Polestar 2 special
Redesigned, more potent EV makes its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed
Tuned chassis, 470bhp and 4WD
Polestar has created a one-off hot version of the 2 with design details and powertrain tweaks that give clues to potential performance models from the Swedish EV manufacturer. Borrowing engineering cues from the Polestar 1, the upgraded 2 packs an extra 67bhp, taking power to 470bhp, but still runs the standard car’s twin-motor, four-wheel-drive set-up. Official performance figures haven’t been supplied, but it is clear that the car will dip under the claimed 4.7sec 0-62mph time of the standard 2. Further hardware changes have been made to the chassis. As well as stiffer front and rear springs (by 80% and 40% respectively), there are new Öhlins dampers – this time mounted under the ‘frunk’ and easier to access than on the standard 2 – which are 30% stiffer than the normal car’s dual-flow valve units. In addition, the new dampers have an extra setting and are now three-way ad justable, with the additional setting offering a way to alter for high-speed compression, as well as the regular compression and rebound control. As on the regular 2, there are 22 ‘clicks’ on each damper, at both the front and rear. A front strut brace also features and is made of four-layer carbonfibre. Joakim Rydholm, Polestar’s chief test engineer, said the company could have used a five-layer rod but instead opted for four so as not to over-stiffen the car’s nose. The 2 has been fitted with wider rear tyres, running 275/30 R21 Pirelli P Zero Rosso rubber, an increase of one inch over the standard 2’s. The bigger wheels have allowed the fitting of larger brakes, which feature the same six-piston Akebono set-up that the 1 runs. There are also some design changes to set the car apart. New front and rear bumpers create a more aggressive stance, although still within the bounds of Polestar’s minimalist design, and the wheel arches are 10mm wider. The car is also 30mm lower than standard. Rydholm told Autocar that “the spec was for 25mm lower”, but because the CEO of Polestar, Thomas Ingenlath, is also a car designer, the firm opted for the additional 5mm to create an even more purposeful stance. “This is the spirit of Polestar,” Rydholm said. “It’s a fun car but you feel in control. To me, a Polestar should be a
car to enjoy as well as an EV. We are building cars for people who want something more than transportation and for people who care what they drive.” The project has been created specifically for the Goodwood Festival of Speed, like a skunkworks development to see how far the Polestar 2 could be pushed, as Ingenlath explained: “I challenged the design and engineering teams to play with the 2 and come up with something that makes a strong statement for Goodwood. “For a few months, I have en joyed driving another experimental Polestar 2, nicknamed Beast, around our Gothenburg campus, which inspired the team to come up with this version for Goodwood. We want to flex our muscles and explore opportunities.”