New Zealand’s alpine peaks, azure lakes and wild coastline make the perfect backdrop for many a car commercial. They also make the perfect testing ground to put a car through it’s paces, especially in winter.
Which is how I came to find myself behind the wheel of a Polestar 3 AWD EV SUV. It’s no secret that Queenstown is pushing to be Carbon Zero by 2030 so getting my tush into an EV on this recent trip made sense.
It’s also no secret to skiers and snowboarders that you need a ton of gumption and an AWD when driving the mostly precarious roads to the ski resorts of New Zealand (and old ski gear that can withstand leaning against dusty cars in the car park).
Would this Swedish designed, China manufactured, luxury vehicle deliver the grunt required while looking the mountain lover part? I was hoping so.
Lucky for me, the folks behind the Swedish designed Polestar love the snow as much as I do. Polestar has, in recent times, offered Arctic Driving experiences in Jokkmokk in Lapland to test and improve your ice driving skills by day and check out the northern lights by night. The company even had a pop-up space made entirely from snow in Finland and the Polestar 3 Long range Dual motor with Performance Pack competed against 23 other electric vehicles in harsh winter conditions in Norway this year and outlasted all competitors, covering an impressive 531 km under harsh winter conditions.
So, I’m confident it will handle the roads ahead of me with vigour. That is, until I realise the driver also has input. My first roundabout as I left the airport and I almost went through the windscreen when using the brake when I shouldn’t have. Little did I know that I would fall in love with the culprit, the one-pedal drive option that was “on”.
This option became my new best friend, once I got the hang of it. Choose to turn it off and use the brake as per usual or choose low or standard for some braking or high braking. As you remove your foot from the accelerator the car automatically brakes. I found this a godsend for taking on the corners of the Crown Range winding drive uphill from Queenstown then downhill to the Cardrona Valley.
What a relief to not keep braking around every corner but rather guide the car through the turns in a more gentle manner. It also regenerates the battery each time you use it.
Driving this car is like driving velvet at high speed, honestly you wouldn’t even know if the road was tarred or not (they often are not in the mountainous areas of New Zealand) thanks to the dual-chamber active air suspension. You can adjust this to standard, nimble or firm and the car also automatically adjusts ride height. Even better for our mountain mad readers, there is the option for a raised suspension on demand for increased ground clearance and you can visually watch the car rise and fall.
As I spent most of the time on country or mountain roads, the “creep” option wasn’t necessary for me, except in Queenstown traffic. It mimics the low-speed movement of a regular automatic transmission car moving forward without touching the accelerator. Definitely a personal preference.
If the interior were a handbag it would be more The Row than showy monogrammed Louis Vuitton – it’s understated, stylish, quiet luxury aware of its worth.
All of these options, and so many more, are controlled via a large 14.5 inch centre display screen within a super styling interior with heated steering wheel and all heated seats, ambient lighting, UV moon roof and an upgrade option to the Bowers & Wilkins sound system with 25 speakers, active road noise cancellation and headrest speakers.
Charging while on the road (no pun intended)
But let’s discuss the EV element. The most common question we get when being asked about driving an EV to the snow is, what if I run out of juice? The thing about EVs is you have to be patient when travelling and you have to plan ahead – neither great for my ADHD neurodivergent brain. I’m the kind that leaves the tank down to 10kms of petrol left before fuelling up. Not something you want to do with an EV.
My first hotel, Hulbert House, in Queenstown had an EV charger, though it wasn’t particularly fast, so I just plugged in at the end of the day and left it charing overnight. Queenstown has an extensive network of public charging stations of varying speeds. I downloaded the ChargeNet app, though you could also do the same with Open Loop.
The app tells you where the nearest charging station is, how fast it is or isn’t and whether it’s in use by someone else or not. The faster the charger the more expensive the kW. You can leave the vehicle and check on the app how much time or charge you have left. Planning ahead is key, while waiting 45 minutes for a charge I ended up spending the money I’d save on petrol on earrings instead. Best take a book or a laptop and multi-task while waiting.
I drove from Queenstown to Tekapo (3.5 hours) without needing a charge and with a good 25% left, utilised a ChargeNet charger in Tekapo while I had dinner and then drove back to Queenstown the next day. Though to be honest, the Polestar also lets you know where the nearest charging stations are within the display console.
Google Maps also has a “battery minded route planning” function. You can put in your destination and it will tell you how much power it will take to get there, how much battery you’ll have left in percentage when you arrive and the like.
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The verdict
I didn’t want to hand the keycard to the car back at the end of my stay in New Zealand. The Polestar 3 made me want to be a better person. It glided through the snow lined roads of the Lindis Pass, made the famous ski resort access roads of New Zealand feel like a race track and drove like a sports car impersonating an SUV (or the other way round).
It’s a sexy car externally, all curves and good looks, that suits an urban city environment but when you take it onto the open road and out into nature it does not disappoint. Backing up it’s good looks with powerful grunt with a 0 – 100 accelaration in 4.7 seconds. I’m a sucker for a good looker with substance, not so much for those without.
For city slickers with a sustainable conscious heading to the Aussie ski fields it’s the perfect option. For those heading across the ditch you a rent a Polestar 2 AWD via Sixt for your snow holiday.
If you’re in serious Polestar 3 consideration, and you should, then choose between an AWD or FWD model. The Long Range Single Motor Polestar 3 has an entry level price of $118,420 (plus on road coasts). But if I had $142,658.70 (plus on-roads) I’d splurge on the AWD Long Range Dual Motor with a Performance Pack option, without blinking.
Please send funds.
*the author drove a media review Polestar 3 while in New Zealand
