A closer look at the Polestar 3 and 6 at the new South Coast Plaza ‘Space’
Polestar opened a new “Polestar Space” in South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, CA this week, and we stopped by to have a look at the upcoming Polestar 3 SUV and Polestar Roadster concept, which will become the Polestar 6.
South Coast Plaza is an upscale mall in an upscale area, so it’s not a terrible place to find customers looking for the hot new thing (when one random customer learned the 3 would cost over $80k, he responded “oh, that’s not bad”). Especially with its since it’s in California, which leads the nation in EV sales, and Orange County, which is one of the hottest EV markets in the state.
Both upcoming cars were on site for the Space’s grand opening ceremony on Thursday. Unfortunately we were not able to sit in the Roadster concept, but we got a chance to have a little time inside the Polestar 3.
But the cars are on the move, and only there for a short time – the 3 has already moved along, and the Roadster is only there until the end of Saturday. Since both are prototypes, they’ll be traveling around the country for various appearances. Keep an eye on Polestar’s events page if you want to find a place to check them out.
The Polestar 3 does maintain a similar shape and dimensions to other popular SUVs these days (it’s a few inches longer than the Model Y, but the same width and height). But as is common in electric SUVs, it feels more spacious on the inside than it would seem from the outside.
EVs have simpler packaging constraints than in gas-powered vehicles, because smaller motors take up less space. This can result in more interior space, and the Polestar 3 is certainly roomy on the inside.
At 6 feet tall, I fit with plenty of room in the back seat with the front seat pushed all the way back – and which was occupied at the time by a 6’4 passenger who was also plenty comfortable. Headroom and legroom are extensive throughout the car.
And it feels even more open with the massive glass roof which runs all the way to the back of the car with no crossbar.
The ventilated leather seats were comfortable and slick, but we only had a few minutes in a stationary car. The car will have a massage function, but we didn’t get to activate it yet. Interior options include leather (sourced in Scotland with animal welfare standards in mind, and by-products of the meat industry… an industry which is not sustainable), vinyl/polyester synthetic vegan interior, and, in a relatively new turn for the auto industry: wool. The wool sounds pretty cool, to me.
The interface is similar to that of the Polestar 2. While we didn’t do anything complex or dig very deep into it, it felt snappy in response to touch inputs. While many drivers consider touch inputs inferior to physical controls, one important part about touchscreens is that they at least respond without lag, and in our limited testing tapping around through the menus, the Polestar 3’s Google-powered interface felt good enough in that respect. Once again, the only companies getting touch interfaces right are EV startups, while the rest of the industry is outsourcing all of their infotainment to the owners’ phones.
We got a look under the hood as well, at the frunk space. It wasn’t particularly large – larger than the frunks in Kia/Hyundai/Genesis EV SUVs, but smaller than that in the Tesla Model Y. It would probably be a good place to store spare charging cables or other tools that stay in the car long-term, though there will also be rear under-floor storage in the trunk which would be useful for the same. We didn’t get to see the underfloor trunk storage on the prototype.
Both the front and rear of the car have small “wing”-like design features intended to maintain the profile of the car while increasing aerodynamic efficiency – similar to the R-Wing at the front of the Dodge Banshee concept.
These wings change the angle at which the car cuts through the air, reduce the total flat space at the front and rear of the vehicle, and channel air more smoothly along the top surfaces of the car (called “attached flow”). This all makes the car more aerodynamic by reducing the amount of disturbed air flowing off of the vehicle, while also adding some downforce by channeling air downward at the rear.
Under that front “wing” is Polestar’s sensor suite which it calls the “SmartZone”. An additional option is available which adds a LiDAR bump to the top of the car, which will enhance the car’s sensing abilities (and processing, through addition of an NVIDIA DRIVE Orin chip).
The Polestar Roadster concept is another thing entirely. While the 3 is coming out at the end of this year, the Roadster is still a concept, though slated to go into production as the Polestar 6. So things will likely change before it hits the road.
Since it’s so far out, it was a look-only, no-touch affair. So we’ll keep this part a bit shorter.
Polestar was showing the convertible in topless mode. The final vehicle will have a retractible convertible top. Retractible tops can add weight and complexity and reduce chassis rigidity, but Polestar says that its bonded aluminum chassis increases rigidity so much that this shouldn’t be an issue.
It recently opened an office in Coventry, UK, right in the middle of England’s “Motorsport Valley” where several Formula 1 teams are headquartered, to help develop the various performance aspects of the 6. Polestar says the 6 will have 884hp and 0-60 in about 3 seconds, and is going after Porsche in driving dynamics.
Polestar wants the 6 to emphasize its motorsport heritage, and to bring some performance DNA to the brand. It’s also one of the first cars the company will build on its own platform – the Polestar 2 and 3 are on platforms shared with Volvo, the 4 will be on a platform shared with Geely, and the 5 and 6 will finally branch out to Polestar’s own. This is where the aforementioned bonded aluminum chassis comes into play.
The Polestar 3 starts shipping in the US at the end of this year with a starting price of $84k, and the US-built version with optional LiDAR will hit the road in the middle of 2024. The Polestar 6 is slated for 2026 deliveries and we don’t yet have a price for the standard model, though an “LA Concept” special edition sold out the first 500 launch models in a week, with a $25k deposit and an expected price of $200k. So you can probably expect the base model’s price to have 6 numbers in it, rather than 5.
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This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes a merger between Electric Bike Company and Integral Electrics, California looking to clamp down further on Sur Ron hooligans, a Super73 recall, Cowboy’s production move, a tour inside Bafang’s factory in China, and more.
The Wheel-E podcast returns every two weeks on Electrek’s YouTube channel, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
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Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the Wheel-E podcast today:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 9:00 a.m. ET (or the video after 10:00 a.m. ET):
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NIU, best known as a leader in the electric moped market, has expanded considerably over the last few years. In addition to offering a hot-selling new electric dirt bike and showing off concepts for electric ATVs, the company is now unveiling an electric microcar known as the NIUMM 500.
Still in its prototype stage, the two-seater NIUMM 500 electric microcar is designed to fit into L6e category of light quadricycles in Europe. As a quadricycle, these vehicles are technically not “cars” in the traditional sense (or in the legal sense), and thus have their own set of regulations that help streamline their path to production. Other popular microcars, such as the Citroen Ami, have taken a similar path and reached success with over 30,000 units sold.
With a target price of €8,000 (approximately US $8,300), the NIUMM 500 is intended to fill that niche role of a comfortable, weather-protected urban commuter, going beyond a typical moped or motorcycle with the advantages of locking storage and the ultimate achievement of staying dry in the rain.
In order to qualify as an L6e vehicle though, there are certain restrictions such as speed and power that prevent the NIUMM 500 from laying down the fastest lap times. A top speed of 45 km/h (28 mph) keeps the microcar city-oriented, though you could probably tell by looking that this isn’t a highway vehicle.
In some countries, light quadricycles don’t even require a full car driver’s license, instead allowing the operator to hold a more easily-obtainable moped permit.
Despite the speed limitation, the little electric microcar has a lot going for it. The traditional steering wheel control and two-pedal drive setup will feel familiar to seasoned car drivers, yet the vehicle offers a more moped-like parking experience by taking up a mere fraction of a parking spot. The narrow size helps squeeze through tight city streets, though you likely won’t be lane splitting quite like a moped.
Back on the car-like side of things, electric locks and power windows come standard (including a power rear windshield), as does electric heating. Optional add-ons include a sun roof and air conditioning. There’s a decently large storage area behind the two seats, and another small storage area in front of the passenger seat.
And in another nod to its hybrid design, halfway between a moped and a car, the NIUMM 500 can even be outfitted with removable batteries (straight from NIU’s NQiX electric mopeds). The removable battery version allows apartment dwellers or others without access to street-level parking to still own and charge their own microcar. Just like how I charge my own NIU batteries at home, owners can simply carry the batteries up the elevator and charge them in their apartment.
For those with charging access though, there’s a fixed battery version with a larger 7 kWh capacity. It gets an impressive 118 km (73 miles) of range, compared to the removable battery version’s 60 km (37 miles) of range.
Both appear to feature the same 5 kW motor with a peak output of 10 kW – also the same drivetrain from the NIU NQiX electric moped.
NIU is currently showing off the new vehicle at the Motorrad show in Dortmund, Germany.
There’s no word yet on if or when the NIUMM 500 will see production, but based on conversations with company insiders, it sounds like NIU is fairly serious about the microcar’s future.
Here’s to hoping it sees the road soon, and that they can keep that target price in check on the way there.
Electrek’s Take
Yes, I’m all in on this!
I LOVE electric microcars. Give me a tiny car, a golf cart, whatever you want to call it, and I’ll take it. For city commuters, 25 mph is often sufficient, and since many people don’t feel safe on a scooter, these types of vehicles fit the bill as lighter and more efficient alternatives to a car that still carry some benefits of a scooter or moped.
I tested out Wink Motors’ vehicles in NYC a couple of years ago and got around the city just fine with a top speed of 25 mph, so I think these could even work in the US. But of course Europe is the primary target here thanks to their more conducive quadricycle laws.
If anyone at NIU is reading this, I will travel to review!
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Renewables increased their output by almost 10% and provided nearly a quarter of US electrical generation in 2024, according to newly released US Energy Information Administration (EIA) data.
Solar was still No 1
Solar remained the US’s fastest-growing source of electricity in 2024. Utility-scale and “estimated” small-scale (e.g., rooftop) solar combined increased by 26.9% in 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, according to the SUN DAY Campaign, which reviewed EIA’s “Electric Power Monthly” report data.
Utility-scale solar thermal and photovoltaic expanded by 32%, while small-scale solar increased by 15.3%. Together, solar was nearly 7% (6.91%) of total US electrical generation for the year.
In December alone, electrical generation by utility-scale solar expanded by 42% compared to December 2023.
Small-scale solar (systems <1 MW) accounted for 27.9% of all solar generation and provided 1.9% of the US electricity supply in 2024. In fact, small-scale solar PV generates over five times more electricity than utility-scale geothermal.
2024 renewables milestones
The electrical output of US wind farms in 2024 grew by 7.7% year-over-year. Wind remains the largest source of electrical generation among renewable energy sources, accounting for 10.3% of the US total.
Wind and solar combined provided more than 17.2% of US electrical generation during 2024. The mix of all renewables – wind, solar, hydropower, biomass, geothermal – provided 24.2% of total US electricity production in 2024 compared to 23.2% of electrical output a year earlier.
Between January and December, electrical generation by renewables grew by 9.6% compared to the same period the year before – nearly three times the growth rate of natural gas (3.3%) and over 10 times that of nuclear power (0.9%).
In December alone, electrical generation by renewables grew by 10.1% compared to December 2023.
Wind and solar together produced 15.9% more electricity than coal and came close to matching nuclear power’s share of total generation (17.2% vs. 17.8%).
The mix of renewables reinforced their position as the second largest source of electrical generation, behind only natural gas.
“Renewable energy sources now provide a quarter of the nation’s electricity,” said the SUN DAY Campaign’s executive director, Ken Bossong. “Consequently, the rash efforts of the Trump Administration to undermine wind, solar, and other renewables will have serious negative consequences for the nation’s electricity supply and the economy.”
Read more: Renewables provided 90% of new US capacity in 2024 – FERC
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