Company type | Public limited company |
---|---|
Nasdaq: PSNY | |
Founded | 2017 |
Headquarters | Gothenburg, Sweden |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | |
Products | Electric vehicle |
Revenue | US$2.46 billion (2022) |
−US$1.3 billion (2022) | |
−US$466 million (2022) | |
Total assets | US$3.94 billion (2022) |
Total equity | US$134 million (2022) |
Owner |
|
Number of employees | 2,377 (December 2022) |
Website | polestar |
Footnotes /references [1] [2] [3] |
Owner | Volvo Cars |
---|---|
Country | Sweden |
Introduced | 2005 |
Previous owners | Polestar Racing (2005–2015) |
Polestar is a Swedish automotive manufacturer that produces electric vehicles. Owned by Volvo Cars, the company is headquartered in Torslanda outside Gothenburg, Sweden. [4] Polestar produces cars in several countries including China, the US, and South Korea, in facilities owned by Volvo Cars and its parent company Geely Holding. [5] [6]
The brand originated from Flash Engineering, a Swedish motorsport team established in 1996 that competed in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship. In 2005, the team was sold then rebranded to Polestar Racing, which later operated a production car tuning division called Polestar Performance AB. [7] [8] In July 2015, the Polestar brand was acquired by Volvo Cars. [9] The racing team was then rebranded to Cyan Racing, while still maintaining close ties to Volvo. [10]
The current United Kingdom-based holding company of Polestar was jointly formed in 2017 by Volvo Cars and Geely Holding Group. [11] Polestar shares began trading on the Nasdaq exchange under the symbol PSNY on 24 June 2022. [12] [13] Volvo plans to reduce its stake in Polestar by the third quarter of 2024 from currently 48.3% to around 18% by ceding it to Geely Holding. [3]
The company origins can be traced to the 1996 foundation of Flash Engineering, a Swedish racing team competing in Swedish Touring Car Championship (STCC). The team was sold and rebranded as Polestar Racing, which began modifying Volvos for racing in the late 2000s. In 2009, the brand became the official Volvo partner to modify existing models, under the brand Polestar Performance. Volvo eventually bought the company in July 2015 and began selling Polestar-enhanced models directly through their resellers. [14]
Polestar has also produced prototype cars, with the first being the C30 Polestar Performance Concept Prototype (2010) with over 400 bhp (300 kW) and 510 N⋅m (380 lbf⋅ft). [15]
The Volvo S60 Polestar Concept is the heir to the C30 Polestar, featuring 508 BHP from a modified T6 engine, launched in June 2012. [16] The car sprints from 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) in 3.9 seconds with a top speed of over 300 km/h (190 mph). [17] Motor Trend tested the car at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, where it broke the lap record for four-door cars, matching the lap time of an Audi R8. [18]
Selection of petrol and hybrid powered Volvo-based Polestar models:
Introduced | Model | Type | Engine | Drivetrain |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Volvo C30 Polestar Concept [19] | Concept | 5-cylinder, 2500 cc, turbocharged, 451 PS | AWD, 6-speed manual |
2012 | Volvo S60 Polestar Concept [20] | Concept | 6-cylinder, 3000 cc, turbocharged, 508 PS | AWD, 6-speed manual |
2013 | Volvo S60/V60 Polestar | Production | 6-cylinder, 3000 cc, turbocharged, 350 PS | AWD, 6-speed auto |
2016 | Volvo S60/V60 Polestar Drive-E | Production | 4-cylinder, 1969 cc, turbocharged, 367 PS | AWD, 8-speed auto |
2018 | Volvo S60 T8 Polestar Engineered | Production | 4-cylinder, 1969 cc, plug-in hybrid, 415 PS | AWD, 8-speed auto |
2020 | Volvo V60 T8 Polestar Engineered | Production | 4-cylinder, 1969 cc, plug-in hybrid, 415 PS | AWD, 8-speed auto |
2020 | Volvo XC60 T8 Polestar Engineered | Production | 4-cylinder, 1969 cc, plug-in hybrid, 415 PS | AWD, 8-speed auto |
In October 2017, Volvo Cars and Geely Holding announced that Polestar would become a standalone brand focusing on electric cars. [21] The brand introduced the Polestar 1 on 17 October 2017, a 2+2 coupé inspired by Volvo's Concept Coupé introduced in 2013, which includes influences from the Volvo P1800. The Polestar 1 was built between 2019 and 2021, and was built in a new purpose-built Polestar Production Centre in Chengdu, China, [22] from 2019 at a rate of up to 500 per year. [23] During its final year of production, a limited-production gold-painted version of Polestar 1 was released. Only 25 units were produced. [24]
In 2019, Polestar announced their second car, the Polestar 2 electric car. [25] It was unveiled on 27 February 2019, in an online unveiling which was broadcast from the Polestar headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden. Directly after, it had its public debut at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show. [26] It is produced at Volvo Cars's existing plant in Taizhou, China. [27] It will be receiving a mid-life refresh for its 2024 year-model, switching to a rear-wheel drive layout for its single-motor option, and various performance and cosmetic changes for the base model and performance package, respectively. It will also replace the existing front grille with a body-color front-end treatment that houses new safety hardware, including a front-facing camera and a new mid-range radar, matching the Polestar 3, dubbed the "SmartZone". [28]
In March 2022, Polestar launched a roadster concept named the Polestar O2, and later in August 2022, Polestar announced a sixth new roadster model dubbed Polestar 6 based on the O2 concept car, expected to enter production in 2026. [29] [30]
In 2023, Polestar announced construction of new headquarters – a 80,000 m2 (860,000 sq ft) building in central Gothenburg. [31] [32]
Image | Name | Introduction (cal. year) | Platform | Powertrain | Vehicle description | Assembly location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Polestar 2 | 2020 | CMA | Battery electric | Compact executive car with a 5-door liftback body style. |
| |
Polestar 3 | 2024 | SPA2 | Battery electric | Mid-size luxury crossover SUV, related to the Volvo EX90. |
| |
Polestar 4 | 2024 | SEA | Battery electric | Compact luxury crossover SUV with a coupe SUV body style. |
| |
Polestar 5 | 2025 (planned) | SEA | Battery electric | Executive car | ||
Polestar 6 | 2026 (planned) | SEA | Battery electric | Grand tourer |
Image | Name(s) | Production (cal. year) | Platform | Powertrain | Vehicle description | Assembly location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Polestar 1 | 2019–2022 | SPA | Plug-in hybrid | Sports car / grand tourer, 1,500 units produced. |
|
Under the label Polestar Engineered, Polestar offers enhancements for Volvo cars which deliver upgraded performance. Examples are engine optimizations with retained warranty and unchanged fuel consumption and emissions. The engine optimization increases the power and torque output, varying depending on engine model. The response of the throttle can be modified and the character of the transmission is tweaked.
In 2022, a special version of Polestar 2 was released as a Polestar Engineered product: the limited-production Polestar 2 BST edition 270, of which only 270 will exist. [37]
Polestar has been working with Volvo since 1996, starting with racing Volvo cars and being involved in the development of race cars for Cyan Racing. In 2014, Polestar was involved in the development of a V8 powered Volvo S60 that was raced by Garry Rogers Motorsport in the Australian V8 Supercars series. [38] Robert Dahlgren was seconded to Australia in 2014 as part of this programme and pulled out in the end of 2016. [39]
In 2019, French brand Citroën considered that the Polestar company logo – also formed of chevrons – is too close to those of its Citroën and DS Automobiles brands. In the absence of an amicable agreement, Citroën took to the Tribunal de grande instance in July 2019. The latter, in a decision dated 4 June 2020, found in favor of the French manufacturer, [40] decision confirmed on appeal on 14 June 2020. December 2021. As a result, Polestar vehicles cannot be purchased in France. [41] In September 2022, it was reported that Citroën and Polestar had settled their dispute. [42]
In August 2022, the company announced it would supply batteries and charging hardware to Candela for electric boats that would "fly" on hydrofoils. [43] [44]
Volvo Cars is a Swedish multinational manufacturer of luxury vehicles. Volvo is headquartered in Torslanda, Gothenburg. The company manufactures SUVs, station wagons, and sedans. The company's main marketing revolves around safety and its Swedish heritage and design.
The Volvo S60 is a compact executive car manufactured and marketed by Volvo since 2000.
The Volvo XC60 is a compact luxury crossover SUV manufactured and marketed by Swedish automaker Volvo Cars since 2008.
The Volvo C30 is a three-door, front-engine, front-wheel-drive premium compact hatchback manufactured and marketed by Volvo Cars from 2006 to 2013, in a single generation. Powered by inline-four and straight-five engines, the C30 is a variant of the Volvo S40/V50/C70 range, sharing the same Ford C1/Volvo P1 platform. Volvo marketed the C30 as a premium hatchback / sports coupe.
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd. (ZGH), commonly known as Geely Holding, is a Chinese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The company is privately owned by Chinese entrepreneur Li Shufu, and mainly engaged in the automotive industry.
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The Volvo S90 is an executive sedan manufactured and marketed by Swedish automaker Volvo Cars since 2016. Its estate variant is called the Volvo V90.
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The D-segment is the 4th category of the European segments for passenger cars, and is described as "large cars".
The Volvo V60 is a compact executive station wagon produced by Volvo Cars related to the S60 executive sedan. The vehicle was first released in autumn 2010, facelifted in 2014, and is in its second generation since 2018.
Volvo Car Gent is an automobile manufacturer located in the port district of Ghent/Gent in western Belgium. By about 2013 the Ghent plant had become the Volvo plant manufacturing most cars. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Swedish automaker Volvo Personvagnar AB. It is owned by Volvo Car Belgium NV. Its activities comprise welding, painting and final assembly. The plant became the only car manufacturing plant in Flanders after Ford Genk closed at the end of 2014.
Cyan Racing is the official motorsport partner to Geely Group Motorsport, formerly the Volvo factory auto racing team, and runs the FIA WTCR programme for Lynk & Co, based in Gothenburg, Sweden. The team’s current drivers are Thed Björk, Yvan Muller, Yann Ehrlacher, Santiago Urrutia and Ma Qing Hua who will drive the Lynk & Co 03 TCR race car.
The Aisin AW F8FXX series is the world's first 8-speed automatic transmission designed for use in transverse engine applications. Aisin designed the transmission to package in the same space as preceding 6-speed designs, while increasing the total gear spread and reducing gear spacing. It is also called the EAT8 (PSA), GA8F22AW, TG-81SC (Volvo), AF50-8 (Opel/Vauxhall), AWF8F45 (Cadillac), and AQ450 (Volkswagen Group). First usage was in the 2013 model year Lexus RX350 F Sport.
The Volvo Engine Architecture (VEA) is a family of straight-three and straight-four automobile petrol and diesel engines produced by Volvo Cars in Skövde, Sweden, since 2013, Zhangjiakou, China since 2016 and Tanjung Malim, Malaysia since 2022 by Proton. Volvo markets all engines under the Drive–E designation, while Geely groups the three-cylinder variants with its other engines under the G-power name. These engines are some of the few ever put into production as twincharged engines, in the company of the Lancia Delta S4 and concept Jaguar CX-75.
The Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) is a global mid-size unibody automobile platform, developed by China Euro Vehicle Technology AB (CEVT), a Swedish subsidiary to Geely.
Lynk & Co is a Chinese–Swedish automobile brand co-owned by Zhejiang Geely Holding and its subsidiaries, Geely Auto Group and Volvo Cars. The brand was founded in Gothenburg in 2016.
The Lynk & Co 01 is a compact crossover SUV manufactured by Geely-owned Chinese-Swedish automaker Lynk & Co. It was the first model for Lynk & Co and it was developed by China Euro Vehicle Technology AB (CEVT), a Swedish subsidiary to Geely.
The Polestar 1 is a 2-door plug-in hybrid sports car marketed by Polestar, a brand of Volvo Cars. It was the first car produced by the company since becoming an independent car manufacturer in June 2017. Based on Volvo's Concept Coupé from 2013, the Polestar 1 is built on the Volvo Scalable Product Architecture platform and is powered by a hybrid powertrain, using a front-mounted engine and two electric motors at the rear. A limited production run of 1,500 cars took place over three years, from 2019 to 2022, for the left-hand drive market only. Production took place in Chengdu, China, where the company's first production facility was built.
The Volvo R marque represents the high-performance division of cars produced by Volvo. The R marque refers to an unknown adjective, since Volvo markets R-designated vehicles as being the most performance-oriented trim level. The first vehicle in the Volvo R marque lineup, the Volvo 850 T-5R, was introduced in 1995, followed by the Volvo S70 R and Volvo V70 R in 1998. A related performance trim line, Volvo R-Design, was launched for 2008. Volvo's high-performance vehicles are now developed by their Polestar division, although most Volvo models are offered in an R-Design trim level.
The Polestar 2 is a battery electric 5-door liftback produced by the Swedish automaker Volvo under its Polestar sub-brand. Based on the CMA platform, production began in March 2020 at the Luqiao CMA Super Factory in Luqiao, Zhejiang, China.