The Polestar 1 may well be the most complex electric car out there. It can be driven in fully electric mode, with two rear electric motors providing 232 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of instant electric torque enabling extremely brisk acceleration. Or, when you switch to another of its four drive modes, it will use a turbo- and supercharged combustion engine at the front of the car to add 326 horsepower and 384 pound-feet of torque.If so desired, a 52-kilowatt, 71-horsepower integrated starter generator placed under the crankshaft gives an additional 119 pound-feet of electric torque when you opt for the Power drive mode. (All-wheel drive is the other drive mode accessed by the push of a button.)
Total combined output is 619 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque. Total range, including using the combustion engine, is 540 miles. That beats both the power and range of all-electric vehicles such as the Tesla Model S, as well as the range of the coming Porsche Taycan Turbo S.  The car will charge to 80% of full range in less than an hour on a fast-charging station like the one Porsche uses, or overnight if you plug it into the slowest outlet you can find, like the one you use for your toaster. It’s powered from two battery packs—one located between the front seats, the other set above the rear axle.That signature battery pack positioning enables a 48-52 overall weight distribution for the car (ideal for balance around corners) and a total battery capacity of 34 kilowatt-hours, enough to provide almost 80 miles of electric-only driving range. I saw it actually gain ground the longer I drove it, thanks to regenerative braking and other efficiency systems.Top speed is a computer-regulated 155 mph; zero to 62 mph is 4.2 seconds of instant bliss unadulterated by gear shifting or transmission hesitation. Everything felt easy, connected, and natural as the mountain’s old-wood trees gilded in autumnal hues blurred outside my window.Simplicity Is GeniusOn the other hand, the Polestar 1 may also be the simplest-looking electric car on the market. Born of the Swedish design aesthetic, it embodies the clean lines and pure design—wide, frameless doors and side mirrors enable the lines that start along the front of the car and continue unbroken to the rear. The panoramic glass roof allows for a lower roofline across the entire car. Its carbon fiber body allows for crisp creases in the hood and over the wheels that we’d be hard-pressed to see anywhere else.Carbon fiber also makes the car lighter, stiffer, and lower, saving more than 500 pounds on the 5,100-pound total body weight and increasing tortional rigidity—how stiff it is when it twists side to side—by 45%. It also means the Polestar can ride lower, because it requires fewer bolsters underneath than would a conventional car.

What’s more, the material allowed Polestar designers to create the powerful shape of the quarter panels, which may remind you of the retro Volvo P1800 of the 1960s and ’70s. There’s a small spoiler that lifts up or down at the touch of a button, and there’s no visible antenna. Everything is simple, beautiful, unfussy. This is a car that looks like it was made for an adult, not as a quirky appliance for tech geeks.That simplicity extends to the options: There are five available exterior colors (white, blue, silver, black, slate); three finishes for the 21-inch wheels; and charcoal or zinc Nappa leather for the front seats. That’s it. The only optional “upgrade” you could possibly spend more money on is if you want a matte finish on the exterior paint, which costs $5,000.