Polestar rules out hybrids despite Volvo, Mercedes, Audi reversing full EV deadlines

Electric car manufacturer Polestar is refusing to backpedal on its EV-handiest stance despite rival brands admire Mercedes-Benz and Audi reversing self-imposed time closing dates to pause building autos with internal combustion engines.

Inside Geely Car Holdings (GAH), which owns Polestar nonetheless also fellow European brands Volvo and Lotus plus a bunch of Chinese language marques (corresponding to Zeekr and Lynk & Co), Polestar more and more stands out for its insistence on EV—which some realizing as steadfast and others cussed.

Polestar’s historic guardian Volvo publicly backed away from its outdated dedication to going electric-handiest in 2030—a international decision that contributed to establishing Volvo Cars Australia’s occupy promise to transfer EV-authentic from 2026 untenable.

In Australia, the handiest autos Polestar has ever sold were fully-electric—though the standalone ticket’s first model in European and American markets became in truth a traipse-in hybrid (PHEV) sports activities coupe known as the Polestar 1 with 124km electric differ (WLTP).

Since manufacturing of the Polestar 1 ended in 2022, the logo has produced handiest EVs across vegetation in China, the US, and South Korea. From gradual 2027, the logo will beginning building the Polestar 7 dinky SUV in Slovakia—as soon as more as a elephantine EV with out a hybrid model deliberate.

However, despite Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and diverse stumble on brands backing away from losing hybrids and pure-combustion autos in favour of EVs, a parade of senior Polestar executives has lined up to again the Gothenburg, Sweden-essentially based mostly manufacturer’s decision to cease the course.

Indecisiveness killing the inexperienced transition, Polestar says

In a November 2024 beginning letter to customers, Polestar chief executive Michael Lohscheller criticised “indecisiveness [which] no longer handiest slows down the inexperienced transition [but] also ensures that brown choices remain the more inexpensive and more convenient replacement.”

Talking with Chasing Cars this month, Polestar Australia managing director Scott Maynard backed Lohscheller’s feedback.

“I’m for my part chuffed that our CEO has doubled down on pronouncing we would be an EV-handiest ticket and that it’s no longer a time to explore hybrid expertise, attributable to I mediate it opens a window for us,” Maynard acknowledged.

“I mediate there is a market for a ticket that specialises in EV and does no longer continue to are trying and place an EV skateboard below an ICE chassis, so I mediate it in truth works successfully for us.”

While the Polestar 2 shares its CMA chassis with some ICE and hybrid autos (such because the Volvo XC40), the Polestar 3 tidy SUV and Polestar 4 crossover utilise devoted EV platforms whereas the drawing near Polestar 5 has an even more bespoke battery-electric structure.

Polestar has focused on lengthening the usable utilizing differ of its autos as of late. Nowadays, the shortest-differ Polestar (the 2 Unique Vary) offers 520km (WLTP) whereas the Polestar 3 Single Motor has the longest legs, offering an ICE-rivalling 706km of differ.

Gigantic enhance in PHEV gross sales in Australia in 2025

Query for fully-electric autos has slowed as of late off the again of a protracted length of intense enhance—a major part prompting revisions of EV-handiest targets by car producers in a fright that boards had didn’t read the room.

Peaceable, the percentage of autos sold in 2024 that were powered handiest by electrical energy grew by 25 p.c and by the discontinuance of ultimate 365 days, elephantine EVs represented more than 20 p.c of international car gross sales spurred by genuine question in the Mainland Chinese language market.

In Australia, enhance final 365 days became more muted with question-aspect incentives for leases on elephantine EVs serving to to stoke a 14 p.c enlarge in EV gross sales in the neighborhood in 2024—nonetheless the percentage of EV gross sales as a a part of the overall has been essentially flat in Australia in 2025.

At most up-to-date, around eight p.c of most up-to-date autos delivered in Australia are EVs, with PHEVs accounting for three p.c of gross sales, ‘elephantine hybrids’ (with out a traipse) representing around 16 p.c, and pure ICE preserving a dominant 73 p.c part.

Hybrids were the mountainous winners in Australia this 365 days with PHEV gross sales up 210 p.c in the first half of of the 365 days, though the removal of the predominant fringe advantages tax exemption for ticket unusual PHEV leases in April 2025 expected to dampen that stage of enhance in the journey to Christmas.

Peaceable, hybrids of diverse kinds will play an more and more vital characteristic in Australia’s unusual car markets—no longer handiest attributable to EV question jitters nonetheless mainly as carmakers eliminate pure ICE autos from their lineups to steer determined of commercial penalties below Australia’s hard NVES emissions authorized pointers.

At Volvo, PHEV variations of the carefully revised XC90 tidy SUV and venerable XC60 midsize SUVs continue to be made accessible to Australia customers whereas fellow GAH brands Zeekr and the eponymous Geely will each and every add PHEVs to their Australian lineups in the shut to length of time.