Polestar 4 review

Driving position

Although Polestar has taken steps to distance itself from Volvo in recent years, its Volvo roots are still evident in terms of interior design and ergonomics, with all models getting extremely supportive seats with a range of adjustability.

Even in the base-spec model we tested, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel come as standard, but because our test car has the optional Plus pack, it gets upgraded three-zone climate control with heated rear seats. In a similar fashion to the facelifted 2024-on Tesla Model 3, there’s also a small touchscreen on the rear centre console for adjusting these.

Higher trim levels and optional packs add things like ventilated front seats, massaging functionality and soft Nappa leather upholstery, but we were quite pleased with the ‘Knit’ seats – 100% recycled PET that’s been 3D-knitted to size, in true Polestar sustainable fashion. The baby blue colour wasn’t to our taste, but that’s nothing more than personal preference.

We also tried the extremely soft Nappa leather in the Polestar 3, the 4’s SUV sibling, and it makes for an extremely premium and comfortable interior.

From behind the wheel, you’ll notice the Polestar 4’s size more than in some other similarly-sized saloons and low-riding coupé-SUVs, but at 2,139mm wide including its mirrors, it is quite a large car.

Tech and features

There’s a lot of tech crammed into this sustainable electric saloon, but the headliner is the digital rear-view mirror.

It’s the first production car available in the UK with no rear windscreen, which Polestar says is to make it more spacious inside. Apparently, glass means hinges and other structural bits that impede practicality, and that’s how the ‘4’ offers SUV levels of space in a much sleeker form factor.

At first, we weren’t convinced we were going to like the digital mirror, however, it became evident after the first drive that it just works. It offers crisp live footage in the day and surprisingly well-lit imagery at night, even with the sun setting directly into the lens, so if anything, it offers better visibility than a traditional mirror.

The camera it uses is mounted high on the roof, which means it doesn’t get caked in mud like reversing cameras tend to, but you’ll need to get used to not looking in the mirror to check rear-seat passengers – or your appearance (you can switch modes, but in normal mirror mode, you won’t see anything that’s behind the car).

We also loved the 15.4-inch touchscreen infotainment system, which runs a version of Google’s software and includes all the essentials, like Google Maps and Google Assistant.

For years, manufacturers have struggled to match Tesla’s in-car tech, but we think the Californian brand should be worrying about what Polestar has planned for the future – or rather, what Polestar’s already achieving.

Interior ambient lighting modes are inspired by the solar system and its planets, and selecting one of them is how you go about changing the ‘mood’, but in all honesty, this just feels like a gimmick, and a simpler colour selector would be just as good.

As part of a free over-the-air (OTA) software update, Polestar also added support for Apple Wallet keys, so you can leave the house with as little as just your phone. We’ve tried this technology in both the Polestar 3 and Volvo EX30, which both use the same systems, and can confirm that it has proven to be reliable and stable.

Electric motors and power

The Polestar 4 is available with a choice of two powertrains – the Single motor model or the Dual motor model.

We tried the cheaper, rear-wheel drive model, which has one 268hp motor and a 0-60mph time of 6.9 seconds. Acceleration felt brisk and extremely smooth, but given that this car leans more on the premium end, we’d have preferred a slightly quicker motor.

Unlike the Polestar 3 Long range Dual motor we tried just a few weeks before this, the Polestar 4 Long range Single motor offers no drive mode options for smoother or harsher acceleration – a simple software update to add some further drive customisation wouldn’t go amiss.

The Dual motor model uses that exact same motor and puts a second on the front axle, doubling power output to 536hp and reducing the 0-60mph sprint time to 3.7 seconds.

Both powertrains are very impressive and surprisingly efficient given the car’s 2.2-tonne weight, but a third option somewhere between the two existing variants might be more appealing to drivers who want just a touch more performance without adding too much to the price.

Handling and ride comfort

Unlike the Polestar 3 SUV, the ‘4’ doesn’t come with the option of air suspension, so you’d be forgiven for thinking it doesn’t ride as well.

We tried it on the standard (yes, standard) 20-inch wheels, because they go all the way up to 22 inches. However, with 255/50 tyres, there’s a lot of rubber, which really helps to smooth the ride out.

The Dual motor model has upgraded adaptive suspension for improved handling, but we never once felt the need for this in our base-spec model.

Combined with the exceptional sound insulation from both road and wind noise, it’s about as easy as it gets for rear-seat passengers to fall asleep. We did notice a bit of wind noise from the wing mirrors above 60mph, but this was only evident because everything else was so silent – almost eerily so.

Boot space

It might look like a saloon, but Polestar actually calls the ‘4’ a ‘coupé-SUV’. One that’s been squashed for aerodynamics, at that.

It counts the Porsche Macan EV, BMW iX3/X4 and Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupé among its rivals, and its 526-litre boot certainly screams practical. Especially with that wide-opening hatchback-style bootlid, which is far more practical than similarly sized saloons like the BMW i5.

The Polestar 3 – a more conventionally shaped SUV – has a smaller 484-litre boot, so that’s a testament to how much space is in the ‘4’.

There’s also a handy adjustable boot floor and a storage well under the boot, so you can keep loose items secure without them rolling around. The froot (front boot) is pretty small, at 15 litres, but it’s enough to just about squeeze your charging cables into.

Rear seats

This is a real highlight of the Polestar 4, and while you can fit three adults side-by-side in the back pretty comfortably, you’ll want to make the most of folding that large central armrest down and enjoying the electrically reclining seats.

You can adjust them either from physical controls on the armrest or, if there’s someone in the middle seat, from the rear touchscreen.

Note that they adjust in a 60:40 manner, so if you recline the driver’s side rear seat, the middle section also moves.

Headroom is excellent, but with the front seats in their lowest positions, foot room can be impacted.

Storage solutions

There’s adequate storage throughout the cabin, including a good-sized glovebox, door bins and cupholders, plus a wireless charging pad beneath the touchscreen.

The floating centre console also makes for a neat addition, because you can offload all your odds and ends, like a handbag, underneath it and out of sight.

Towing

Single motor models can tow up to 1,500kg, with Dual motor versions capable of towing 2,000kg – that’s exactly the same as the Polestar 3 SUV.

The fully electric retractable towbar is a £1,550 option on the ‘4’, but not one that we were able to try.

Safety

Euro NCAP hasn’t tested the Polestar 4 yet, but as expected, the ‘3’ received a full five-star rating and the ‘4’ shares many of its parts with that model.

Just like other Polestars and their Volvo cousins, scores across all four categories were high.

Apart from the usual array of safety equipment, the Polestar 4 is fitted with 12 cameras and radar sensors to give it some semi-autonomous capabilities, but you’ll need the optional Pilot pack to benefit from that self-driving tech.

Range and charging times

Regardless of the motor configuration, you’ll get Poletar’s large 100kWh battery pack, which is good for 367-385 miles of range depending on whether you opt for one or two motors.

In our week with the Polestar 4, we were getting a real-world range of around 300 miles, which isn’t far off the mark and is pretty respectable given the colder winter temperatures.

All models come with a heat pump as standard, which improves the efficiency of heating the cabin.

Reliability

The Polestar 4 sits on the ‘SEA’ platform, which is a different underpinning to its ‘3' sibling. The ‘4’ actually shares more parts with other sleek saloon-like models from brands we don’t get in the UK and ones that are on their way, such as the Zeekr 001 and Lynk & Co Z10.

It uses tech and hardware from its Chinese parent company, Geely, which has proven to be reliable so far, however, Geely’s newer cars are exactly that – new – so it’s hard to offer any long-term predictions.

Insurance groups

The Polestar 4 resides in insurance groups 45 (Single motor) and 48 (Dual motor), but that’s on par with many premium electric saloons, estates and SUVs.

A lot more determines how much you’ll pay for insurance, such as your job, where you live and how many miles you intend to drive.

Remember that you can also unlock cheaper running costs with a cheap off-peak energy rate. With current 7p/kWh rates, a full charge could cost as little as £7.