What vehicle you you drive?It's good that they built an SUV because there aren't any on the market today.
It's not like every other vehicle is a truck or SUV.
/s
But they didn't."hey what if we made like, a Tesla, but didn't royally duck it up? I bet that'd sell"
Not sure if it's due to differences in methodology, but in my limited experience of lifecycle analysis stuff with manufacturing in China gets a massive hit from their grid being so coal-heavy.19.9 tons sounds extremely super bad compared to any other car, not best in class. Can we get a fact check on that claim? I've seen estimates for other cars where the batteries are not made in China that put the embodied carbon at 9-10 tons for both Nissan Leaf and the Tesla Model 3 with a US-made battery pack.
It may sound odd, but that’s the main reason I chose a Forester over a RAV4 or CRV.Another tablet stuck onto the dash. I absolutely hate that.
Automakers - place integrate it into the dashboard.
So call it a crossover, not a SUV. Two rows of seats and only 54 cu.ft. of cargo space with the seats folded down, that's definitely not what I would call an SUV.Because crossovers are a thing.
I'd've called them a "grand coupe", but I'm sure some marketing panel decided on the "crossover" name. Or there's some car model already called a grand coupe, maybe.
This isn't technically a luxury class model, so the comparisons are off.I get that lithium is expensive, but those prices to position Polestar into the “premium” segment aren’t doing it, or adoption of EVs any justice.
It also doesn’t have the “premium” feel, judging by the pictures.
BYD, Omoda et als will come for their lunch.
Lick your finger. If it works better, then moisturizing may be in order.And unfortunately, the 15.4-inch touchscreen in our test Polestar 4 was too reluctant to process a finger tap on too many occasions for me to be happy with it.
One-pedal driving mode allows the accelerator pedal to also control deceleration by engaging regenerative braking as you lift. With one-pedal mode off, EV motors don't have nearly as much parasitic loss as an ICE drivetrain, so when you lift the car decelerates much more gradually and you can coast in the flow of traffic. One-pedal is best on surface roads, where intersections, no passing zones, and twisties have you in and out of braking frequently. It's not as good on highways, though, where acceleration and regen get in a tug-of-war as you maintain speed. Accelerate-and-coast is smoother and better at preserving range.I don't understand this part. What does Jonathan mean? Isn't one pedal drive the best way to coast? Isn't that exactly what you want when buying an EV: excellent one-pedal driving?
Yeah that is also my understanding. Even though energy sources in China are rapidly decarbonizing, they are still extremely carbon-intensive at this time. I don't doubt the 19.9 ton embodied carbon analysis, but I do doubt the claim that this is class-leading.Not sure if it's due to differences in methodology, but in my limited experience of lifecycle analysis stuff with manufacturing in China gets a massive hit from their grid being so coal-heavy.
Shipping isn't it, because container ships are pretty efficient per kilometer-tonne moved.
That surprised me! Why are EVs so much more efficient coasting? I could see it in an awd VS dual motor where you're turning a drive shaft and 2 axels instead of just the axels, but I can't think of any explanation for a difference between an fwd car and single motor EV.One-pedal driving mode allows the accelerator pedal to also control deceleration by engaging regenerative braking as you lift. With one-pedal mode off, EV motors don't have nearly as much parasitic loss as an ICE drivetrain, so when you lift the car decelerates much more gradually and you can coast in the flow of traffic. One-pedal is best on surface roads, where intersections, no passing zones, and twisties have you in and out of braking frequently. It's not as good on highways, though, where acceleration and regen get in a tug-of-war as you maintain speed. Accelerate-and-coast is smoother and better at preserving range.
A sheet of glass weighs more than a sheet of thin metal. Though those companies that do all-glass roofs leave me wondering. In this vehicle, it looks like if had to install glass* it would have the same effective height as the rear-view mirror itself, though; IOW essentially useless.I don't think about a rear window as taking a lot of volume. Now that this article has pointed out the trade-off between headroom and a single sheet of a clear, thin material replacing multiple layers of metal and interior lining... I still don't get how removing the window has contributed to headroom.
Anyway, I continue to be baffled by the design choice to make SUVs look like the coupes that nobody wants to sell. With nothing to use as a visual scale, I thought this was going to be a coupe until the article said SUV. Not really good or bad, I guess, except it probably means inefficient oversized wheels, just so weird.
good design goes a long way. i don't think i've ever washed my mazda3 in 6 years of ownership, but the backup camera has stayed dirt and debris free. maybe it's iced over once or twice at most? i honestly can't remember perfectly. but it hasn't happened enough that my thought is "damn backup camera is useless because it's always dirty"How do they ensure the camera remains free of any debris that may obstruct the view?
The backup camera on my car is utterly useless after a heavy rain or snow storm.. it would not be acceptable if that was the only way of seeing out the back of the vehicle.
We get into this argument every time.That surprised me! Why are EVs so much more efficient coasting? I could see it in an awd VS dual motor where you're turning a drive shaft and 2 axels instead of just the axels, but I can't think of any explanation for a difference between an fwd car and single motor EV.
Regen should be strictly less efficient than just allowing your momentum to fight air resistance, unless there's a point on the curve where stealing momentum for electricity is more efficient than allowing it to be lost to air resistance? I could see that from high speeds, but I'd be curious where the j flexion point is. Probably depends on drag coefficient I guess.
A moonroof takes a surprising amount of usable headroom compared to a sheet of metal, sound insulation, and cloth.
Essentially you can think of the rear window was a picture frame. Even if the photo and cover glass is thin, the frame itself adds to the bulk and you need to factor that into the interior space.
Remove the glass and the entire space can be load bearing. In this specific case they took advantage of the space and grew the trunk. Rather than flattening the rear deck to allow visibility through a rear window, they turned the car into a fastback and purposed all the space for storage.
And will get markedly worse with age."But a touchscreen needs to be completely reliable if it's the sole interaction method for a car. And unfortunately, the 15.4-inch touchscreen in our test Polestar 4 was too reluctant to process a finger tap on too many occasions for me to be happy with it."
Don't assume that will get fixed.
JG did point out the pricing effect of Chinese-vehicle tariffs on this one. Also noted that next year's production will be in S. Korea which should cut the tariffs a lot and allow a slightly more affordable price. The current price, yes, is in the low-end luxury market which the car isn't really made for.This isn't technically a luxury class model, so the comparisons are off.
YES, it's far more expensive than any ICE of a comparable class. But, unfortunately, so is every other EV in the world.
But among EV's it's in the middle low range of price.
I can't say it's WORTH the money, but I'm not an EV fan for a multitude of reasons, the cost being only one of them. I keep looking at prices, though, and defend them when I see a misconception. This isn't as outrageous as many others are.
Lick your finger. If it works better, then moisturizing may be in order.
I used to have great touch sensitivity in my devices, but as I got older, my skin dried up. I never noticed, except my touch devices would sit there like a cat ignoring pets when trying to use it. Figured out there wasn't enough electrolytic content to my skin to get it to react. Some hand cream fixes that.
So, the POSSIBILITY is that really dry conditions, especially hands, might cause the screens to be less than responsive. Other considerations play into that, of course. This was just my first thought on it.
Hey, thanks for the tip! I'm renting an EV right now while my ICEV is in the shop getting ICEV parts replaced (emissions sensors and stuff failed, causing other failures).One-pedal driving mode allows the accelerator pedal to also control deceleration by engaging regenerative braking as you lift. With one-pedal mode off, EV motors don't have nearly as much parasitic loss as an ICE drivetrain, so when you lift the car decelerates much more gradually and you can coast in the flow of traffic. One-pedal is best on surface roads, where intersections, no passing zones, and twisties have you in and out of braking frequently. It's not as good on highways, though, where acceleration and regen get in a tug-of-war as you maintain speed. Accelerate-and-coast is smoother and better at preserving range.
No, coasting and one-pedal driving are polar opposites. One-pedal driving means braking when lifting, and even before fully lifting. And no, I do not want one-pedal driving in my EV.I don't understand this part. What does Jonathan mean? Isn't one pedal drive the best way to coast? Isn't that exactly what you want when buying an EV: excellent one-pedal driving?
EGBOK. One-pedal is almost always optional in EVs, and is seldom even available in hybrids. If you want to feel like you're driving a smaller, quiet, economical Suburban that nearly coasts when releasing the accelerator, that's usually the default mode.No, coasting and one-pedal driving are polar opposites. One-pedal driving means braking when lifting, and even before fully lifting. And no, I do not want one-pedal driving in my EV.
It's optional in mine. It's isn't always. Or just as bad, disabling it means no regen (Tesla, sometimes, depending on how the software this week behaves). Or you have to enable it every time. Or you get some half assed implementation like the Bolt.EGBOK. One-pedal is almost always optional in EVs, and is seldom even available in hybrids. If you want to feel like you're driving a smaller, quiet, economical Suburban that nearly coasts when releasing the accelerator, that's usually the default mode.
If I'm concerned about sideswiping someone, I'll look out the side windows and side mirrors, not the rear view mirror. If I'm concerned about pedestrian or vehicle traffic, then the wide angle backup camera gives me a better view sooner than I can see anything with any amount of head turning, especially if I'm surrounded by tall cars.Or back out of a space surrounded by half tons or Tahoes. It happens. You probably want to look back in all directions as you creep out of the space.
I don't think I have ever done that maneuver. I don't think I'm even flexible enough to do it, honestly. I have always adjusted my mirrors so I could see everything I needed to see. That's what the rear view mirror is for. What you lose with a camera is parallax, which is why I'm skeptical of cameras replacing mirrors, but now with modern cars having 360° cameras, backing out of tight spaces has never been easier. I think where cameras in place of mirrors will be an issue is with wing mirrors. Without even noticing, people reposition their head to see more out of their wing mirrors when necessary.You can get used to almost anything, but the lack of a rear window is a safety risk. Back a car down a long narrow driveway or alley relying only on mirrors. It will quickly dawn on you that doing the ol’ torso turn, one hand on the wheel, one hand behind the passenger seat maneuver is far preferable and less error prone. Or back out of a space surrounded by half tons or Tahoes. It happens. You probably want to look back in all directions as you creep out of the space. These things are done and have been done since cars were a thing. Sure, you can press a button to let the car do it for you, I guess, but say the car flubs it in a world of anomalous behaviors. Given the option, most people would probably just take what they know and take the rear window.
I much prefer the wide angle rear camera to twisting and staring out a narrow rear window. I’ll check out the side windows, too, but the camera view is better. It also shows what is down low near the bumper. It also shows more in the dark as the camera can adjust the exposure to lighten the scene.You can get used to almost anything, but the lack of a rear window is a safety risk. Back a car down a long narrow driveway or alley relying only on mirrors. It will quickly dawn on you that doing the ol’ torso turn, one hand on the wheel, one hand behind the passenger seat maneuver is far preferable and less error prone. Or back out of a space surrounded by half tons or Tahoes. It happens. You probably want to look back in all directions as you creep out of the space. These things are done and have been done since cars were a thing. Sure, you can press a button to let the car do it for you, I guess, but say the car flubs it in a world of anomalous behaviors. Given the option, most people would probably just take what they know and take the rear window.
The camera attached to the back of my car has a significantly better position and much wider field of view than my eyes can possibly have in the middle of the car when backing out of a parking spot.You can get used to almost anything, but the lack of a rear window is a safety risk. Back a car down a long narrow driveway or alley relying only on mirrors. It will quickly dawn on you that doing the ol’ torso turn, one hand on the wheel, one hand behind the passenger seat maneuver is far preferable and less error prone. Or back out of a space surrounded by half tons or Tahoes. It happens. You probably want to look back in all directions as you creep out of the space. These things are done and have been done since cars were a thing. Sure, you can press a button to let the car do it for you, I guess, but say the car flubs it in a world of anomalous behaviors. Given the option, most people would probably just take what they know and take the rear window.
Is that what it's called? OMG, the Hyundai Kona electric I'm renting has terrible "blending."One point for judging a EV or hybrid is how well the brakes are blended. Ideally, you should never be able to tell whether you're braking by regen or with the "real" brakes. Most carmakers have gotten pretty good at that, but there are still some with glitches where the transition can be felt or even requires changing how hard the brake pedal is pushed.
It cleans easier, is tougher, and doesn’t absorb odors from a large dinner.I don't understand why anyone would want leather. Skin sticks to it, it gets to 1k degrees if it sits in the sun for more than 5 seconds, and it's slippery so you slide around while driving.
It's always hilarious when people grandly announce their dealbreakers like this in a car thread. Like, ok? Cool, man. Thanks for sharing your idiosyncratic opinion with us, I guess? Do I need to pretend to treat it with gravity?The lack of leather seats - even as an option - is a dealbreaker.
Mostly serious question - what does it matter? It's a crossover, more on the carlike side of things than the SUV/trucklike side of things. That's a pretty wide category these days, but that's what we call cars that blend various of the traditional form factors, and it works. Why do you feel the need to process that further? I have genuinely never understood the need, common to but not exclusive to car nerds, to have cars sorted by form factor into sharply delineated categories.Serious question - what's an 'SUV' these days? In my archaic brain, that's something like a Ford Bronco or Toyota 4Runner. This ain't that by any stretch. It has more ground clearance than a Prius but not by a whole lot. 4 doors and a hatch. So, a hatchback? No. It is sort coupe like...
Gonna go see who is walking on my xeriscaping.
The website says 270 miles (with an asterisk) is the stated range for the dual motor version, so that assumes the use of this range-maximizing mode, no? I'd like to know the apparently-unstated range if you don't disengage the front motor.Pick [the Long Range Dual Motor version] and you should see 270 miles (434 km) from the 100 kWh battery pack. In a suitable location like a motorway toll booth, 60 mph arrives in 3.7 seconds (100 km/h in 3.8).
That's if you're in performance mode, at least. Switch to range mode, and clutches disconnect the front permanent magnet synchronous motor and remap the throttle pedal for better efficiency.
Especially considering that anyone who can afford this car can easily afford to have the interior reupholstered in whatever materials and colors they want. It would add, at most, 3% to the total price.It's always hilarious when people grandly announce their dealbreakers like this in a car thread. Like, ok? Cool, man. Thanks for sharing your idiosyncratic opinion with us, I guess? Do I need to pretend to treat it with gravity?
My parents have a weirdly unintuitive driveway. It seems like it's basically straight and uncomplicated, but it describes a subtle Z or S shape from the garage to the street, and there's some trees and a retaining wall that complicate things. It's weirdly easy to realize you're backing straight into a 40-foot Ponderosa pine and not know how that happened. Famously, the alcoholic spouse of a friend of my mom's once backed entirely into the yard and into said tree, while three sheets to the wind and attempting to drive his even more sloshed wife home after a messy neighborhood Christmas party. And of course I've been backing out of the thing for 25 years or so now, but over the past couple years, I've just started using the rear-view camera to back out. Every time. It works great. I will assert without qualification that it's easier, quicker, and much more accurate to use the camera than the torso twist. And now that my parents are in their 70s and their necks and backs aren't amenable to the ol' torso turn, they use their rearview cameras to back out, and feel much the same. Same with parallel parking. At this point, I actually think the camera view is far superior, especially for backing out of a spot, reversing down that driveway, even parallel parking.You can get used to almost anything, but the lack of a rear window is a safety risk. Back a car down a long narrow driveway or alley relying only on mirrors. It will quickly dawn on you that doing the ol’ torso turn, one hand on the wheel, one hand behind the passenger seat maneuver is far preferable and less error prone.