Polestar’s sleek electric sports car pushed back to prioritise another SUV

Polestar is planning on doubling the size of its global electric vehicle (EV) lineup in the next handful of years, but it’s decided to stay on the side of caution by prioritising a model buyers want rather than one it’s championed.

The Polestar 7 – an upcoming compact electric SUV – is planned to launch in 2027, which would have followed the Porsche Taycan-rivalling Polestar 5 grand tourer in 2025, and the sleek Polestar 6 convertible in 2026.

However, speaking to CarExpert about the brand’s product plans, Polestar Australia managing director Scott Maynard said the 6 will launch globally after the 7.

“Polestar 6 needs to slot in behind Polestar 7, so that will see the launch of that car pushed out beyond its original 2026 timeframe to prioritise the 7,” Mr Maynard said.

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“We’re going to have a fantastic halo sports car in Polestar 5 that will fill that niche really nicely, and we don’t need to back it up with another sports car at that time.

“It makes more sense to bring Polestar 7 to market and reach a broader audience of customers, and then top it off with an extraordinary sports halo car in 6 after that.”

By the time the Polestar 7 comes out, the Swedish-Chinese brand will have three SUVs on sale globally – the 3, 4 and 7 – plus the 2 liftback and the 5 grand touring sedan.

If the Polestar 6 does launch in 2027, it’ll likely be beaten to the market by the upcoming electric Porsche Boxster to fill the premium end of the battery-powered convertible market.

Previewed by the Polestar O2 electric roadster concept in March 2022, Polestar says the 6 will be based on a shortened version of the platform set to underpin the 5, and feature four seats – even if the rear ones are compact.

Its 800-volt architecture will support dual electric motors capable of producing up to 650kW and 900Nm, which has led Polestar to target a 0-100km/h sprint time of 3.2 seconds.

These are identical figures to the Polestar 5, which means it’ll be about as potent as a Porsche Taycan Turbo S.

The Polestar 7 meanwhile is going to serve mass-market buyers, crucial for the brand which has endured financial struggles of late.

Polestar’s upcoming SUV is expected to be underpinned by the same Geely Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) as the larger Polestar 4, as well as the Volvo EX30, Smart #1/#3 and Zeekr X.

While former global Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath previously said the Polestar 7 would effectively replace the Polestar 2 in 2027, new CEO Michael Lohscheller told Autocar the 2 will get its own direct successor towards the end of this decade.

Mr Lohscheller said Polestar is targeting a global sales volume lift of between 30 and 35 per cent every year over the next three years.

“This is an ambitious target but we are not dreaming,” Mr Lohscheller told Autocar. “We now have three good cars in our showrooms and orders for the first quarter are up 37 per cent. Even better, 55 per cent of those orders are for our two newest cars, Polestar 3 and 4.”