2025 Polestar 3 Long Range Single Motor Goes the Distance

Yahoo

31-03-2025

If you are seeking an EV with over 300 miles of range, you live where the roads are free of snow and ice, and you want to save a chunk of money, Polestar has a solution in the new Polestar 3 Long Range Single Motor. Yes, that's how the automaker refers to it. And the range payoff is mighty indeed. How does 350 miles sound? To get that figure, you do have to opt for the 21-inch wheels, which are better for efficiency than the 20-inch wheels (with 342 miles of rated range) or the 22-inchers (333 miles). Goldilocks would understand.
As the name implies, the Long Range gets the same upsized 107.0-kWh battery as the Dual Motor, but its range is superior—the thriftiest Dual Motor earns an EPA range rating of 315 miles, with the Dual Motor Performance Pack checking in with just 279 miles. The Long Range can hit a 250-kW peak charging speed on a DC fast-charger, and Volvo quotes 30 minutes for a 10 to 80 percent fill. The big battery helps explain the heft of the Polestar 3. The Dual Motor we tested weighs 5700 pounds, and the Single Motor should come in at about 5350 pounds.
The Single Motor part of the 3's name is fairly self-evident, but we did say "free of snow and ice" for a reason. This machine deletes the front motor, which is great for weight distribution and basic dynamics but probably isn't the best choice for those who have a real winter. It also means it has less power, of course, but even in all-wheel-drive models, the rear-mounted motor does the brunt of the work. It makes 295 horsepower and a rather useful 361 lb-ft of torque, so even without the Dual Motor's 483 horsepower, you won't be struggling at highway on-ramps. You also won't be replicating the 3.9-second 60-mph time we saw from the 510-hp 2025 Polestar 3 Performance Launch Edition.
We haven't strapped on test equipment yet, but based on the 5.5-second sprint to 60 mph from the 4516-pound 2024 Polestar 2 Plus equipped with a similar powertrain, we'll posit that 6.5 seconds to 60 mph might be the ticket for the Single Motor. In the real world, the single-motor Polestar 3 has plenty of get-up-and-go, and the considerable torque means it's pretty punchy for the first 30 mph. Sure, it may run out breath a lot sooner than its counterparts with two motors, but the Single Motor's reduced top speed—it's trimmed from 132 mph to 112 mph—probably won't factor into most commutes.
The Single Motor's approximately 350-pound weight advantage stems from more than just deleting the front motor. The Dual Motor uses liquid-cooled permanent-magnet AC motors at each end, so it needs a clutch to disconnect its rear motor because it cruises on front-wheel drive. That clutch is not needed here, and the rear motor's torque-vectoring capability is also jettisoned. The Single Motor also drops pounds via simplified suspension hardware: The Single Motor gets steel springs instead of height-adjustable air springs, and it uses passive dampers instead of adaptive ones.
You can certainly feel less weight on the nose, and the Single Motor turns in crisply. The suspension is perhaps more keenly tuned because the engineers had only one spec to worry about. And they used frequency-dependent dampers, which is a geeky way of saying that the 3 can react appropriately to a variety of road conditions from small cracks to coarse surfaces and large potholes. But the adjustable steering is slightly disappointing. The middle of the three settings delivers the proper amount of effort; the others are too light or too heavy. But the on-center valley is too broad, and you don't perceive any feedback from the tires at lower speeds. It's close but not quite precise enough.
The rest of the car is pure Polestar 3. Weird unlabeled steering-wheel buttons that you use to set the mirrors and steering position? Check. A two-button driver's-side window switch that you must toggle to control the rear windows? Yep. Weird tall-wagon-but-it's-really-an-SUV styling? You betcha. This last bit may be the coolest aspect of the Polestar 3. It is an SUV, but it comes across as a low-slung vehicle that some might deem a wagon. It has space aplenty in both rows, and it is airy and open inside, yet it has a compellingly low roofline. The rakish roof means that cargo volume suffers a bit, however, with 18 cubic feet of cargo volume with the rear seats up and 47 cubic feet with them folded.
Besides its sometimes confusing hardware, the Polestar 3's software can deliver its own flummoxing idiosyncrasies. For instance, there's a big button that seems to turn off lane-departure warnings, but the steering still gives you a nudge if you touch the lines—which is especially irksome when you plan to do that intentionally. And the shared dash screen can be frustrating when the driver and the passenger are trying to do different things at the same time. This makes a good case for HVAC controls being stand-alone buttons rather than taking over the entire screen.
As for the cost, the Polestar 3 Single Motor Long Range comes in at $68,900. And while tariffs might affect supply-chain costs, this car wouldn't be hit with the 25 percent import tariff because it's built in South Carolina. It's available to order now, and the main option is the $5500 Plus package, which includes heated rear seats, a heated steering wheel, heated washer nozzles, soft-close doors, active noise cancellation, and a Bowers & Wilkins stereo with 25 speakers and Dolby Atmos. You can also order the all-important 21-inch wheels for $1200 or spend a little more and get them in the Pro pack along with some black and gold trim for $2100.
Either way, make sure you get the 21-inch wheels to get the maximum range. That headlining 350-mile range is the primary reason we'd consider the Long Range Single Motor over the 483-hp Dual Motor and the 510-hp Performance Pack.
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