Polestar is recalling 66 units of its 1 grand touring plug-in hybrid over risks that the cars might catch on fire when fully charged. The move serves as a permanent fix for a previously discovered problem. Each car will get a new battery that takes nearly 20 hours to replace.
Late in 2022, Polestar issued a recall of these same cars over this same concern. Neither now nor at the time did it give deep details on exactly what causes the problem but confirmed that when fully charged, these 1 PHEVs presented a fire risk. Back in December, the initial recall featured a software remedy that simply reduced the amount of charge that one could reach. That effectively limited range but also eliminated the fire risk.
Now, Polestar is moving forward with a complete solution that requires the removal and replacement of the battery itself. For Polestar 1 owners that means that they’ll get all of their range back with a fresh brand new battery and none of the risk associated with the old one.
Read: The Polestar 1 Remains An Expensive Yet Intriguing Oddity
All associated 1s were built between September 11, 2019, and May 12, 2021. The automaker sent notification to all owners back during the initial recall but they’ll be updated again now that a full fix is ready. It didn’t indicate any knowledge of models that might have already experienced a ‘thermal incident’ such as a fire at this point.
Polestar might not offer a great deal of information regarding exactly how and why thermal events can occur in this battery pack, it’s very clear about what it takes to eliminate the risk. Each affected 1 will get a brand-new battery that, according to Polestar, takes 19.9 hours to replace. That’s a long (and in Polestar’s case expensive) job but one that’s clearly in the interest of safety above all else.
Those who want to know if their vehicle is affected can contact their local Polestar dealer or search the NHTSA database online. If your 1 is included just prepare for a fix that takes at least a few days.
