Volvo's EV offshoot delivers its first fully electric model, and with Google infotainment and great on-road manners, it's a promising look at Polestars to come.
Most of the
time voice recognition is the sort of feature that you only try twice. Once out
of curiosity, then a second time just to make sure it really is as hopeless as
you thought. To be fair to her, Siri can be pretty good, but most of the
manufacturer-based voice-recognition systems are more trouble than they're
worth. Which is a shame, because being able to control things without taking
your eyes off the road or your hands off the steering wheel is a real boon in a
car.
It was with
this sort of pessimism that I said, "Hey, Google" for the first time
in the Polestar 2. Moments later, without so much as a quibble, I was being
navigated to my home postcode. Then I said, "Hey, Google" again, this
time more optimistically, and muted the nav's instructions (because I know my
way home from five miles away). Heated seats on? No problem. Radio? If you
insist.
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This is the
first time Google has been integrated into a car's operating system and it
really does feel like the sort of game changer that will leave other
manufacturers reeling and scrabbling to catch up. It can also extend beyond the
car to your home and office and any other areas of your life that are connected
to a Gmail account. "Hey, Google, turn on the lights in the garage."
I love it.
On the
other hand, it's attached to a large touchscreen and I've never been a fan of
those. Except, in the Polestar 2, it actually seems to work. There are still
physical buttons for things that you might need in a rush, like the hazard
warning lights and windscreen demisting. There is a volume control knob too,
which is handy. But the screen itself is simple and intuitively arranged so
that you can merely glance at it and get what you need. The icons that you need
to touch are also large enough that when you stretch out a finger you don't
feel like you're chasing a lone pea around a plate with a fork.
2021
Polestar 2 has Google tech and impressive road manners
Incidentally
I've always wondered about the relative merits of portrait- and
landscape-oriented screens, generally leaning towards landscape for aesthetics,
but Polestar has championed the benefits of portrait for the simple reason that
lists you scroll down can be longer and maps can show more of the road ahead
(while being orientated in the car's direction of travel). The second screen
behind the wheel is nicely uncluttered, with three simple layout options that
show only relevant information such as speed and power usage or a large but
slightly simplified map.
One more
thing on the navigation: When you enter a destination it automatically shows
you how much battery charge you will have left when you arrive. This might
sound simple, and in fact other electric cars have adopted this technology as
well, but I think it will go a long way to alleviating the anxiety felt by
anyone new to EVs. Google will also plan your route via charging stations if
you wish or need. The claimed range from the 78-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion
battery -- which can charge up to 80% in 40 minutes -- is 292 miles according
to the European WLTP cycle (US EPA numbers are still unknown). The test wasn't
long enough to assess how accurate it will be in the real world, so that will
have to wait for another day, but it's promising.
Something
that will obviously extend the range is regenerative braking and I loved this
aspect of driving the Polestar 2. I've rarely been able to complete entire
journeys without ever touching the brake pedal and it's a curiously pleasing
experience. The regen can offer up to 0.3 g of braking force which is plenty in
most situations, and while there is the option to tone-down the one-pedal
driving from Standard to Light or even Off, I'm not sure why you would.
Initially it can take a little acclimatization and there are a few jerky
applications at first, but it's not as tricky as training your left foot to
brake. In fact I think the extra-sensitive right foot would be beneficial in
other non-electric cars -- who knew that a Polestar might improve your throttle
control in a 911 GT3?
Polestar
It's not
all about lifting off the accelerator: Push it towards the vegan carpet (more
of that in a moment) and you can achieve a 0-to-62-mph time of 4.7 seconds
thanks to the two 150-kilowatt motors. That's not earth-shattering compared to
certain other EVs, but it produces more than enough of that
instant-electric-torque-freefall sensation to satisfy most people. Keep the
pedal pinned and you can reach 127 mph, which is ample.
Anyway,
back to the interior. As standard, the Polestar gets a vegan interior. And rather
nice it is, too. It'll be interesting to see how well it fares with use over
time, but straight out of the box the textures of the textiles are tactile and
warm. Also standard is the panoramic roof, which helps give a nicely light and
airy feeling to the cabin despite the relatively high shoulder line and
reasonably shallow windows.
In fact the
only notable option on the car that I drove is the Performance Pack. This costs
$5,000 and provides you with 20-inch wheels (19s are standard), larger Brembo front
brakes, gold-colored dust caps (be careful where you park...), gold-colored
seat belts and Öhlins dual-flow manually adjustable dampers. It's very much
about performance in the corners rather than performance in a straight line.
The dampers will certainly feel surprisingly firm if you are expecting the
Polestar to ride like a Volvo, but this firmness is largely in the secondary
ride as it still soaks up bigger bumps with aplomb. And of course you can
adjust them. The front shocks are relatively easy to tune but accessing the
knob on the rears takes a bit more effort. Nonetheless, it can be done, and
after switching the car to its comfort setting (18 clicks out of 22 on the
front, 20 out of 22 on the rear) it does feel more accommodating on bumpy
British roads. Still not plush, but slightly less bobbly.
This is one
entertaining EV.
Polestar
The reason
for the uprated brakes becomes most obvious if you drive with the regenerative
braking turned off. When it's denuded of its additional slowing, you can feel
the 4,681-pound curb weight as you try to bring it to a halt. Try to drive it
like a hot hatch and you can make startlingly swift progress, but in a neat and
tidy way rather than with any particular engagement or adjustability.
Not that
this really matters too much, because I don't think the Polestar 2 should be
viewed as a performance car. There is enough else going on to make it
interesting and desirable, and as an overall package, I think the Polestar 2
feels fresh and incredibly well thought-out. Yes, it's heavy, but it doesn't
feel bulky, and it's not big like an SUV (it's shorter than a BMW 3 Series). At a smidgen under $60,000 in the US it
feels like reasonable value too, certainly given that it clearly undercuts
other premium offerings. If you said, "Hey, Google, what does Henry
Catchpole think of the Polestar 2?" I hope it would reply with,
"Terrific."
Source : Cnet.com
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