Polestar 2 to get direct successor later this decade

The biggest sales driver, he believes, will be Polestar’s adoption of a network of retailers well versed in selling cars, demonstrating and financing them, explaining their sometimes unfamiliar equipment.

Polestar’s number of UK sales outlets will grow from nine to 17 over the next 18 months and cars will be sold from dedicated spaces in Volvo dealerships.  

Lohscheller believes there will be very little sales cannibalisation; he is surprised and impressed by buyers’ clear perception of Polestar as a distinct brand.

The company will “transition away” from its former network of 'Spaces' in large shopping centres.  

Commenting on the UK government’s mandate for the sale of EVs, Lohscheller said Polestar strongly supports recent SMMT proposals to stimulate private sales: a halving of VAT to 10% for three years, an increase in the punitive ECS (expensive car supplement) threshold to £60,000 and a reduction from 20% to 5% on energy delivered through a public charger.  

However, he doesn't seek a change to the UK's 2030 cut-off date for the end of sales of pure -ICE cars - and would prefer to see plug-in hybrid sales end then too, rather than in 2035.

“The politicians should hold the course they have set,” said Lohscheller. “It is the correct course if they are really serious about net-zero. If they are not, they should tell us.” 

The UK is Polestar’s biggest market, believes Loscheller, partly because it is more agile and adaptable to change than others in Europe.

“You can get close the customers here,” he said, “and if you need to change the way things are done, you can do it quickly.”

The changes seem to be bearing fruit: in the fourth quarter of last year, UK Polestar orders doubled.  

Another UK advantage, Lohscheller believes, is the presence of Polestar's Coventry R&D centre, where the advanced, high-performance 5 is undergoing final development prior to a launch later this year.

“I tell Coventry people that I hope they’re really proud of this car,” he said, “with its advanced bonded-aluminium technology, its 900bhp and it’s 800V technology. It’s a halo car, and will probably be the most expensive model we offer. But it will be one of the most advanced cars in the world.”  

Lohscheller also revealed that Polestar’s future design direction will take a modest change of course, following the arrival of its new, ex-Audi design boss, Philipp Römers. 

“What we’ve achieved so far is really good,” he said, “but I’m asking Philipp to highlight the performance of our cars a little more. I don’t believe they look quite as capable as they actually are. They should look a little more confident; they are maybe bit too modest. But I don’t expect radical changes, and how the designers actually achieve these subtle changes will be up to them.”  

Opinion: Polestar boss finds freedom

Michael Lohscheller was very much a 'suit' in his previous big car-company jobs. At Opel, for example, he was constrained by the company’s many difficulties: a long string of loss making years, an odd relationship with Vauxhall (which contributed less and less to the physical cars) and the constant need to please a bunch of big bosses who saw very little but the red ink.