POLESTAR HEAD OF DESIGN MAXIMILIAN MISSONI ON…
The Precept
“This is our ‘commitment car’. It’s like the car that symbolises a departure to a completely unique design language. We will see some of the design cues in our upcoming SUV [the 3], which is going to be very high-performance and aerodynamically enhanced.”
Sustainability
“It’s to take all the materials that we already have in production and work with the suppliers to get them more sustainable. Like our bio-vinyl. You won’t really see a difference in the material itself. But instead of fossil-based components, we changed the process from using fossil oil to pine oil from pine trees. And suddenly a material that before was good from one aspect but not from all aspects can turn into something really positive in terms of sustainability.”
Layering design
“The Polestar 2 has a unique, minimalist design language with layers of fidelity. So you can discover more and more: the first glance is extremely pure and easy to understand. And then, at the second layer, you understand the intricacy of the surfaces and then you get into the detailing of the technical elements. But then if you go even closer, you have a third layer of tagging [the subtle script that features on a Polestar exterior].”
Thelinktovolvo “You probably saw that the Thor’s hammer [headlight design], as we know it from Volvo, has changed its shape: it’s starting to separate. We like the fact that the brand is rooted in the Volvo heritage, because we get a lot of trust for the quality of engineering, and for the safety and heritage. But that means its own entity. So Thor’s hammer has separated into two units.”
What premium means
“We’re a new player, so we could play safe and take all of those typical cues, putting a lot of chrome, leather and wood into the car. But we said: ‘No, that would be too easy’ – and I think it’s also the wrong approach. If we want to add value to the industry and to society, we should really prove that you can create a premium appearance by leveraging the materials and also the processes.”