New special edition Polestar 1 marks coupe’s production end

Production of the plug-in hybrid Polestar 1 will cease later this year as the company begins to focus on its future pure-electric vehicles.

This special-edition model of the Swedish brand’s flagship coupe marks the end of the car’s life cycle, with some cosmetic tweaks and a re-trimmed interior. Production will be limited to just 25 units.

Revisions over the current Polestar 1 include a new matte gold paint finish, matching brake calipers and black 21-inch alloy wheels. LED headlamps also come as standard, featuring the firm’s trademark ‘Thor’s Hammer’ daytime running light signature.

The interior gets a subtle lift with black leather upholstery and contrasting gold stitching to match the coupe’s exterior. Buyers get the same portrait infotainment screen and digital instrument cluster as the current model, as well as the unusual crystal gear selector.

Polestar hasn’t altered the 1’s powertrain for this special edition though. It features the same twin-charged, electrically assisted 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine powering the front axle and dual electric motors powering the rear.

The system has a combined output of 601bhp and and 1,000Nm of torque, which Polestar says is enough for a 0-62mph time of 4.2 seconds. The two electric motors can also send more power to the wheel with the most grip, to aid cornering ability.

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However, where most plug-in hybrids’ battery packs are sized between 12-15kWh, the Polestar 1 has a 34kWh unit. That’s bigger than the battery found in the pure-electric MINI Electric and gives the coupe a claimed electric range of 77 miles.

To offset the considerable weight of the battery pack, Polestar moulded most of the 1’s body panels from carbon fibre. Adjustable Öhlins dampers also help to control the car’s 2.3-tonne mass, backed up by enormous six-piston brake calipers.

Polestar says there’s a couple of build slots still available but, if a UK buyer is lucky enough to secure one, they’ll have to put up with the fact that the Polestar 1 is left-hand drive only.

As the special edition Polestar 1 can only be specified with matte paint, which is a £4,500 extra on the standard car, its price will see a slight uplift from £139,000 to £143,500.

Now read about Polestar’s ambition to launch the world’s first climate-neutral car by 2030…