Volvo’s Polestar to focus on electrified performance vehicles
Volvo Cars has announced it will spin-off its Polestar brand as a builder of electrified performance cars…
POLESTAR KNOWN locally for its V8 Supercars tilt and performance variants of mainstream Volvos is now to focus solely on the development of electrified performance cars, “marking the latest stage in Volvo’s ongoing transformation,” Volvo said in a statement.
To bolster the brand’s drive, if you’ll pardon the pun, Volvo has appointed current Volvo design guru, Thomas Ingenlath as CEO of the new business.
Mr Ingenlath said: “I am really excited to take up the challenge of establishing this exciting brand, developing a fabulous portfolio of bespoke products and channelling the passion we have throughout the Polestar team. The next chapter in Polestar’s history is just beginning.”
Polestar will make further announcements about its products, industrialization and commercial plans in the autumn”.
“Thomas heading up the Polestar organisation shows our commitment to establishing a truly differentiated stand-alone brand within the Volvo Car Group,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars.
“Polestar will be a credible competitor in the emerging global market for high performance electrified cars. With Polestar, we are able to offer electrified cars to the world’s most demanding, progressive drivers in all market segments.”
Volvo Cars acquired 100% of Polestar Performance in July 2015, having worked together in motorsport since 1996. In the future, Polestar will offer Polestar branded cars that will no longer carry a Volvo logo (see main image), as well as optimisation packages for Volvo’s range of cars under the Polestar Engineered brand.
According to Volvo, “Polestar will enjoy specific technological and engineering synergies with Volvo Cars and benefit from significant economies of scale as a result of its connection to Volvo. These synergies will allow it to design, develop and build world beating electrified high performance cars”.