INNOVATION TO THE FOUR (some text hidden) SECTIONED_new_polestar4_2025

By Jonathan Crouch

The improved Polestar 4 Coupe brings something different to the premium section of the EV Coupe-SUV market. Jonathan Crouch drives it.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 59

With the Polestar 4, the brand needed to do something different. They have. This electric Coupe-SUV is nothing quite like any of its talented premium badged mid-sized EV rivals and will be a desirable trinket for the right kind of customer. Whether it's the volume model Polestar needs is another question. Here, we look at the recently updated version.

Backgroundword count: 201

The Polestar 4. It's intended to be a different kind of Polestar. A different kind of EV. And, the brand reckons, a different kind of mid-sized SUV-Coupe. The '4' fits into the range between the smaller Polestar 2 and larger Polestar 3 EVs - and at its launch in 2023 was, as that numeral suggests, the fourth design that this increasingly international manufacturer had bought us. The marque is grounded in Sweden and its cars are financed by the Geely conglomerate in China and built either there or (as in the case of the '4'), in Busan, South Korea. Directly in the Polestar 4's sights are sportier, more premium mid-sized EV models like the BMW i4 and the Porsche Macan Electric - maybe also the Audi Q6 e-tron; as well aspiring fashionable ones like the Tesla Model Y and the Lexus RZ. To stand out, this '4' will need to make headlines - and did at its original introduction, launched as the first production car to be introduced without a rear window. But there's a lot more to this Polestar than that. It was lightly updated in Summer 2026, creating the car we're going to take a closer look at here.

Driving Experienceword count: 507

This Polestar 4 might not be that much bigger than a Polestar 2 but it's very differently engineered. Under the skin lies the Geely 'SEA' (or 'Sustainable Experience Architecture') platform that we've seen used in an extraordinarily wide cross-section of cars - everything from a compact smart #1 to a large luxury Lotus Emeya. And the only battery available bolted to it is much larger than you'd get in a '2', 100kWh in size, 94kWh of which is actually usable. In short, it isn't only the looks of this car that make it a more ambitious thing than other mid-sized EV crossover models. The drivetrain choice on offer feels more familiar. Either the Rear motor version we tried; or, if there's more in the budget, a punchy Dual motor variant that feels quite different and is for those after some serious speed. As you'd expect, it's the Rear motor version that most customers choose, which offers 268bhp, 0-62mph in 7.1s and a range of 385 miles. It's all you really need, unless you're set on taking on faster rivals like the Tesla Model Y Performance or the Porsche Macan Electric 4S, in which case you'll need the Dual motor variant's extra thrust. With that top model, adding an extra identical motor to the front axle boosts total output to 536bhp and nearly doubles pulling power from 343Nm to 686Nm, lowering the 62mph sprint time to just 3.8s, without too much cost to EV range - a still-respectable 367 miles. Maximum speed on all models is limited to a quite un-EV-like 124mph. The Dual motor derivative can also be ordered in top Performance form, in which guise the car gets Polestar Engineered chassis tuning and beefier Brembo brakes. As for drive impressions across the Polestar 4 line-up, well we'll start with this Sino-Swedish model's party piece first; you might wonder how you're going to adjust to manoeuvring about a car without a rear window. It actually doesn't take long at all. Two screen-selectable 'One Pedal Drive' brake regen options are offered, 'low' and stronger 'standard', which are all you really need. There are three steering weight options too but Polestar doesn't think you need any fake drivetrain sound effects. On this rear-driven version, rather curiously, there are no drive modes - though you do get them on the Dual motor variant - 'Range' and 'Performance' settings, plus Launch Control too. As the 12 o'clock marker on the steering wheel suggests, the brand wants its products to feel 'sporty', which inevitably means a somewhat firm standard of ride. Adaptive suspension is restricted to the Dual motor model. Even without that embellishment though, you could live with the standard passive set-up perfectly easily and it certainly promotes impressive body control through the bends. As part of product updates introduced in Summer 2026, Rear motor and Dual motor variants feature a recalibrated chassis with high-capacity passive dampers, new spring and anti-roll bar settings and polyurethane rebound stops replacing internal rebound coil springs. Polestar says that the steering's been made sharper too.

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