Polestar 3 does 930km for new electric SUV range record
A stock standard Polestar 3 beats its official range by 229km and sets a new Guinness world record for electric SUVs.
The record, set on UK roads, involved the new Long Range version of Polestar’s flagship SUV. It features a 107kWh battery pack and a single 220kW motor on the rear axle. The record 930km eclipses the 3’s 700km official stated range. And it bests the previous record of 912km set by the Ford Mustang Mach-E last year.
Overall efficiency equates to 19.5kWh per 100 miles. That’s in line with the official WLTP efficiency figures of some small electric cars weighing much less than the 2.4-tonne Polestar 3.
Polestar said the SUV ran on for 13km after the battery charge readout reached 0 per cent and still managed to get to a charger.
The Polestar 3 chosen was unmodified, right down to its Michelin Sport 4 EV tyres. And the attempt was made on public roads.
A week earlier, Chevrolet revealed its new Silverado EV pick-up had managed almost 1700km on a single charge. However, that was with modifications and the record took seven days to complete. The Silverado’s 205kWh battery pack is around twice the size of the Polestar’s. Moreover, it averaged 7.8km/kWh, compared with the Swedish car’s 8.2km/kWh.
The current outright range record for an unmodified electric car is held by the Lucid Air. But the Polestar’s record-chasing run was undertaken in conditions that better reflect real-world driving.
One of the drivers, Sam Clarke, commented: “We use public roads, and we have to adhere to normal speed limits….”.
This record is “the closest thing to the real world, on proper roads at proper speeds.
“It just shows what’s possible. Driving a little bit more efficiently – which ultimately equates to just moving your right foot a few less millimetres each time – can actually generate significant amounts of range.
“EVs really can go a long way now”, Clarke said, and “the range anxiety we’ve seen in our industry for many years is rapidly diminishing”.
He added that “the infrastructure still needs to continue to improve as the technology advances in the vehicles as well”.
