This can be a make-or-break yr for Polestar, because the model unleashes two new all-electric fashions: the Polestar 3 and 4. After years of placing all their eggs within the Polestar 2 basket, this new duo brings some much-needed selection to the lineup, and if effectively executed, their new darlings have the potential to avoid wasting this in any other case struggling EV producer.
For these unfamiliar, Polestar and Volvo have a storied historical past relationship again to 2009. On the time, Polestar Racing—a profitable Swedish motorsports staff—was employed by Volvo to deliver some sportscar enthusiasm again to the model. Tasked with remodeling Volvo’s domesticated grocery haulers into monitor toys, Polestar Racing gave turbo brick fanatics a pair of track-ready sport trims for each the C30 and V60. Extra importantly the partnership set in movement a brand new imaginative and prescient for what Volvos may be. On the heels of that success, Volvo acquired Polestar Racing in 2015 and tasked it with creating a whole line of all-battery electrical automobiles that not solely stayed true to the Polestar pedigree, however remained elegant, comfy, and let’s assume “Volvo-Sufficient” to win again the hearts of the world.
This love story didn’t final, nonetheless. Volvo shed 62.7% of its Polestar stake earlier this yr. On the floor, the transfer offers Polestar extra freedom, nevertheless it additionally means Polestar has to face by itself two toes, carving out an identification separate from Volvo. And whereas the elegant Polestar 1 made the world swoon, it bought for $155k and was restricted to simply 1500 models, making the Polestar 2 the corporate’s first mass-produced automobile.
And right here’s the place it will get troubling: Polestar’s gross sales figures stay shaky. In 2023, the model bought simply 6,736 automobiles within the US—a drop of over 25% from the yr earlier than. And when you’re retaining rating, the primary quarter of 2024 didn’t supply a lot aid both. World deliveries got here in at simply 13,000 automobiles—a stable enchancment, however nonetheless down 17.5% from the identical time final yr.
Including to the complications, Polestar is coping with manufacturing delays. The Polestar 3, which is meant to be a worldwide hit, has seen its Australian launch pushed again. Initially set for early 2024, it’s now slated for late August. And whereas the Polestar 4 is anticipated to hit the US within the fall, it’s been gradual to roll out elsewhere.
Whereas the Volvo stake within the partnership has been drastically lowered, there are nonetheless some architectural and monetary synergies in play right here. The Polestar 3 shares its platform with the Volvo EX90, and the Polestar 4 is constructed on Geely’s popularized SEA structure, so Volvo and Geely are doing all they will to assist maintain prices down. The branding although, that’s as much as Polestar.
As one of many youthful gamers within the EV world, Polestar profitability isn’t practically as necessary as its development. Polestar plans to hit seven new markets subsequent yr, together with France, Brazil, and Thailand. However enlargement isn’t nearly getting into new markets; it’s about making a model identification, so to say quite a bit is driving on the success of the Polestar 3 and 4 is a defining understatement. This can be Polestar’s solely shot at making a splash in an EV market that’s already beginning to really feel a bit crowded.
However don’t depend Polestar out simply but. With recent fashions hitting the highway (hopefully) quickly and plans for increasing their world presence, Polestar has the potential to drive gross sales via its area of interest life-style branding train, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a pricey gamble–one that can both solidify Polestar’s place out there, or cut back them to a footnote in automotive historical past.
