That would be one hell of an entrance.
Following the repositioning of the Polestar brand last week, the performance-subsidiary of Swedish carmaker Volvo appears to be mulling no less than two bespoke ‘debut’ models for the company, one of which is a massively-powerful plug-in hybrid coupé.
According to an Autocar report, the bespoke Polestar model could break cover as soon as September, appearing in concept-car form at the Frankfurt auto show. Regardless of whether it appears as a coupé or otherwise, Polestar’s inaugural model will be built on one of two platforms that were developed between Volvo and Geely, depending on the size of the vehicle. Everything apart from the underpinnings is expected to be bespoke, giving the brand some distance from its Swedish parent company, allowing Polestar to distinguish itself in much the same way its German contemporaries have.
While there’s little doubt that Volvo is currently going full-steam ahead with the rejuvenation of its entire model lineup (work on the Series-60 cars is ongoing, with the XC60 already launched, and the S60 saloon and V60 estate expected next year), the resources being devoted to Polestar isn’t short of substantial. Aside from the technical and financial support from Volvo and Geely, the former has also moved its design chief Thomas Ingenlath and its communications boss Jonathan Goodman to take up the roles of CEO and COO respectively.
Additionally, Polestar could make use of the expertise of Lotus as it goes forward with its bespoke high-performance offering, given that the Geely conglomerate has recently inked a deal with Malaysian manufacturer PROTON to take over Lotus in its entirety. Lotus’ history in motorsports and performance vehicles requires no introduction, and its knowledge in the utilisation of lightweight materials like carbon-fibre composites will likely result in something that can put other lightweight sports cars like the Alfa Romeo 4C and the Alpine A110 through the ringer.
If the coupé does come about, Polestar will have its work cut out for it to extract 445kW from the T8 TwinEngine plug-in hybrid powertrain, currently the most powerful option in Volvo’s range, considering that the highest state of tune offered from that setup presently stands at 314kW (and 640Nm). Style-wise there’s little suggestion as to what form the coupé will take, though considering how well the P1800-inspired grilles look on the S90 saloon and V90 estate, maybe more inspiration can be drawn from that gorgeous heritage model for Polestar’s future.
For more information on Volvo, check out our Showroom.
