2024 Polestar 4 review

As our world becomes increasingly fractured, so too does the electric-vehicle line-up of Volvo’s sporty-premium offshoot, Polestar.

Each new Polestar model introduces a fresh consecutive number, and while that numerical nameplate strategy might make parts-ordering or vehicle chronology relatively easy, it ain’t so simple out in the real world.

After Polestar 1 (rare, expensive, high-performance coupe), 2 (medium EV liftback-sedan) and 3 (large premium SUV) comes the 4 (upper-medium coupe SUV), the supposedly imminent 5 (expensive, performance-focused four-door GT) and the potential 6 (a two-plus-two performance roadster, based on a shortened version of the 5’s aluminium platform with shared 800-volt architecture).

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Of those undoubtedly appealing models, however, only the now five-year-old Polestar 2 (which has just been updated for MY25) and the all-new 4 (tested here in early-production form) will be able to generate significant sales volume for the beleaguered Swedish EV brand.

Struggling? How so? Back in early 2022, CEO Thomas Ingenlath (who styled the Polestar 2 and was once the SVP of Design at Volvo) communicated hopes of the brand selling 290,000 units annually by 2025. But with the Polestar 3 and 4 only recently going on sale internationally, the volume reality was 54,600 units last year, with revised hopes of achieving 155,000-165,000 units in 2024.

A good majority of that total rests on the crisply rendered form of the Polestar 4. Underpinned by a relatively fresh, Geely-developed ‘SEA1’ bespoke EV platform, the 4 measures a considerable 4840mm in length (234mm longer than Polestar 2!) and 2008mm wide, stands 1534mm tall and rides on an enormous 2999mm wheelbase.

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Track widths are also substantial – 1703mm front, 1716mm rear – giving the Polestar 4 both a unique proportion and a four-square stance.

Compared to the upmarket SUVs the Swedes expect it to compete against (BMW iX3 and Porsche Macan E, among others), the Polestar 4 is longer, lower and wider – giving it a substantial foundation from which to achieve its sporty, techy, and undoubtedly fancy aspirations.

Launching in Australia in two varieties (Long Range single-motor and Long Range dual-motor, with a Performance Pack available for the latter), the rear-drive 4 starts at $81,500 RRP ($10,100 more than its Polestar 2 equivalent), though the drive-away price of the Gold AWD Performance Pack fitted with zinc Nappa leather by Bridge of Weir, as well as a Plus Pack ($8000) we tested in Spain, extends to a slightly unnerving $134,500.

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JUMP AHEAD

• Is the 2024 Polestar 4 worth my attention?
• What about inside?
• What powers the Polestar 4?
• How does it drive?
• Is it worth waiting for the 2024 Polestar 4?
• Specifications

Is the 2024 Polestar 4 worth my attention?

For that sum, you get a very rapid and nicely tailored designed-in-Sweden, made-in-China EV.

With a 0-100km/h claim of 3.8 seconds, the dual-motor 4 is also the fastest-accelerating Polestar up to this point, so it certainly has the performance to support its price tag.

From a design perspective, there’s a lot to like. The short-nosed, grilleless front is relatively unexceptional but the rest of the 4’s shape (with a 0.26Cd) is quite distinctive – in particular its shell-like, windowless rear.

Not having to accommodate a tailgate window – replaced by a Gentex rear camera system with digital rear-view mirror – meant the designers could shift the header point of the roofline rearward, creating a lounging, club-like space in the rear seat that feels both private and limousine-worthy.

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From rear-on, the Polestar 4’s stubby overhang completely disguises its overall size, and successfully distinguishes it from the wagon-shaped Polestar 3 and fast-back Polestar 2.

It also gives it a unique presence thanks to the absence of any glass, as well as a generously sized boot beneath its rear tailgate – capable of swallowing 526 litres of cargo, which is 42 litres greater than a Polestar 3’s.

Frameless door glass is also a feature – as it should be with anything ‘coupe’ in its title – as well as retracting door handles, and even the base 4 wears 20-inch alloy wheels. Our Performance Pack test car sported very handsome 22s fitted with 265/40R22 Pirelli P Zero tyres – a wheel design that also debuts on the flagship 2025 Polestar 2.

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What about inside?

Yet it’s inside where the Polestar 4 really makes its mark. It has a Tesla Model 3 vibe in its general layout, but the execution is much warmer, classier and more premium.

The 4 is the first Polestar to debut a vast landscape centre screen that operates virtually all functions, including the directional adjustment of the air vents (which is far less rubbish than it sounds).

While it takes a bit of time to set up short cuts and favourites, once all that is done, the overall functionality is superior to that of the Volvo-derived portrait set-up in the Polestar 3.

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The 4’s multimedia touchscreen is simpler, quicker and more intuitive, though its top-spec 16-speaker Harman Kardon audio set-up can’t match the superlative sound production of the 25-speaker B&W system in the pricier Polestar 3.

It presents a more minimalist environment than the 3, yet retains the pricier Polestar’s quality of materials, including available Bridge of Weir Nappa leather, as well as three other classy upholstery types including a Tailored Knit made from 100 percent recycled PET bottles.

A full glass roof that extends behind the heads of the rear passengers is standard, as is a high-definition rear-view screen that displays a real-time feed with an impressively wide field of view, though it does take some time to get used to.

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It works particularly well in tunnels, though – much like the glass roof which feeds heat and glare into the cabin in direct sun, and will demand the electrochromatic feature (to switch between opaque or transparent) in Australia, especially in summer.

Cabin detailing is interesting, too, including embedded ambient lighting radiating from all the trim inlays across the dash and doors, which makes the vast rear seat area feel a bit like a nightclub in the dark.

Back there, occupants enjoy a deep cushion and adjustable backrest rake, as well as loads of leg and foot room (providing the amply supportive front pair aren’t jammed all the way back) and a great view around the tombstone-shaped front buckets, making what is essentially an upper-mid-sized SUV (of sorts) feel like a limousine.

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What powers the Polestar 4?

Flatten the right pedal in the Long Range dual-motor and that limousine impression will rapidly transform into a sports-car feeling.

With a claimed 0-100km/h time of 3.8 seconds, the top-spec 4 is almost a second quicker than the flagship Polestar 3, which is a more powerful EV but also carries around 300kg of additional weight.

The 400-volt electrical architecture consists of a 100kWh NMC battery in both single- and dual-motor versions, capable of up to 200kW DC charge capacity and a 10-80 percent charge time of 30 minutes.

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Polestar says the 200kW/343Nm Long Range single motor is good for up to 620km of WLTP range (as well as 0-100km/h in 7.1sec) whereas the AWD dual-motor with double the outputs (400kW/686Nm) can travel up to 590km WLTP.

In our enthusiastic testing through Madrid’s urban sprawl and up the through the mountains skirting this superb Spanish city, the Polestar 4 Long Range Performance Pack AWD averaged 22.4kWh/100km, which translates to a real-world range of 420km based on a useable battery capacity of 94kWh.

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How does it drive?

That energy-consumption figure may not entirely reflect what the Polestar 4 Performance Pack is capable of once it finds itself on Australian soil, and the same is true of the car’s dynamics.

Firstly, Spain’s mountain roads are beautifully surfaced, with (mostly) wide roads and well-cambered corners … which does not apply to Australia, other than perhaps our major eastern freeways and urban tunnels.

Secondly, the early-production Polestar 4s we drove on the international launch didn’t quite feature the full European suspension spec (which is what we’ll get in Australia). Instead, the AWD Performance Pack models we drove were fitted with Chinese-market adaptive dampers and suspension top mounts, combined with European tyres and software – something that wasn’t communicated until after we’d driven the car.

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According to Polestar: “the difference in the rear top mounts and the shock absorber valving contributes to a more relaxed response from the car, as desired from comfort-orientated markets like China.

During your drive you would likely have felt a difference – between the Long Range Dual Motor with Performance Pack and Long Range Single Motor with EU-spec hardware – in small initial steering wheel movements resulting in less precise steering feel around the straight ahead position.

The rear suspension mounts play a significant role in influencing steering feel … so what you experienced in this regard may not have been what you would have expected for our Performance Pack model.”

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Indeed, while the Performance Pack hung on gamely in corners – its neutrality helped by its 50:50 weight distribution – it felt relatively inert in its overall driving feel, and offered nothing in the way of adjustability.

And its ride quality – while well-controlled and quiet on smoothly-surfaced tarmac – completely disintegrated on rough sections, feeling choppy and jiggly. And that’s in Standard mode. A brief sample of the adaptive damping in the Nimble and Firm settings almost demanded a kidney belt.

That said, during lunch we managed to squeeze in a brief taste of the rear-drive Long Range single-motor wearing 255/45R21 Michelin Pilot Sport tyres and it felt noticeably different.

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With the full EU suspension and software spec, it offered crisper steering, a much more composed ride (on fixed-rate dampers!), a degree of adjustability and nuance in its handling (no doubt aided by its 48:52 weight distribution), and a far more satisfying dynamic experience.

Everyone who drove the rear-drive Polestar 4 preferred it to the bells-and-whistles Performance Pack, and even its far less urgent acceleration felt more than adequate and entirely liveable.

There’s a chance the properly-specced Performance Pack will be the sweet spot in the range, given its standard adaptive damping and serious braking package with Brembo four-piston front calipers and huge ventilated discs at both ends. But, much like the reconfigured Polestar 2, the entry-level rear-driver may prove to be the more involving, more appealing, and definitely more affordable option.

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Is it worth waiting for the 2024 Polestar 4?

There’s no doubt the all-new Polestar 4 has design excellence on its side, given the unusual treatment of its exterior and the lavish space of its interior.

It has more than a hint of the luxuriousness and specialness of its pricier Polestar 3 sibling for a cost saving of more than $50K when you compare entry-level pricing.

But, based on our first impressions, this is also a less sophisticated and less polished EV to drive than the larger, wagon-shaped Polestar 3.

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It doesn’t have that car’s ride isolation or refinement, and while the Performance Pack model we drove wasn’t representative of the full-production version we’ll see, I suspect that the base rear-drive Polestar 4, wearing the smallest wheels, without all the optional razzle-dazzle that can send its price soaring skyward, will be the one to go for – costing roughly $89K drive-away in NSW.

Yet not everyone views cars the way we do. And if your idea of a style-focused Swedish EV is one dripping with boast-worthy equipment – including optional Luminar LiDAR autonomous functionality in the future – then the Polestar 4 provides you with the potential to go massive.

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