Tesla alternative: Polestar to produce compact electric SUV in Europe

Despite being a Swedish electric vehicle company, Polestar is owned by the Chinese conglomerate Geely. Until now, Polestar has been producing its electric vehicles (EVs) mainly at factories in China and Volvo’s facilities in the US. However, the new Polestar 7 is set to be made in Europe. By producing the car in its continent of origin, the company aims to avoid EU duties and the high cost of shipping vehicles from Asia, whilst generally expanding their business in Europe 

The plug-in hybrid Polestar 1, produced in low volumes starting from 2017, was followed by the Polestar 2, the first fully electric vehicle made by the Swedish-Chinese automotive company. The Polestar 3 and 4 electric SUVs were released in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Designed to rival the Porsche Taycan, the Polestar 5 is expected to launch later this year, whilst the e-roadster Polestar 6 is scheduled to arrive in 2026. All of these vehicles are manufactured in Asia or the US.

Polestar 7 will be a "premium compact SUV"

The Polestar 7 is described as a “premium compact SUV”. Polestar Chief Designer Philipp Römers promises that the company’s next EV will once again stand out with a progressive design and embody everything that their customers expect from them in terms of both design and performance (via German magazine auto motor und sport).

One of the locations being considered for the production of the Polestar 7 is an automotive factory in the Slovakian city of Košice, expected to go into operation in 2026. Other candidates include Volvo’s European plants in Sweden and Belgium. As always, we’ll only know for certain when the company officially announces the production start of the Polestar 7.