Polestar (PSNY) CEO says rivals are falling into a trap by delaying EV plans
Polestar (PSNY) has been clear about its belief in an all-electric future. The company’s CEO, Thomas Ingenlath, is now calling out rivals for pulling back on EV plans, saying they are falling into a “trap” and they will be left behind as the industry transitions.
Shortly after securing $1 billion in funding last week, Polestar plans to expand the brand into new markets.
Polestar has two high-margin electric SUVs, the Polestar 3 and 4, launching this year in key markets. The Polestar 4 went on sale in Europe and Australia last month with up to 379 mi WLTP range, with sales accelerating globally.
Polestar 3 production began in China last week, with the first test runs at its SC plant successfully completed.
With the new injection of funds, Polestar expects to achieve “volume growth that supports the 2025 volume target and double-digit gross profit margin.”
Polestar delivered 12,800 vehicles in Q4, including 880 Polestar 4s in China. The EV maker handed over 54,600 vehicles last year, up 6% from 2022.
Despite a “challenging market,” Polestar is plowing ahead with plans for a five performance EV lineup by 2026.
Polestar says rivals are falling into a trap with EV delays
The same cannot be said for rivals like Mercedes-Benz, which drastically pulled back on its EV sales target less than two weeks ago.
Polestar’s Ingenlath told The Telegraph that automakers like Mercedes, Ford, Aston Martin and GM delaying EV plans were falling into a trap. He explained they would be left behind, given the complex process of launching new EVs.
“There’s an incredible threat and danger if you don’t embrace future innovation and believe in that technology – the electric drivetrains, the innovation in battery, the innovation in modern electronics and software,” Ingenlath said.
Polestar’s leader added, “If you don’t participate in that and think you can wait, and customers are ready for it, it’s an incredible trap.”
The comments come after Polestar’s former parent company, Volvo, sold its majority stake in Polestar and cut funding as it focused on its next growth stage. The $1 billion in funding was from external sources outside of Volvo.
Although many compare Polestar to Tesla, Ingenlath said the two differ in “the market that we are going for.”
Polestar is “not in the same game to do the mass market and compete with the traditional [car makers] in that field.” The company’s focus on higher-end EVs will help it weather a downturn in the market, Ingenlath said.
Electrek’s Take
Ingenlath is spot on here. Automakers that fail to keep up with EV tech now are falling into a “trap” and will be left behind as the industry moves forward.
Ford’s CEO Jim Farley already said if you cannot compete with the Chinese, “then 20% to 30% of your revenue is at risk.” For this reason, Ford is developing a low-cost EV platform to take on new markets and compete with Tesla.
While others are pulling back, Ingenlath sees it as an “incredible opportunity for Polestar,” especially in premium performance cars.
Other automakers like Volvo and Hyundai are doubling down with new models launching this year. For example, Volvo’s most affordable EX30 led to a record EV sales share (22%) last month.
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LiveWire, the electric motorcycle brand spun out of Harley-Davidson, has just announced its latest electric motorcycle model. The new LiveWire S2 Alpanista is built on the same platform as the brand’s last two models, leveraging the Arrow platform as a versatile foundation for several diverse bikes.
The Arrow platform first received its debut with the LiveWire S2 Del Mar, which was then followed by the S2 Mulholland.
LiveWire announced that a high-performance electric maxi-scooter would be produced on the Arrow platform, but not before the company rolled out the S2 Alpinista. “The Alpinista is LiveWire’s first sport standard,” explained the company, “equipped with 17” wheels and tires, blending the best of street, sport, and hyper-tourer characteristics.”
The recently unveiled S2 Alpinista is mechanically quite similar to the two previous models sharing the platform. The 10.5 kWh battery that serves as the main structure of the bike will offer a maximum range of 120 miles (193 km) per charge under city riding conditions. It can be recharged with a Level 2 charger from 20-80% in just 1 hour and 20 minutes.
The 433 lb (196 kg) bike can achieve a 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) time of just 3.0 seconds, thanks to its powerful 63 kW (84 hp) motor. The S2 Alpinista can also reach an electronically limited top speed of 99 mph (159 km/h).
Priced at US $15,999 and already available at LiveWire dealerships in North America and Europe, the S2 Alpinista officially becomes the most affordable LiveWire electric motorcycle available to date, undercutting the $16,249 S2 Del Mar electric street tracker and the $16,499 Mulholland electric sport cruiser.
“Alpinista reimagines the S2 by combining the urban agility of a supermoto with the do-it-all nature of a touring bike, creating a practical and thrilling sport standard,” explained the brand.
The smaller 17″ wheels help reduce the seat height of the bike, and combined with the Dunlop Roadsmart IV tires, the street-optimized bike is ideal for “both daily commutes and spirited rides through winding roads.”
The S2 Alpinista comes with 6-axis IMU from Bosch providing cornering-enhanced antilock braking and cornering-enhanced traction control systems, in addition to four preset ride modes and two custom modes.
Now the third model launched on the Arrow platform, the S2 Alpanista underscores the versatility of LiveWire’s workhorse. The approach was intended to allow the e-motorcycle offshoot to quickly innovate with multiple styles of motorcycles all sharing key structural and drivetrain components. The move has largely been seen as an engineering success, with three models hitting the road in under three years. However, sales have yet to reach targets set by LiveWire as the more premium electric motorcycle industry has experienced a rocky few years.
As a LiveWire S2 Del Mar owner myself, I can attest to both the performance and enjoyable experience of bikes built on the platform, though I do find myself in a somewhat smaller community than LiveWire had likely hoped for. With the backing of its powerful older brother H-D, which retains a controlling stake in the company, LiveWire has enjoyed the relative freedom to cruise for its first few years and focus on motorcycle development and rollouts, with profitability hopefully coming over the horizon in due time.
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