The Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 models will be launched within nine months of one another as the car manufacturer looks to make up for lost time.
While the current Polestar 2 has been widely praised since it hit the production line in 2020, it remains the brand’s only model that’s actually available. A key reason for this is Polestar’s reliance on its global partners for new models.
As Polestar is a brand within Geely, it can focus on products and technologies while letting its parent company work out logistics and manufacturing. This saves money for the startup but has its downsides. Indeed, the development of Volvo’s new SPA2 vehicle platform has been delayed due to software-related issues, meaning the SPA2-based Polestar 3 has been pushed back by nearly a year. That’s a problem when enticing new EVs are launched every other week from rival brands.
Read: Polestar CEO Shades Musk, Shows 3, 4, And 5 EVs Testing
Speaking with Auto News, Polestar chief executive Thomas Ingenlath revealed that the Polestar 3 should launch in U.S. stores in the fourth quarter of this year. Landing just nine months after it will be the Polestar 4, taking the form of a slightly-lifted sedan akin to the Tesla Model Y.
While Polestar will launch the two models so close to each other, Ingenlath does not expect any sales cannibalization between them. He noted that the 3 is similar in size to the Porsche Cayenne and more of a “true SUV” while the 4 will be more of a “four-door GT but with a little bit elevated position.” In addition, prices for the 3 will start at $85,300 while the 4 will cost around $60,000.
The Polestar 3 won’t just be important for the brand as its second model but also because it will be the first to be manufactured in the United States at Volvo’s factory in Charleston, South Carolina. It will not initially qualify for federal EV tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act because of its sticker price but Polestar does plan to launch a single-motor version in 2024 that will be eligible.
Ingenlath acknowledged that the car manufacturer “would be in a completely different situation” were it building its vehicles from scratch but said it’s difficult, noting Tesla is the only automotive startup to achieve significant scale and that it “definitely takes a long, long time.”
