America. Deliveries are expected to begin next month, although the date could again be postponed.
With a starting price of $73,400 destination included, the Polestar 3 isn’t cheap. If you want the 517-horsepower Performance Pack that drops the 0 to 60 mph acceleration time to 4.5 seconds, you will need to pay over $80,000. Despite being built in the U.S. and having a starting price under $80,000, though, the Polestar 3 does not qualify for the $7,500 federal clean vehicle tax credit for buyers. It likely contains battery components or critical materials sourced from China, which disqualify it. But thanks to the “leasing loophole,” the Polestar 3 and all other disqualified EVs still get the tax credit if you lease them. Now that they’re arriving on lots, we should know the lease price soon enough.