Annoying Things About the Polestar 2

Out of all the cars I’ve owned, my Polestar 2 is definitely my favorite. Still, there certainly are a more than a few things I find annoying, in no particular order.

• Piano black center console. I rectified this with a wrap.

  

• No native Apple Music app. To be fair this is more of an Apple and Google problem than a Polestar problem. I also use Apple CarPlay most of the time so this has an easy workaround. From what I’ve been told, the Apple Music SDK for Android requires an ARM-based processor and so won’t be compatible with the Polestar 2 and its Atom processor.

• Left-side mirror seems to re-adjust itself randomly. This does not happen often (perhaps once a month?), but it does mean I have to make sure I check it on each drive.

• Limited cupholders. I usually keep an insulated water bottle in my cars, but that was not practical with the P2. The cupholder in the center console is too close and too high so I always bump anything there with my elbow. I removed the one in the armrest because I use it for storage. Instead I solved this by purchasing a small 3D-printed cupholder for the driver door pocket that lets me store a small insulated travel mug and this has been working well for me.

  

• Sun visors are just too small and don’t extend, limiting their usefulness.

• Somewhat poor efficiency. To be fair, this is mostly an issue with the 2021 model year. Later models get a heat pump that helps with efficiency in cooler weather and 2024 and newer models have more efficient motors and even turn off the front motor (on dual motors models) when cruising to further help with efficiency.

• I’d like a few more settings for the driver console. I’d love to be able to show the currently playing song there. I’d also love to see current efficiency number there. Right now it can show the cumulative efficiency number for Trip Auto, but I want to see the instance efficiency number that shows in Range Assistant.

• Related, I really would like to be able to show all efficiency numbers as mi/kWh instead of the irritating kWh/100 miles.

• I know this is a performance car, but I still would like a softer ride. Even in my non-performance model the ride is stiff and can be jarring on rougher roads, especially for rear-seat passengers. Turns out the ride was greatly improved with new tires.

• Lack of Vehicle-to-Load. It’s a shame to have an EV with a large battery and be unable to use it to help power household appliances and equipment during a power outage.

• No Utility or Pet mode. It’s more difficult than it should be to keep the car on when you are not sitting in the driver seat. I realize that holding down the Play/Pause button on the console is not that hard, but it is an awkward reach. It also only keeps the car on for 30 minutes at a time, which is not always useful.

• No wireless CarPlay. I remedied this with an Ottocast USB gadget. It works surprisingly well.

• Lack of built-in dash cam or camera access when parked. I installed FitCamX in order to have a dash cam, but it would sure be nice to be able to use the app to view the cameras while the car is parked.

• Infrequent software updates. I’ve now had my Polestar 2 for a little over a year and it’s gotten two software updates. I suppose that is better than none, but a benefit of having over-the-air (OTA) update capability is that you could actually update things more frequently. I feel like many of the things I complain about here could be addressed with software updates.

• Wireless charge pad overheats my phone. This could be due to the case I use. I have instead mounted an actual MagSafe puck there instead.

• TPMS does not actually track tire pressures. This might not be that bad as it does make it easier to get tires replaced. I check tire pressure regularly anyway.

• Lack of service centers. It’s not that I’ve needed to visit one just yet, but the closest one is 100 miles away so it will be a hassle when that time comes.

• Related, I hate that the new models of the Polestar 2 are not currently sold in the US. Because the Polestar 2 is made in China and due to the annoying US tariff situation of the past year, it was pulled from sale here just about a year ago.

2027 Polestar 2

Polestar has announced that a new Polestar 2 will be released in 2027. At this point, nothing is known about it except for a fuzzy picture showing its new headlight design.

We do not know if this new Polestar 2 will also be made in China. We do not know anything.

I still like the Polestar 2 and don’t really need to see much changed with it. Certainly the center console area could be better designed and its efficiency could be improved. But the styling still looks modern and eye-catching, even 4+ years after its debut, so they don’t need to go wild with changing that.

I’m sure they will tweak things to make it feel more like a Polestar and less like a Volvo, but I sure hope they keep its relatively small size, which is appealing to me.

And I really, really hope that they are able to bring it back to the US. After all, I’ll want some used models around when I’m ready to upgrade!