The Polestar 2 was one of the most well-rounded new cars when it was initially launched. And it continues to impress, despite the original design now being four years old.

Crisp, simple yet purposeful lines are a hallmark of Scandinavian design, and it keeps the car looking timeless and fresh years after it leaves the showroom floor. But Polestar isn’t going to rest on its laurels. Especially when its rivals are hot on its heels.

Which is why Polestar unveiled a revised Polestar 2 towards the second half of last year. And whilst the cosmetic updates are fairly minor, the revisions to its powertrain are anything but.

Minor Nip and Tuck

The thing about a well designed vehicle is that it continues to look ageless years after its original unveil. Polestar’s designers definitely knew what they were doing, needing only to make revisions to its front fascia.

This isn’t even to freshen up the look of the car. Rather, this change is to better align it with upcoming Polestar offerings. In place of the original blocky grille, is what Polestar dubs the SmartZone panel, which houses the front camera and the radar.

Cosmetically, the only other change is to the design of its 20 inch rims. But again, and in all honesty, the car never really needed a comprehensive update to still be competitive today.

Identical Cabin

Aside from the inclusion of greater functionality (and more apps), the Polestar 2 is also unchanged in the cabin. This means all passengers get excellent headroom, a result of a roofline that doesn’t aggressively taper, as well as a panoramic glass roof.

One other benefit of such an expansive glass roof is no shortage of light in the cabin. No claustrophobia here – the interior of the Polestar 2 is a genuinely nice place to be in. Material and build quality is fantastic, and switchgear is nicely tactile.

Also, massive props to the Polestar development team, as rear occupants get sufficient thigh support thanks to the car’s deep footwells. This ensures passenger comfort on longer drives, and is something that most other EV manufacturers don’t do right.

Revised Powertrain

The biggest revisions to the car are underneath its skin. Single Motor variants of the Polestar 2 are now Rear-Wheel Drive, instead of the Front-Wheel Drive setup found in the original cars. The motors themselves have also been revised – power now goes up to 268 bhp from the original 228 bhp.

Our Long Range car came equipped with the Performance pack, which develops a combined output of 469 bhp. This will be good for a 0-100 time of just 4.2 seconds. The rear drive configuration definitely makes the new car more fun to drive, with decent steering feedback. There’s also very little body roll, which is even more impressive when you consider the fact that it isn’t overly stiff. All Performance pack cars now come with adjustable Ohlins coilovers as standard.

A new battery pack and charging circuitry has also been fitted to the revised Polestar 2. Battery capacity is now at 82 kWh, up from the 78 kWh of the pre-facelift car. It’d also charge faster, with DC charging capabilities of 205 kW. The Swedes have always been conservative with their range estimates, and I found their homologated 568 kilometre range fairly accurate (I achieved around 480+ kilometres with a good mix of city and highway driving)

The Electric North Star

It is far from being the newest kid on the electric block now, but the Polestar 2 is proof that if you do something well from the get go, it’d properly withstand the test of time. The revisions, whilst welcomed, weren’t really necessary to keep the Polestar 2 competitive.

It remains one of the best all-round new cars (ICE or EV) that money can buy today. Stable, practical and with enough range to last the average user a solid week, it quite possibly is the ultimate EV package on sale at the moment!

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