Polestar 3 and 4 to secure brand’s local growth

POLESTAR may have been in the Australian EV market for several years, but until very recently, it has run something of a one-horse race.

The brand’s initial offering – the Polestar 2 – achieved solid numbers in a relatively niche segment, where buyers and rivals were few. But now, as the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 (Medium and Large) SUVs arrive in local dealerships, we note a change in the brand’s aspirations.

It’s a change the Sino-Swedish brand says coincides with a shift in EV acceptance among Australian buyers, and one that will continue to propel its sale to higher numbers.

“We’re beginning to see that even the most hardened and outspoken critics of EV growth are admitting that it (a battery electric vehicle future) is where we’re going – that it is still the destination,” said Polestar Australia managing director Scott Maynard.

“We agree there are curves in the road to get there, and that will determine how long it will take for us to do this.

“But EVs are the future, and the things that are helping that growth – infrastructure, government support, and customer acceptance – are here right now. They just need to be properly marketed and better understood.”

Offering a greater variety of body styles at varying price points will also help to ‘straighten the road’ to EV acceptance.

Mr Maynard said the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 have already demonstrated the importance popular-segment offerings play in driving customer acceptance, and, in turn, increased sales.

“On top of those factors is a range of product that suits Australian buyers,” he told GoAuto.

“We’ve seen ourselves that as the range of electric vehicles continues to increase and customers have access to more and more vehicles that are better suited to their lifestyle that the growth of electric vehicles will continue to tick up.

“That is why the vehicles we have just launched (the Polestar 3 and 4) have been so important, taking us from having one product that sat in a relatively small segment of the market to now having products that occupy important Medium and Large SUV segments.

“It gives us access to a much broader base of customers – and gives that broader base of customers access to great products.”

While Mr Maynard would not be drawn on sales targets for the brand’s newest entrants, he said the brand is encouraged by the number of potential buyers seeking out the brand.

“The reaction from customers has been both immediate and positive,” he enthused.

“It is still very early days for both of those products, and I think we are also relatively modest in our expectations for what they’re capable of doing in terms of sales.

“But we are really pleased with the initial reactions, and I can tell you that test drives are going very well. We’re now in that process of confirming pre-orders and working through customer deliveries.”

Mr Maynard told GoAuto that the Polestar product will continue to hold its own, even as the Australian market prepares to welcome new electric marques to showrooms.

He says premium buyers are drawn to the je ne se quoi that even well-established luxury marques are unable to offer, and the Polestar has strength in both its heritage and in its EV-only presence Down Under that position it well for a solid year of growth.

“I expect the luxury EV market to behave a little differently to the volume EV end,” he continued.

“I’d prefer not to put a number on it (Polestar 3 and 4 sales). We have internal planning numbers, and (based on early reactions) I think we’ll probably better those.

“But we are not hunting down rivals. We feel that our products stand in a space that is relatively clear of most others – there is no particular brand that we’re aiming at in terms of our sales targets.

“We’ll just be very pleased when we overrun the internal targets that we set. They are relatively ambitious, but we think they’re absolutely achievable.

“The early take up and the commentary we’re receiving from our customers gives me a fair bit of confidence that we will be exactly where we want to be.”

Against new entrants, Mr Maynard’s sentiments were much the same.

He said the Polestar name had earned its stripes and was able to “distinguish itself” from premium offerings that compete at a lower price point – again outlining the differences that make the Polestar brand unique.

“When we look at where many new entrants are aiming their product, and why they’re positioning it in such a way, then we feel that we now have quite clear distinction from many of those entering brands,” he explained.

“Many are looking to position themselves in the sub-$70K volume bracket, while we are occupying a very different position in that $70K-plus space where there is a bit less noise.

“The other thing is that the luxury/premium segment attracts a more discerning buyer that is looking for a product that doesn’t just have the technology our cars have, but some of the aspects that you would expect from a truly premium brand that does have some history and tradition behind it.

“Those strong partnerships with dynamic suppliers like ZF, Ohlins, and Brembo work with the fact our cars are built with quality materials and with well-established and independently verified sustainability credentials that perhaps those other brands entering now don’t have.

“When you’re talking with the type of audience, the type of customer that we’re talking to, those things are actually very important to them, and I think that’s something that sets us apart.”

Indeed, Mr Maynard believes Polestar has the strength to challenge established premium brands with both ICE and BEV models on the forecourt.

In being solely focused on battery electric vehicles Mr Maynard said Polestar was positioned to educate and inform customers who might otherwise be tempted by the internal combustion powered model further down the lot.

“The fact that we’re EV specialists means that if you walk into a Polestar showroom, everything we talk about is EV,” he stated.

“I think that if you’re in the position where you’re trying very hard to represent a much broader range of vehicles, which includes traditionally powered ICE vehicles, that it makes it harder for you to distinguish your EV offerings from the rest of the range – and to be in a position to do it properly.

“We have the distinction that EVs are our speciality. It is exactly what we do. In fact, that’s all we do. And I think that definitely helps us.

“When a customer walks into one of our showrooms, everything they are looking at is EV, and I think that means that the presentation they get from our team is perhaps a little more convincing.”