‘More versatile’ version of electric family SUV brings a traditional rear window and nearly 400 miles of range
Polestar is putting the finishing touches on the new, more upright version of its 4 crossover ahead of its unveiling on 2 September.
The new rival for the BMW iX3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC Electric has now been spotted testing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife with production-ready bodywork, showcasing how it has been transformed from a rakish saloon into a more conventional SUV.
The Polestar 4 SUV will place a greater emphasis on “flexibility and practicality”, the company said, with “versatile storage capabilities for every journey”.
Autocar first reported on plans for the new 4 variant in February, when Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller referred to it as “combining the space of an estate and the versatility of an SUV”. At that stage the name was not yet confirmed, and the decision to firmly brand it an SUV likely reflects the bigger market for such machines.
Confirming the first technical details of its new entrant, Polestar revealed that it will be offered with the choice of rear- and four-wheel-drive powertrains, topping out at 536bhp – like the existing 4.
It will also roughly match the current 4’s maximum official range, claiming 391 miles between charges in its most efficient form, and use the same 400V electrical architecture, which allows charging at up to 200kW.
The 4 SUV will be built in Busan, South Korea, alongside its coupé-roofed sibling, and is set to be revealed in the coming weeks before orders open in September.
The first official details of the car came after Autocar exclusively revealed (below) that it would feature a traditional, upright rear window in place of the familiar camera-based rear-view system.
That will tie into an overall design treatment that is more conventional than that of the existing 4, which straddles the boundaries between coupé, crossover and saloon – and is most easily thought of as a Porsche Macan Electric rival.
The newcomer will be slightly shorter than the US-built Polestar 3 (which is more of a premium, sporting proposition), at around 4850mm long.
It will face a much larger field of direct rivals than the 4 Coupé, including the recently launched iX3 and GLC Electric, as well as the Audi Q6 E-tron, Lexus RZ and best-selling Tesla Model Y.
The 4 SUV is one of four new models that Polestar is priming for launch by the end of 2028, as part of a drive to recover from heavy financial losses and find a path to sustained profit.
The firm sold around 60,000 cars last year, but aims to increase its annual output to 100,000 units, and estimates that its new models will boost its coverage of the EV market segments from 25% to 55-65%.
The 4 SUV follows the new Polestar 5 GT, and will be joined next year by the next-gen Polestar 2, and in 2028 by the smaller Polestar 7 crossover.
