Power isn’t the first thing you think about when Volvo’s name is brought up. The Swedish car company is mostly known for making luxury sedans and SUVs and doesn’t offer much on the performance side. That is changing with the insanely powerful Polestar 1.
Part of Volvo Car Group’s performance line—Polestar—the Polestar 1 is a flashy coupe concept that will be the first of three cars in the Polestar line. It is the spiritual successor to the Concept Coupe Volvo unveiled four years ago but never actually made. The Polestar 1 will be that idea realized.
Volvo’s luxurious heritage is carried over to the Polestar 1. A long, aggressive front hood leads into the flat and logo-free grille. Flanking the bottom bumper are vents to circulate air when the coupe takes off. The front LED light set-up is similar to what current Volvo’s already have.
The rear of the car is quite minimalist, but that adds to its exuberance. Only the bellicose C-shaped LED taillights stand out. At the lip of the back bumper lives a dual exhaust system.
While premium, the interior looks nearly identical to the center console every modern Volvo car has with the square display.
To keep the weight of the chassis as light as possible, the Polestar 1 has a body made completely of carbon fiber.
This concept is a hybrid powertrain that Volvo offers with other cars. It is a combination of a gasoline engine, lithium-ion battery, and at least two electric motors. The range of the electric portion will be just under 100 miles. That will be good to deliver a staggering 600 horsepower. Volvo didn’t reveal if other options will be available like all-electric and or gas only variants.
The Polestar 1 is slated to enter production some time in 2019 at a new plant being built in Chengdu, China. It will cost somewhere between $153,00 and $177,000 in the US. That’s quite high, but may just be worth based on its looks alone.
