[dr_frankfurter]

Originally Posted by Cos270

You're right. I should have specified no Americans haha. First to market is over. Tesla won. From here on out it should all be about delivering the best QUALITY product that also meets consumers needs.

Mercedes EQXX should be interesting. Wonder if the 600 mile range and Mercedes badge will justify having 200 horsepower in something that weighs 2 tons.

[dr_frankfurter]

Originally Posted by stein_325i

There will likely be changes as the EQXX is only a technological concept, only the powertrain, batteries, and other technologies will be making it to production for future vehicles. The actual vehicle presented will not be making it production.

Interesting, didn't know that. So maybe a sneak peek at the tech in the upcoming electric C-Class.

[RM7]

Originally Posted by dr_frankfurter

Interesting, didn't know that. So maybe a sneak peek at the tech in the upcoming electric C-Class.

They've been clear it's a technology demonstrator, to refine the technologies to the point where they are reliable and perform well enough to be used on a production car. Like, can that battery stand up to extreme environments without a cooling system? It's one thing to say it should work, but it's another to go and put in the days in Dubai, AZ or wherever their hot-weather test tracks are. It's also something like 3800lbs and with the lack of aero drag and instant torque...it's still probably a decent performer compared to many cars out there, the faster you go, the more aero drag becomes a compounding issue, or in other words, it should go faster than you'd think, probably capable of 150mph. It's just a demonstrator to work from, but the weight is damn impressive and I think we are going to see more developments on this front, possibly chopped up CF matrix for frame work, getting the weight down comparable to what ICE vehicles are right now.

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by stein_325i

Its mainly unpopular because no one knows the brand exists. Most people think of a stripper when they hear Polestar Volvo has done a very poor job marketing the brand.

It seems like within the past year Volvo has really amped up the marketing for its Polestar division. I see Youtube commercials, billboards, and they even show up to cars & coffee events (and have the gall to park this dorky looking car in between two Ferraris ).

I'm curious to know if the uptick in marketing has improved sales. Hard to know given the inventory shortages.

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by stein_325i

Polestar has mainly been sharing global sales, although Cox Automotive/KBB have their quarterly reports for the first three quarters. The company was able to improve to 29,000 sales globally for all of 2021, but US Polestar sales totaled under 1100 units for the first three quarters (Q4 not reported yet) with Q3 representing their best sales yet at ~800 units sold. It seems Polestar has a greater presence over in Europe and is mainly unknown in America.

For the life of me I'm not sure why they won't take advantage of having a network of Volvo dealers (which Volvo just spent millions in remodeling many of them). With the amount of stores they have they almost seem like a startup company rather than literally just a spin off of Volvo. They are just really confusing from a marketing perspective, they could be doing much better in the states.

I had read the 1100 units in Q1-3 before. That's pretty bad. 800 in Q4 is better but that's still like 250 units/mo. But again, inventory shortages likely play a role too.

There are some good cars that go unnoticed due to poor marketing/dealership network. Polestar 2 seems to be yet another. A true crossover would garner more interest i the brand, but what's the point as Volvo themselves are going head first into EV crossovers.

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by stein_325i

Volvo actually has suffered less than other brands for the chip shortage thanks in part to a majority of their cars being built in China. Last month I visited my local Volvo store and it was weird to see what was pretty much a full lot.

Apparently Polestar's goal is to go against Porsche, so I guess that's maybe a level higher than Volvo themselves, but I do agree its weird that they would have a separate brand for EV's when Volvo themselves have been talking about going EV only for years now. I think honestly they should have kept Polestar as the performance division.

Yeah hard to say, only time will tell. They probably felt the Volvo name does not have the brand cachet to compete in the realm of Porsche and beyond.

[Housekeeping]

Just behind one, beautiful car