Cars. I passionately love them since I was a little boy. Their seductive lines, the raw power, the hissing of the rubber as it kisses the highway, the happy roaring of a V8 as it thunders to the horizon. The smell of leather, fuel, and oil. The kick in the stomach as horses get unleashed, the precision of a steering wheel, the battle against G-forces that try to rip your face off. I like it when they take off like bad news and turn on a peseta.
My driveway harbours a Lotus 7, a couple of sturdy off-roaders and a collector’s dream: a vintage 911. I have read Top Gear for breakfast since I could walk, and I’ve seen every single episode. Twice.
And still. Choosing my last car was hell. I drive between 60.000 and 80.000 km a year. My last 3-year long experience with a Lexus hybrid was not it. Great car. In the city. Totally not fitted to my lifestyle.
It’s time
I’ve been preaching the values of intelligent electric cars for some time now. Automotive, mobility and environmental realities don’t lie. The future is electric. Over time we even evolve to MAAS (mobility as a service) for most people that don’t require a ton and a half of steel 98% of their day. The (soon autonomous) intelligent electric car is one of the pillars of the trends presentations that I’ve been giving over the past year.
Yet, 18 months ago, as I took out a new car lease, I hesitated. I hated the e-tron. Could not be seduced by plug-in hybrids. Choked on the French little electrics. And with all my admiration for Elon Musk, I knew it was not going to be a Tesla.
Too hectic to go electric
O, it takes off like there is no tomorrow. It beats even my completely over-the-top Lotus 7. By a mile. And it looked and felt too much like an application on wheels. My future-loving brain was seduced, the car lover in me was not.
I was also struggling with the practicalities. Details like charging. Range. The subtle art of getting there.
So, when some of my friends put their money where their heart and brain was, and are silently swooping away in their Model S, Model X or 3’s, I settled for a sturdy V6. The last one…
Polestar 2
But then Polestar called. Polestar is an automotive brand jointly owned by Volvo Car Group and Geely. An intriguing Chinese – Swedish mix. I saw their Polestar 2 EV at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and loved every inch of it: luxury, the dazzling silent power of a performance EV, in a real car. Not a driving app.
Fully knowing that I have a couple of petrol guzzling beasts grazing on my driveway, and that I thought it was one car too early for electric, they asked me if they could try to convince me that their Polestar 2 would fit even my hectic lifestyle…. fully electric. Would I be interested in a partnership?
You know what, it’s not too early: it’s time. I’ll meet them tomorrow at the Brussels Motor Show.
