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Technology has become increasingly central to modern vehicles, with no more striking example of this in 2024 than the Polestar 4.
That’s because it is missing one key feature in a car. A rear windscreen.
Instead, the electric car uses sensors and cameras to display a live feed on a display in the rear view mirror.
The unique approach has helped Polestar stand out, something chief technology officer Lutz Stiegler said is important to the company.
He said the firm wanted to create a “different environment” inside the car, as well as offering a “different silhouette” from other vehicles.
“What really drove us into this is the overall concept optimisation of the entire car – we wanted to have a car that is aerodynamically efficient, and that requires getting the rear end of the roof down,” he told the PA news agency.
“With this, you get a very narrow space for the rear windscreen, and that actually doesn’t give enough or sufficient visibility… and with the rear seats we are more comfort-orientated anyway, with a very relaxed position.
“We wanted to create a different environment, and I think many will like it; others will hate it because they want to see something when they look in the mirror.
“My experience is it takes a few days, but then you don’t see the difference any longer, and then it’s only a positive.
“But of course, for us, it was a tool to do two things – one is getting the rear roof down, and by that creating a different silhouette of the car than we would have with a rear window, and the other is getting some attractive technology in the car.”
Like many modern cars, Polestar’s electric vehicles come with a central touchscreen console from which all elements of the car’s interior and exterior can be adjusted.
This system also includes a special version of Google Maps specifically designed for electric vehicles, where route planning takes into account the car’s current level of charge, the number of recharging stops a driver may want to make, and how much battery life the driver would like to arrive at their destination with.
The array of in-car sensors can also monitor the driver’s fatigue levels and even where their eyes are looking – giving them a nudge if they drift from the road or appear to be getting weary.
Individual drivers can also create personal profiles that arrange the central display and seat settings to their personal layout and preference – in much the same way different Netflix profiles on a single account would within one household.
It is a further sign that modern cars are becoming more of an extension of our already digital-centric lives.
Mr Stiegler told PA that Polestar wanted to “focus our money on things (technology) that really make a difference”, including “infotainment” systems and continuing the company’s collaboration with Google.
He added that using technology to fine-tune the performance of its cars is something it is passionate about.
“The drivability of the car is also important because most of our customers are coming from the Polestar 2 and want to have that special driving feeling that a Polestar has, with the quite firm suspension, response on the accelerator pedal and brake, and that, of course, requires a lot of tuning to do, and we also have a lot of software involvements that we have to do,” he said.
“So, from that perspective, of course, R&D (research and development) is extremely important.”
The EV maker also plans to build a car made from bonded aluminium, making it lighter, and involving fewer rivets and mixed metal structures.
Mr Stiegler added that Polestar is the first to master this kind of production capable of running at mass level, and that the end result will be “highly technological”.
