Polestar 2 2024 review: Long range RWD Single motor

Price and features – Does it represent good value for the price? What features does it come with?

There are price rises across the board here, with jumps of between $3K and $4K depending on the model. It must said, though, you are getting a lot more electric vehicle for your money this time around.

Our car – the Long range Single motor – is yours for $71,400, before on-road costs and any subsidies. There’s a Standard range Single motor ($67,400) beneath it, and a Long range Dual motor ($76,400) above it.

Finally, the Long range Dual motor with Performance Pack ($85,400) headlines the range.

Apart from the significant mechanical and safety changes, there's not much else to talk about in terms of equipment updates.

Our Polestar rides on 19-inch alloys, features LED headlights and DRLs, and wears frameless heated wing mirrors.

Inside, there's a surprisingly premium-feeling 'embossed textile' seat trim, powered front seats and a 11.2-inch portrait centre screen that controls your nav, media and car functions, as well as a second screen in front of the driver.

There's also dual-zone climate control, a wireless charge pad, Apple CarPlay and an eight-speaker stereo.

Design – Is there anything interesting about its design?

Still among the best-looking electric vehicles in Australia, the Polestar 2 has been lightly updated to better match the brand identity that will continue with the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4.

That means a tweaking of the front end, with the mesh-style grille up front now swapped for a single piece of body work, with just a small slit beneath for airflow.

It might sound strange, but the change makes the Polestar 2 look more like an electric vehicle, with the 2023 model still easily mistakable for an internal-combustion powered sedan.

Elsewhere, though, it's largely business as usual, with the Polestar 2's low and sleek styling, liftback-style rear and shapely rump continuing to impress with this update.

Practicality – How practical is its space and tech inside?

Despite the slew of updates, arguably the hardest sell of the Polestar 2 remains, and that is limited backseat space for adult riders.

While most purpose-built electric vehicles use a platform that allows them to really maximise interior space, hiding all the BEV bits and pieces beneath the cabin, the Polestar 2's back seat feels much like any other ICE sedan, complete with 'transmission' tunnel that runs through the centre, eating into leg room for the middle passenger.

Elsewhere, though, there's enough room up front for passengers to get comfy, along with a wireless charge pad beneath the central screen, and USB-C charge points.

The back seat has twin cupholders in a pull-down divider, as well as USB charge points and air vents.

At the rear, there is a sizeable boot (made bigger by a hidden storage hole beneath the lift-up floor) and Polestar reckons you'll find 405 litres of cargo capacity with seats up, and 1095 litres with the seats folded flat. There's a smaller 41-litre cargo space up front, too.

The Polestar 2 measures 4606mm in length, 1859mm in width and 1479mm in height, and it rides on a 2735mm wheelbase.

Under the bonnet – What are the key stats for its motor?

This is the big change this time around, with Polestar not just fitting a new and more efficient engine, but also changing which wheels it powers from the front to the rear.

While the outgoing Long range Single motor model produced a reasonable 170kW/330Nm, this new one ups the grunt to 220kW/490Nm, trimming the sprint from 0-100km/h to 6.2 seconds.

Efficiency – What is its driving range? What is its charging time?

Another new addition is a much bigger battery, with the Long range Single motor replacing the previous 78kWh unit with a new 82kWh, 27-module lithium-ion battery from CATL.

Polestar says you can expect a WLTP driving range of 654km, and once drained the new battery can accept a higher DC charge rate (now up to 205kW), which should see you go from 10 to 80 percent charged in 28 minutes.

If you have three-phase and a wall charger at home you're looking at around an eight-hour charge to go from flat to full. A regular 7.0kW wall charger (so, not three-phase power) should then take more like 12 hours.

Driving – What's it like to drive?

Forget the power boost, and even the extra driving range, the change that you'll feel first and most clearly here is the shift to rear-wheel drive for this updated Polestar 2.

I know I risk dragging you deep into the weeds here, but stay with me for a moment.

There's a reason most of the world's iconic performance cars have sent their power to the rear tyres, and that's because it unlocks more agility, driving feel and flexibility than a front-drive set-up, with the latter struggling with big power, and tending toward fun-sapping understeer when cornering.

And even on our relatively short and typically damp road test in the UK (where it was allegedly summer... ) the improvements are pretty obvious, not least the feeling of being pushed through a corner, rather than pulled out of one, when you get back on the accelerator.

Yes, this Polestar 2 is faster than the model it replaces, but fast really means little in the world of electric vehicles these days.

More important, I think, is that this MY24 model simply feels more fun, more engaging, from behind the wheel.

I like the steering, too. I've always thought some EVs (we're looking at you, Elon) have steering that's too sharp, meaning you're always making little corrections, but the Polestar 2's is heavier and more deliberate, but still feels natural enough.

The ride remains tuned a little firm for some rougher road surfaces, though, on first impressions this version feels a little more supple than the outgoing Polestar 2, despite it riding on optional 20-inch alloys.

Short answer? This is now a genuinely engaging-to-drive vehicle, which is not something you can say about all EVs.

Safety – What safety equipment is fitted? What is its safety rating?

The Polestar 2 copped some heat at launch for offering some safety equipment that's standard on other models as extra-cost options, but the brand has moved to correct course a little this time around.

Blind spot monitoring with intervention is now standard, as are cross-traffic alert, rear collision warning and mitigation and a 360-degree camera view. The new-look front end is now home to Polestar's 'SmartZone', which includes a camera and radar.

The Polestar 2 wears a maximum five-star Euro NCAP safety rating, and there are eight airbags on board, too.

Ownership – What warranty is offered? What are its service intervals? What are its running costs?

The Polestar 2 is covered by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, while the battery is covered for eight years (or 160,000km), with the brand guaranteeing 70 percent of its original capacity.

Servicing is condition based (the vehicle will tell you when something is wrong), but the brand says average intervals are around two years. Helpfully, servicing is entirely free for the first five years.

Verdict