Car fans who gathered in the chilly mountains of Austria for the FAT Ice Race in Zell am See got a special treat. The race, famous for showing off fast cars on a track made entirely of ice, was chosen by Polestar for a public outing of the Polestar 5. The new flagship from the Swedish brand went out on the frozen airfield to show that electric cars can handle the cold just as well as gas cars.
The Polestar 5 is a big, luxury four-door car referred to as a Grand Tourer (GT). It is over 16 ft long, which is longer than some large SUVs. Even though it is big, it sits very low to the ground at only 4.66 ft tall. To make it strong and light, engineers used a special aluminum frame, and instead of welding pieces together, they used a super-strong glue. This makes the car stiff, which proved great for racing on slippery ice.
Polestar 5 – source: Polestar
At the race, Polestar brought two versions of the car. One was decorated in bright yellow and black colors that come from the racing game Gran Turismo. The creator of that game, Kazunori Yamauchi, was there to see the car in person. He even took a ride on the ice and said that EVs like this one offer a smooth ride that gas cars simply cannot match. He believes this is the start of a whole new way to enjoy driving.
The Performance model of the Polestar 5 has two electric motors that produce 650 kW of power or about 884 horsepower. Thanks to all-wheel drive, it can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in just 3.2 seconds. On the ice track, a professional racing driver, Ted Björk, drove the car sideways through the turns, claiming it felt very stable and went exactly where he steered it.
Polestar 5 – source: Polestar
Charging is another area where the Polestar 5 shines. It uses a high-tech 800V system, and if you find a very fast charger, you can fill the battery from 10% to 80% in about 22 minutes. When the battery is full, the standard Dual Motor version can travel up to 421 miles (WLTP) before needing a top-up. The faster Performance version can go about 347 miles.
One of the most unique things about the Polestar 5 is that it does not have a rear window. Instead, it uses a high-definition camera and a screen to show the driver what is behind them. This allowed the designers to give the car a very sleek, sloping roof. This idea is slowly becoming a signature for the brand after the Polestar 4 first used that design. It also has a small front trunk with 2.19 ft³ of space for charging cables or bags.
Polestar 5 – source: Polestar
Polestar 5 proved great for racing, but it is also meant for luxury. It has room for five people and a main trunk that holds 12.9 ft³, which isn’t really that large. If you fold the back seats down, that space grows to 39.8 ft³. To keep things green, the interior uses recycled materials like old fishing nets and a plant called flax.
Buying one of the new Polestar 5s requires a big piggy bank. In Europe, the price starts from around $141,000 depending on the market. Once the Polestar’s GT becomes available in the United States, we expect the price to be around $100,000 for the base model and up to $160,000 for the fastest version.
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