Wayne J drives a Polestar 2 Long Range Single Motor 77kWh 2022.

This is Wayne’s first electric car, he’s owned the Polestar 2 from new and drives 15,000-20,000 miles annually. The current mileage of the car is between 30,000-40,000 miles and he achieves 250 miles from a full charge.

Why did you choose the Polestar 2?

The looks and the tech! I think the Polestar 2 is a distinctive design that stands out. It has good road presence and what I would call a ‘powerful stance’; not quite an SUV, but bigger than your average car. The tech is incredibly intuitive and easy to use.

Positives 

• The looks are distinctive without being too ‘Marmite’. It has a certain purity of design unlike some which try too hard to be futuristic or have a certain ‘jelly mould’ feel about them reminiscent of the old Ford Sierra.
• Tech – intuitive, easy to use and the right balance of infotainment v physical controls
• Range – the range is pretty decent even in winter, partly helped by the heat pump that comes with the Plus Pack which also adds the panoramic glass roof.

Negatives 

• Polestar service is poor: so poor that much as I love the car, I won’t be replacing it with another Polestar. This is no doubt down to there not being enough Polestar-trained technicians at Volvo. My parking sensors have failed and it’s taken 6 weeks just to look at them which is not good enough. There will be further delays no doubt to get it fixed once inspected.
• With 30,000 miles on it, rattles and squeaks are appearing which is not good enough on a £55k car
• The longer I own it, the more I realise that it’s actually quite cramped, especially for rear passengers. At best, it’s a 2+2 due to the transmission tunnel necessitated by the Volvo platform.
• Some features such as blind spot mirrors cost extra and only come with the Pilot Pack. Again, not good enough on a £55k car.

Compared to when you first bought the car, does your battery still charge at the same rate & do you still get the same range?

No issues with charging times or range reduction but I only charge to 90% most of the time and rarely use DC rapid chargers

Have you experienced any faults with the car? If so, what have they been?

• Rear discs and pads replaced under warranty as they would bind if the car was left for a few days after driving in the wet. A bit of sticking is normal but these would bind pretty much solidly.
• As mentioned, all parking sensors are currently inoperable, as it seems that if one fails, the entire system fails. The wait just to have the fault diagnosed is excessive and Polestar support is best described as ‘suboptimal’.
• Various rattles and squeaks appearing but as it’s a lease vehicle, I’ve lost the will to try and get them remedied.

What are the standout technological features of the car?

Nothing really stands out. The infotainment/tech is really easy to use but the car lacks some features like blind spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control that really should be standard.

Tell us something people wouldn’t readily know about this electric car 

The pop-up boot partition is useful to stop stuff sliding around and the car has a couple of useful hidden bag hooks (knows as ‘curry hooks’ for some reason), which are a neat touch. Conversely, the front cup holders are a bit of a joke.

What’s the biggest or funniest myth you’ve heard about EVs?

The batteries fail after a few years and cost more than the car is worth to fix and in winter the range is halved. The former may be true with certain manufacturers but my understanding is that most now use modular battery packs.

What electric car(s) are you interested in next and why?

Undecided – it will depend on lease costs and dealer backup. I won’t be leasing another vehicle that doesn’t have its own dealer support network. For the uninitiated, Polestar use Volvo techs.

Home charging unit

Sync EV – bought on recommendation. It’s small, discreet and has a decent app. Obviously, Sync EV aren’t a big name to some but it’s a great unit.

Electricity supplier & tariff

Octopus Go – cheap, efficient, no issues although Octopus seem very slow to add Polestar and Sync EV to their ‘Intelligent’ tariff.

What public charging networks would you recommend to others and why?

I do use public charging but rarely. Now my Polestar/IONITY discount has finished, the pricing (as per most public charging) is excessive and I’d rather drive a bit slower and extend the range on a return trip, than pay 8x or 9x what I can charge for at home.

Please itemise where you’re saving money (or not) owning & running a Polestar 2

As we all know, EVs are tax efficient, especially on a salary sacrifice scheme. I used to spend £300/350 a month on diesel, I now spend 1/10th of that and that is not an optimistic estimate, it’s a fact!

See other Polestar 2 Owner Reviews here