The Polestar 1 Is Coming To The UK, But In Left-Hand Drive Only

Anyone in Britain who was excited about getting their hands on a Polestar 1 might have to think again; the company has no plans for a right-hooker

Matt Kimberley

29 Jan 2018

The Polestar 1 Is Coming To The UK, But In Left-Hand Drive Only

Polestar has confirmed that the ‘1’ hybrid coupe won’t be built in right-hand drive, after early demand from countries like the UK failed to meet the necessary levels.

The company’s dealers will still sell the car here on the much-talked-about subscription service, but they will be completely Europe-spec vehicles with the steering wheel on the left. On top of the extra wait on these shores, that could be a deal-breaker for executives who don’t really want the inevitable hassle when it comes to toll booths and automated car parks.

Polestar is willing to sacrifice sales in this country, and others that use right-hand drive, in order to maximise potential profits from European and American nations with larger combined populations and much greater overall levels of interest.

The extra expense of re-engineering the car for right-hand drive would reportedly dent the project’s overall profitability because sales in the UK, Ireland, Australia, Japan and other left-side-driving nations wouldn’t be high enough.

For anyone who absolutely insists they have to buy one outright, the Polestar 1 is expected to be around €130,000 (around £115,000), but Polestar will aim to offer the car solely on its all-inclusive leasing programme.

The 592bhp hybrid, based around a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, will be built in China and exported around the world. It will be followed by a smaller saloon called the Polestar 2 and then a Polestar 3, which will be a large SUV (of course).

Source: Auto Express

Hi @CarThrottle The reason for LHD only with the low volume Polestar 1 is because of the complexity of reengineering for RHD, just like many other low volume cars. Customer interest in the car in the UK is very high, with British customers accepting that the car will be LHD only.
— DuncanForrester (@DuncanForrester) January 29, 2018

EDIT: We received a Tweet from Duncan Forrester, Polestar’s head of PR and communications, who said that demand in the UK was high but that build volumes will be low, and the technical demands of building a right-hand drive version prohibit the changes.

To us that means it would either cost too much for the amount of cars that will make it to right-hand drive markets, or would be impossible for packaging reasons. Either way, it’s unlucky for British ‘buyers’!