Polestar, the electric vehicle company spawned as Volvo's racing arm and now owned by Geely, revealed its first crossover SUV on Friday, launching it into the mainstream of the American auto market. The five-seat Polestar 3 will land first with a dual-motor, all-wheel drive layout and an estimated 300 miles of range.

SUVs and crossovers accounted for more than 50 percent of vehicles purchased in the first four months of 2022; sedans made up just 16 percent. The new Polestar 3, with deliveries starting in the fourth quarter of 2023, puts the company right in the hottest segment in the industry.

"The Polestar 1 and Polestar 2 launch products have successfully generated excitement and cemented the company as a credible up and coming EV automaker, but the segments they compete in have somewhat limited sales potential," Paul Waatti, industry analysis manager at AutoPacific told Newsweek. "The Polestar 3, however, is the brand's first real volume opportunity as it is positioned in the crossover SUV space that has much broader appeal in the market."

As with the rest of the lineup, the Polestar 3 will feature sustainable materials inside the cabin including eco-friendly MicroTech upholstery, animal welfare-certified leather and a fully traceable wool upholstery. The company says it will also reassess those materials as production begins and again as it "continues to constantly find ways of reducing its carbon footprint".

The Polestar 3 features Android Automotive OS for infotainment, co-developed with Google. A 14.5-inch center touchscreen display is used for functions and over-the-air (OTA) updates are included for continuous software updates.

It produces a total of 489 horsepower (hp) and 620 pound-feet (lb-ft) of torque. With the optional Performance Pack, total output jumps to 517 hp and 671 lb-ft. Adjustable one-pedal drive is included, meaning when a driver takes their foot off the throttle, the car immediately starts slowing down and recuperating energy. It also has torque vectoring at the rear axle for more stable corner exits and it can decouple one motor for more efficiency. The Polestar 3 comes with an adjustable suspension with Dynamic and Comfort modes.

"Our goal was to offer the performance and precision that define all Polestar cars, without compromising the comfort of the daily drive," said Joakim Rydholm, Polestar's chief chassis engineer in a press release. "To do this, we used new components including the adaptive air suspension to engineer the 'Polestar feeling' for this type of car."

For safety, and autonomy, Polestar is collaborating with Zenseact, Luminar and Smart Eye on its advanced driver assistance. The 3 features five radar modules, five external cameras and twelve external ultrasonic sensors. It has eye-tracking technology to warn drivers when they stray from the road for too long. It can also stop a car completely in an emergency when sensing a distracted or unresponsive driver.

The Polestar 3 will launch in its most expensive trim with the Plus and Pilot Packages. Plus includes a 25-speaker audio system from Bowers & Wilkins with 3D surround sound and Dolby Atmos capability, soft-closing doors, electric steering column, heated steering wheel and more.

The Pilot Pack adds a head-up display, Park Assist Pilot and the Pilot Assist driver assistance system.

In the second quarter of 2023, an additional optional Pilot Pack with LiDAR will be available. It comes with an additional control unit from NVIDIA, three cameras, four ultrasonic sensors and cleaning for the front- and rear-view cameras. Polestar says this helps prepare the car for future autonomous driving.

Though it's in the sweet spot of the market, the first 3 will start at $83,900 putting it out of range for many buyers. It will face competition from similarly priced competitors like the Tesla Model X, Audi e-tron and Jaguar i-Pace.

"It's the most critical product launch yet for Polestar and all signs suggests the Polestar 3 has suitable performance, design, and technologies to be a serious contender in the premium EV crossover segment," said Waatti.

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