Polestar 2 – the ultimate Tesla beater?
The new all-electric Polestar 2 wants to take on the Tesla Model Y. But can this EV from the Volvo-Geely stable take the fight to e-mobility's top dog? With excellent workmanship and a longer range, it just might.
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00:00 The all-electric Tesla Hunter built by the Swedes.
00:05 But can the Polestar 2 take on Tesla?
00:09 That's what we want to find out today. Welcome to Rev.
00:12 When it came out in 2020, the Polestar 2 was the first fully electric car by the Swedish manufacturer.
00:20 It's now got an update for model year 2024.
00:29 But how good is it?
00:31 When talking about electric cars, one of the first things that will come to most people's minds is Tesla.
00:40 And Tesla has been around since 2003, so they have quite the history to look at in electric cars.
00:47 Polestar, on the other hand, only exists since 2017.
00:52 Before that, it was part of Volvo, so it's still Volvo-backed, and Volvo is now part of Geely, so those are also behind the Polestar brand.
01:03 But is that enough to compete with the Tesla cars?
01:08 A benefit of its mixed heritage?
01:10 Polestars can be serviced at Volvo dealerships before heading out to beat Teslas at traffic light GPs.
01:17 The closest competitor to the Polestar 2 in the Tesla lineup is the Model Y.
01:24 It also is some type of sporty SUV, so it makes sense to first compare the numbers.
01:41 The Polestar 2 comes in at 310 kW of power, while the Tesla Model Y will feature 378 kW.
01:49 And it's also a little faster in the top speed, 217 kW on the Tesla Model Y versus 205 kW for the Polestar.
01:58 But the Polestar is half a second faster from 0 to 100 km/h, 4.5 versus 5 seconds.
02:07 That is almost the same, at least it will almost feel the same.
02:12 And options a-plenty with the Polestar 2.
02:16 Four different versions, starting from a 200 kW rear-wheel drive to a 350 kW all-wheel drive variant.
02:24 Looking at the battery size, both cars also have almost the same size.
02:30 The Tesla has a 79 kWh battery, while the Polestar has an 82 kWh battery.
02:38 So it's 3 kWh of difference.
02:42 But when it comes to range, the difference gets a little bigger, because the Tesla will only bring you 533 km, only.
02:52 While the Polestar can go up to 593, so 60 km of difference.
02:58 And that is not exactly surprising if you consider that the Polestar has a little less power than the Tesla.
03:07 Range varies between 546 and 655 km depending on whether you have the 69 or 82 kWh battery.
03:15 For electric cars, of course, we also need to talk about charging.
03:20 The Polestar 2 can be charged with a maximum speed of 205 kW, while the Tesla will be able to charge up to 250 kW.
03:29 So it's quite a bit faster when it comes to charging.
03:32 Measuring 4.6 m, the Polestar is just shy of the model Y's 4.75 m length.
03:44 The interior of the Polestar 2 is absolutely clean. You have almost no buttons, but that also means you have no buttons for the climate control.
03:52 And that is a thing I'm still not liking.
03:57 You can operate it right here with the touchscreen.
04:01 It's okay because you can rest your arm here and then the operation is possible even while driving.
04:09 But you will have to look at it. If you had physical buttons, then you could operate those without looking.
04:16 And that is not possible with the touchscreen.
04:18 The Tesla has the same problem. There are no buttons in the interior.
04:22 And the touchscreen of the Tesla is huge. And I'm talking really huge.
04:27 And that makes operating while driving even more distracting than with that small display you have in this car.
04:38 All of the materials are very high quality. Everything feels and looks very nice.
04:43 This looks like some kind of wood.
04:46 And you have a slot here to wirelessly charge your phone.
04:51 You have some USB-C slots right here.
04:55 Those are nicely hidden with a cap so while you don't need them, you can close them.
05:00 There will be no dust inside.
05:03 Polestar has an 8-year or 160,000 km warranty on the battery pack covering any material defect or sub-70% battery health.
05:12 The space in the back is absolutely okay.
05:16 The legroom is pretty good. The headroom is quite okay.
05:21 If you're bigger than 1.90 m, then it could become a problem.
05:26 And if you compare that to the Tesla, then the Polestar is quite smaller.
05:34 But it's also a little flatter.
05:36 So if I had to choose, I guess I'd rather sit in the Tesla because there is more space.
05:53 Now let's talk about the price. The Polestar 2 starts at 56,990 euros for that long-range version with dual motor.
06:03 The comparable Tesla Model Y will start at 2,000 euros less, so 54,990 euros.
06:10 At least that's the state as of now because Tesla has recently lowered their prices to amp up that selling numbers.
06:21 What you have to admit though, the quality in the Polestar 2 is still a little bit better.
06:26 You can see and feel in every corner that this is part of the Volvo company,
06:33 which always has been known for their very luxurious and high-quality cars.
06:41 To sum up my experience with the Polestar 2, it is a quite decent ride and it does some things better than the Tesla.
06:50 For example, the acceleration is a little faster, but it's not as fast as the Tesla.
06:55 And the driving experience is a little bit better.
06:58 The Polestar 2 is a little bit more comfortable.
07:01 The driving experience is a little bit better.
07:16 But on the downside, you have that Tesla with a higher top speed, faster charging speed, bigger trunk capacity and a cheaper price.
07:28 So Polestar is on a good way, I think, but it's still not yet there to fully beat the Tesla Model Y.
07:35 If you're looking for a high-quality and well-built EV that's also still rare on the roads, the Polestar 2 might be right for you.
07:44 But if you can live with a few niggles and want better value for money, the Tesla Model Y is still the way to go.
07:51 [Music]