You may have been a little harsh in saying there is NO reason to buy one over a TM3. Better styling, better build quality, similar performance and google automotive to name but a few. Clearly the Tesla is superior in charging speed, range and has the super charger network but if you are nearly always charging at home overnight and don’t usually do over 200 miles in a day , then the Tesla advantages aren’t as important as they look on paper. Plus it’s always good for companies to have a little competition! Thanks for doing the review though it was interesting and no one can argue about the cup holders!

After hours and hours of research I still went with the Polestar 2. Tesla you feel like you are riding on it. The Polestar you feel in it. While the range is lower, the Polestar feels like a better car.

My fiancee and I testdrove the Polestar 2 with and without the performance package. Honestly, the Ohlins dampers are pointless. The standard suspension is already quite firm, the PP model was downright crashy. It did seem to hold the road a bit better, but the PP model had 20" wheels with summer tires and the non-PP had 19" winter tires... The car weighs over two tons so it's not a racecar even with the PP. We ordered the standard one and spent the money on the upgraded interior - the leather seats were much nicer, softer and they're ventilated. The Model 3 had two dealbreakers - it's a sedan, so the trunk is much less useful, and the interior is just... there's no interior. The speedo is to the side, the navigation screen is to the side. Some of the design is not practical - like the door handles. And the build quality is just not there.

...by the way: I have two Audi´s and one BMW in my garage. They both have cupholders under the armrest. Not very clever, but they do!

Nice review. Happy P2 owner here. Where it is more practical than competitors-and you mentioned it yourself-is when putting the rear seats down for hauling storage space and good access with the hatchback. Max range not as important to me. I store earthquake preparedness backpacks in frunk. Have a generator at home to charge the car in power outage emergency.

Great review....like the dark print on the sweatshirt 😉

I wonder if I'm the only one who never uses cup holders? At best they're for phones and keys for my personal use. It's better to have more storage but I personally don't keep many things in my car, and I understand it's hard to justify it a competitor clearly has more

Also how do you get and service one....

First review I've seen to (a) actually show off the seats-down hauling mode (b) say outright that "you really don't have to look at the screen while driving" which has been my biggest problem with this *entire* generation of electric cars. Thanks!

Very nice presentation. Awesome car.

Love the google voice command ! Does ANY other car do this too ?? I guess I can use my phone for Some stuff :-(

Great Review Forrest. This Volvo is different for sure especially the styling.

Ya, I agree the frunks on electric cars are not compelling. I prefer VW’s approach on the ID.3 and ID.4: shorten the hood and just have a trunk. (Not that I prefer the VWs overall).

Dont they only measure space up to the rear cover?

Nice review! It´s fun to see the difference in preferences from a norwegian perspective:) Here we have winter, a lot of mountains and numerous small twisting roads with gravel. Cupholders are seldom an issue here, but build quality is everything. We are overloaded with Teslas, Tycans and others here, and my bet is that PS2 (the car) will take over this segment here. The TM3 has a rumour of been poorly built, and we vikings love Volvos:)

P2 wins for me. Build quality, modern design and far better integnior.

THANK YOU FOR MUTING THE HEY GOOGLE ACTIVATION PHRASE YOU'RE THE BEST

where was this filmed?

If this had the 275 that originally was planned I'd be looking for one!

I store my washerfluid and type 2 cable in the front.

I bought my Polestar 2 last week and it”s great! We are a family of four and the space is perfect.

I don't think I've seen any other reviews that actually mention the USB-C charging ports in the front, usually just the wireless phone charging, and the ports for the back seat. Love that you touched on some of the nuances of the car, but also,... you were harsh on it. Towards the end, it felt like more of a Tesla promo. Definitely loved the format for review though. You hit on a lot of things that other car reviewers didn't, and had the "everyman" touch to it. Thanks for this!

what about the quiet cabin, handling, ride? I drove both and Tesla Model 3 is not my style, noisy, tinny doors, nervous steering (to quick), grumpy over rough roads (grumble rumbles etc), sorry I like the cruise on the road with the Polestar 2

In the frunk? I'm thinking my gym bag could easily fit. My current car is starting to smell like my gym bag and that would solve the issue for me. Would be a bit inconvenient though, but won't know until I use it.

I am waiting for my Polestar 2 to be delivered. You made some really great points about the interior design flaws, but there are way too many plus points in overall styling to overlook. I also don't want to be another look-a-like on the road. There are too many Tesla's in my neighborhood already.

Great review! Some of the design features/mistakes you mentioned are informative. Polestar 2 seems to be a decent in-town commuter car.

I'd take that over Tesla simply for the Google assistant. Google is the best.

Going from a TM3 to a P2 in 2 weeks!!

This is perhaps the most honest Polestar 2 reviews I've seen. I've test driven it on two different occasions now. In all honesty, I'd probably own one by now if it wasn't for the shortcomings of what could be a phenomenal vehicle. In particular, the entire center console is a complete mess and a huge waste of what could be very practical space, and the edge trim pieces of it intrude upon your leg space way too much. Also, the view out of the rear window is horrible. As pointed out, the "frunk" is pretty much useless, but the regular trunk space is more than enough for most people. Finally, the range and general efficiency as compared to the Model 3 (or even the Y) is rather disappointing. I point these things out because I really hope Polestar succeeds with what has the potential to be a truly excellent vehicle - but it needs some very obvious improvements first.

This looks like the most familiar probe unit we could possibly have.

Pluses of the P*2: AAOS, hatchback practicality, uniqueness. Minuses: service network.

Forest!!!!! My guy!!! Great review sir!!!

Good review however I personally can see how it is on par or a good alternative to the Tesla 3. I happen to be a Tesla model S, and while I love my Tesla it's nice to have other options. I rarely do 200 miles in a day so the range the Volvo has is good enough for me and I'm sure for most on a daily basis.The most tangible asset I think the Tesla brand has over all of it's EV competition is the charging network.

Emergency snacks ftw

How does the hey google work when you are playing music?

Forrest is my favorite CG contributor. Always reasonable and thorough.

I would still pick the P2, cant follow the crowd

Great review, Forrest! It’s not very often that you’ll see an honest review of a non-Tesla electric car, because no one likes to be accused of being a Tesla fanboy. I could only see a two year heavily subsidized lease as a way to get these out in large numbers. I find the Mustang Mach E much more desirable than this Polestar. Question, Can you input each driver’s name and save all of their preferences? I never see reviewers cover this and I only see the traditional seat memory buttons on every car, except for Teslas? Thank you so much

You can tell he is a Tesla Fan Boy !!

Keep washer fluid container in the frunk

+1 for not saying 'hey google'

Doug just released his review of "this" car...and you did a better job - as he missed so much - like normally he is all about the infotainment systems, but totally missed that this new Google Android puts all the ones before it to shame, and with the 'real' voice Assistant built in(not 'like' Siri/Alexa as he called it) this takes 'smart cars' to a new level and one they should be at...Doug also seems to have flubbed on the trim level of the car he sampled, as now after seeing this better review video, it is obvious that they don't all come with the few gold trim items he made fun of, and actually the gold accents would clue you into that the car is equipped with the Öhlins package(which gold has always been their signature color, not something they randomly did) which is another great step for a car manufacturer, tho not as monumental as the brand new ground breaking OS(which comes with 3 years of free data) anyway, but yes, the Polestar 2 will have to settle into a better price point, lower than the Tesla I guess, in order to compare....but just imagine if it did cost less than a Model 3; or keep in mind you also get a Volvo dealership/service which Tesla can't have, so you might pay a little more for that convenience and peace of mind

Interesting insight in car culture perspective US/Europe. Cupholders? Who cares? Safety, build quality, handling and design are considered paramount. Frunk can be used for anything smelly (trainers, take-away food) so it doesn't stink up the car. Yep, less efficient than a TM3. I also have a 15 year old X5, talk about inefficient, still a great car. And I think TM3's single central screen is a safety issue, takes your eyes off the road too often (as you said yourself, keeping your eyes on the road is important). So yes, I choose the P2.

Cup holders, a car ISN'T Mac's or kings dinners, televised ADVERTISING ZOMBIES .

Challenges to being an early adopter! My Polestar 2 EV was in the Volvo/Polestar service dept for the 2nd time in its short lease life, this time for 26 days, to try to fix software and possibly hardware issues. With the help/intervention of Polestar corporate, the car was finally returned yesterday afternoon with 45% remaining so I plugged it in and I couldn't immediately charge it. Back to the service dept today; the brutal saga continues! According to IHS Markit, forecasted expected volume for 2021 is only about 250 vehicles/month. Polestar corporate, its PS2 vehicle, the customer service team, vehicle repair services, and parts inventory are clearly not ready for prime time in the US! It is not like you can go to another dealer or repair shop; your are stuck with the one service location and team. Lesson learned?

Who DOESN'T have USBC by now?

Love this car. Much nicer than the Tesla model three.

I noticed Forrest before what cat it even was

he looks like Jordan Peele

You said, "Frunk" I think the company needs to tell engineering to make the interior more driver friendly. A cup holder underneath an arm rest?? Rookie mistake!!

Problem with a Tesla is it comes with Elon Musk

I prefer the design and look of the Volvo XC40 Recharge.

Sounds a bit bias?

This is not a good review. The reviewer is not objective and is very opinionated about minor details. The perception is that the review is somewhat skewed more towards his personal tastes than an actual objective point of view as a result of the review.

Your hair keeps rubbing against the glass.

Model 3 is ugly inside and out not to forget the bad build quality.

Those ridiculous cup holders are a deal breaker for me

polestar2 is better at quality but in everything else model3 wins and model3 long range is 15000$ less expansive

Warm welcome to Polestar becoming part of Geely China group of companies #MadeInChina2025 #BeltAndRoad 🇨🇳