Polestar 4: Sweden's Answer To Silicon Valley

Images by Hayden Povey.

Every so often, a car turns up on my driveway that sets the neighbours’ curtains into full cardio. And I reckon the Polestar 4 might just be the most talked-about of the lot. Within the hour, heads were tilting, questions were being lobbed over hedges and before long I was presiding over what felt suspiciously like a Parish Council meeting.

“How fast is it? How much is it? What’s it like on fuel? And why is there no back window?” The Polestar 4 raised all the usual questions, which I find odd, because for a car that doesn’t try to shout that loudly, it somehow became extremely provocative.

But the most layman-friendly question of the lot was: “Is it a Tesla?”. It seems my cul-de-sac is not entirely up to speed with the sheer deluge of electric cars now arriving in the UK. Still, it’s a fair question and one that takes me down rabbit holes I wasn’t expecting. On the one hand, no - it isn’t a Tesla. On the other, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Polestar has borrowed quite liberally from the Musk playbook tech-wise.

For instance, both brands run Google-based infotainment systems through a giant central touchscreen, meaning that navigation, climate control and even the heated wing mirrors are all summoned by voice. The usual tactile buttons and dials have been quietly retired, replaced instead by a suite of AI-driven, semi-autonomous gadgetry and door handles that pop in and out on command.

Visually, the Polestar 4 angle sit very well with me. It calls itself an SUV coupé but to my eyes it’s closer in spirit to those slightly odd BMW GTs we got a few years ago. It’s a sort of business-class people carrier masquerading as a coupé, which is not the easiest thing to categorise. The roofline sweeps away dramatically at the back, giving it a sportier stance than your average crossover, yet the overall proportions remain clean, crisp and a bit wider and longer than you would expect.

Inside, the story improves. Despite the coupé-SUV silhouette, space is really rather good. The long wheelbase translates into limousine-like rear legroom and the completely flat floor makes three abreast in the back actually more than plausible.

The seats - trimmed here in bio-attributed MicroTech in Charcoal with Zinc detailing - are superbly comfortable, with the kind of support you’d expect from a brand born out of Volvo. The driving position is spot on: upright, commanding but with a hint of sporting intent thanks to the broad shoulders of the dashboard and the sweep of the centre console.

Build quality is excellent too. Panels align, door clunks feel reassuring and of course, in a car as quiet as this, there’s a welcome lack of any internal noise. It feels premium in a way that Tesla still hasn’t quite managed, no matter how many software updates it pushes out.

It’s not as tall or imperious as some rivals, so you won’t be looking down on the world as you might in a BMW iX. But for most people, it strikes a rather agreeable middle ground: elevated enough to feel modern, yet low enough that you don’t feel like you’re piloting a small block of flats.

Boot space, however, is on the modest side. Enough say, for a family shop perhaps but not a flat-pack wardrobe. Thankfully, you do get a little Tesla-style “frunk” up front: not very big but oddly satisfying.

In “Snow” white with its sharp LED lighting and aero wheels, it has a calm, quietly futuristic presence. Unlike Tesla’s slightly anonymous approach, the Polestar looks deliberately designed. It doesn’t shout, it doesn’t wear unnecessary chrome and it’s mercifully free of fake grilles or meaningless flourishes. Handsome without being flashy you might say, which feels exactly right for the brand.

The Polestar 4 will do everything you expect an EV to do at this point. It’s fast, it’s quiet, it’s deceptively comfortable but it goes further with an interior that feels more grown up, more considered and frankly more pleasant to spend time in.

With dual motors delivering 536 bhp and 686 Nm of torque, performance is, predictably, brisk. The official 0–60 mph time is 3.7 seconds, which is comfortably in the “very fast indeed” category for a family EV of this size and weight.

Yet the Polestar doesn’t seem obsessed with its own speed. Yes, it launches hard when you want it to, but day-to-day it feels composed rather than excitable. Ride quality is superb and it deals with broken British roads with the sort of shrug usually reserved for more expensive luxury cars.

What impresses further is refinement. Motorway cruising is silent, almost eerily so, with barely a whisper from the wind or tyres. That sense of calm, combined with the sheer torque available at any speed, makes the Polestar 4 a very easy car to cover ground in.

Range is quoted at up to 366 miles (WLTP), which in the real world translates to something in the mid-200s depending on conditions and driving style. The 100 kWh battery supports rapid DC charging from 10–80% in about 30 minutes, meaning motorway top-ups are quick and relatively painless.

And yes, you can charge it at a Tesla Supercharger. In fact, that’s exactly what I did. Pulling up in a Polestar and plugging into Tesla’s hallowed red-and-white posts feels a little like sneaking into someone else’s golf club. But it works, it’s fast and it neatly underlines the point that Polestar is not here to be locked out of the EV ecosystem.

For those without a home charger (like me) this usability really matters. The Polestar is a car you can genuinely live with using only the public network, provided you have the patience to plan.

But there are some issues. The car’s speed recognition system - the bit that reads road signs and attempts to keep you at the right speed - was hopelessly inaccurate during my time with it. More often than not, it displayed the wrong limit and when paired with the adaptive cruise control’s auto-speed matching, it became an exercise in frustration. In the end, I turned the whole thing off.

Then there’s phantom braking. Like many advanced driver assistance systems, the Polestar occasionally slammed on the brakes for no reason I could see. A shadow across the carriageway, perhaps or an over-enthusiastic interpretation of a lorry in the next lane. Either way, it is unnerving and does little to build trust in AI.

So, what to make of the Polestar 4? On the one hand, it does almost everything Tesla does: speed, tech, range, charging. On the other, it layers in Scandinavian refinement, proper comfort, and an interior that feels worthy of the price tag.

It isn’t flawless. The driver assistance systems need fine-tuning, phantom braking is irritating, and the coupé-SUV styling won’t be to everyone’s taste. But overall, this is a very accomplished car. A proper alternative to Tesla that doesn’t feel like a copycat, but a genuinely different take on the EV formula.

If you want all the performance and tech of Silicon Valley, but wrapped up in something more mature, calmer and ultimately easier to live with, the Polestar 4 is the one.

This particular Polestar 4, in Long Range Dual Motor guise with Plus and Pilot packs, comes in at £67,400 on the road. That positions it somewhere between the Tesla Model Y Performance and more overtly luxurious rivals like the BMW iX or Audi Q8 e-tron.

On a personal contract plan, you’re looking at just over £600 a month with a £10,500 deposit, which makes it competitive in the segment. And with zero tailpipe emissions and a solid warranty, the running costs are kinder than you might expect for something this powerful.

Model: Polestar 4 Long Range Dual Motor

Base Price (As Driven): £0

Propulsion: Dual Motor, All wheel Drive, 100kw Battery

Output: 400 kW (536 hp)

Torque: 686 Nm

0-62 mph: 3.7 Seconds

Top Speed: 124 mph

WLTP Range: 366 Miles

Charging: 10-80% in 30 mins (DC), 0-100% 11 hours (AC)