Technology has become increasingly central to modern vehicles, with no more striking example of this in 2024 than the Polestar 4, which doesn't have a rear windscreen.
Alternatively, the electric car employs sensors and cameras to provide a live visual feed on a display mounted in the rearview mirror.
The innovative strategy has enabled Polestar to differentiate itself, something chief technology officer Lutz Stiegler mentioned is crucial to the company.
The company aims to design a "distinct environment" inside the vehicle and a "unique appearance" to differentiate it from other cars.
"It was really our drive to optimise the entire car that led us here - we wanted a car that is aerodynamically efficient, and to achieve that, we needed to have a lowered rear roof section," he said to the PA news agency.
With this, you get a very small area for the rear windscreen, which actually doesn't provide enough visibility… and with the rear seats we're oriented more towards comfort anyway, with a very relaxed seating position.
We aimed to establish a distinct setting, and many will perhaps embrace it; others will detest it because they desire to make out whatever appears in the reflection when they gaze into the mirror.
I've noticed that it takes a few days to settle in, but once you do, you won't notice the difference anymore, and everything becomes very positive.
“Of course, for us, it was a means to achieve two objectives – one was dropping the rear roof and this altered the car's shape, giving it a different appearance compared to what it would look like with a rear window, and the other was incorporating some appealing technology into the car.”
Like many cars from today, Polestar's electric vehicles feature a central touchscreen console, allowing drivers to change various aspects of both the interior and the exterior of the vehicle.
This system also includes a special version of Google Maps tailored to electric vehicles, where route planning takes into account the car's current battery level, the number of charging breaks a driver may wish to make, and how much charge a driver wants to have remaining when arriving at their destination.
The range of in-car sensors can also monitor the driver's fatigue levels and even track where they are looking – giving them a reminder if they start to drift from the road or seem tired.
Drivers can also create their own personal settings for the steering wheel and seats just as a household would have different profiles on a Netflix account.
It is a further indication that modern cars are becoming more integral to our increasingly digital way of life.
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 noted that fine-tuning the performance of its cars with technology is a subject he is enthusiastic about.
The drivability of the car is also important to us, as most of our customers are coming from the Polestar 2 and want to experience the unique driving sensation that a Polestar is known for, with its firm suspension, immediate response to the accelerator and brake pedals, which does require a significant amount of fine-tuning - and, of course, software development is also a major factor in achieving this.
“From our point of view, of course, research and development is absolutely crucial.”
The electric vehicle manufacturer has also announced plans to produce a car constructed from bonded aluminium, resulting in a lighter product with a reduced number of rivets and combination of different metals.
Stiegler said that Polestar is the first to master this type of production capable of operating at mass level, and that the end product will be "very technologically advanced".
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