FOR AS LONG AS the personal automobile has existed, every carmaker has needed a halo; a car that it can pin its identity, capabilities and wider aspirations to. These high-end models may not be top sellers, but they act as a signal that shapes how every other model in the range is perceived.

Often, halo cars shape entire eras – the Ferrari F40 was a raw, unfiltered encapsulation of ’80s supercar excess; the Nissan GT-R, a technological tour de force and cultural icon, redefined Japan’s place in the high-performance sector; the Tesla Roadster flipped the dowdy vision of what an EV can be on its head. Each of these models not only showcased innovation and heralded change, but redefined what was possible within their respective times. And unlike the tease of a concept car, halos are real-world visions, designed to be driven and exist in the world. 

One could argue that in today’s rapidly shifting landscape, a halo car that defines our time comes with greater demands than before. It has to be high-performing, technologically advanced, emotional and inherently sustainable. While some brands have tried, very few have managed to move the needle when it comes to the latter point. The sleek, shark-nosed grand tourer you see on these pages is Polestar now throwing its hat in the ring. Enter: the Polestar 5, the Swedish electric car marque’s first halo and a sleek statement of performance and prestige, informed by an incredibly high bar of entire lifecycle sustainability. 

The Polestar 5 made its debut a few months ago at the Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (IAA) in Munich, Europe’s biggest mobility show and where it, very quickly, became one of the most talked-about new cars at the conference. This is a car designed for driving – a true electric GT. In figures, Polestar 5 is quite impressive: the Dual Motor variant makes around 550kW/812Nm, while the Performance variant bumps that up to 650kW/1015Nm (that’s more than 880 horses).

It has a top speed of 250km/h and, in that performance variant, can accelerate 0-100km/h in 3.2 seconds. It’s powered by a 112kW battery (106kWh usable), with an 800-volt architecture, 350kW fast-charging abilities, up-to 670km of range (variant dependent), a sophisticated dampener system that Polestar says “can read the road up to 1000 times per second and can react within three milliseconds” and an impressive amount of advanced driver aids, including 12 cameras, mid-range radar and 12 ultrasonic sensors.

Plus, an Android system with Google apps built-in and a mighty 1680W Bowers & Wilkins 21-speaker sound system, and many more prestige creature comforts. Those details are just a sum of the very important parts that make this car special; the rest is in the problem-solving-focused design ethos behind its creation. 

As a 4+1 seater, five-door, fully-electric, luxury GT – and it is extremely striking in the metal – the 5 is extremely close to the Polestar Precept concept car the brand debuted back in 2020 – almost to the letter, bar a few necessary tweaks. Minimalist, elegant and stretching five metres long, aviation and product design played a key role in inspiring its shape, as well as the boldness of a shark. “Sharks are more about confidence, rather than being aggressive,” Polestar’s head of exterior design, Nahum Escobedo, tells us, especially when you look at the nose and the stance of the car. “How a shark graciously moves through the water, and this idea of it being constantly in motion. I really wanted the Precept and this car to have this sort of moving feel, and when you look at it, you don’t know what type of vehicle it is, especially with the minimalistic approach.” 

In any electric vehicle, aerodynamics play a huge role, but as we’ve seen with so many EVs to date that often means they arrive in a more bulbous shape. This factor doesn’t always equal elegance or sportiness, nor does it often result in eliciting desire and emotion. This in itself was a challenge for Escobedo and his team.

“With all our products, we like to strike a really good balance, because obviously aerodynamics and range are such a huge topic with electrification. But aerodynamics shouldn’t completely shape the look of a car,” he says. “Because all of a sudden, it becomes more of a tool than a product everyone can enjoy.”

This thinking resulted in a few large details, like choice to go for a lightweight aluminium frame – 13 per cent of which is recycled, while 83 per cent comes from smelters utilising renewable electricity – and some smaller but effective ones, like the low stance, flush and frameless windows, retractable door handles and the lack of an active spoiler, which you’d usually see on a car of this performance. “A spoiler adds more weight and complexity,” Escobedo notes, explaining a little bit of design trickery also used in the Polestar 3 and 4 SUVs.

“We decided to implement the aerodynamics through the rear lamp, which sort of acts as a spoiler. Usually, you’d want this very round shape, because of how the air travels, but we’ve used elements where the air can flow through it so you get this very sharp line that’s hidden by the rear lamp and acts as a blade to create better performance. I would call this integrated performance.” He adds, “This is where we are also talking about the different types of performance and what that means. For us, that also means adding that sustainability element, so you get a very good-looking car without having to compromise.” 

POLESTAR LIKES TO TALK A LOT about its refusal to compromise on its climate-focused ethos, which surrounds the entire lifecycle of a car, a sticking point that no doubt makes everything a little bit harder – from pushing suppliers to developing materials to figuring out how to actually build a car towards a more climate-friendly future, factories included. However, it does result in a claim the Swedes can stand by: it is arguably the most sustainably credible marque on the road. What does that mean in an era of greenwashing? Well, to start, Polestar publishes lifecycle reports on all its cars, traces the cradle-to-gate CO₂ footprints and releases that information and its methodology to the industry – you can even look up the full report on this car, should you wish.

For us as consumers, this can be seen literally written all over the car, small details of text that feel very tech-y, but add a cool, informative reminder of what has gone into its making. Ultimately, this pushes the use of materials forward and, in the case of the Polestar 5 halo car – over 85 per cent of which is recyclable – it’s actively shaping what prestige means in the 21st century. 

Inside the car is where the thinking around sustainable luxury is put on show. Being a GT, the cockpit is shaped to feel sporty and focused – and yes, extremely minimalist, but the use of materials with an organic-like finish adds an element of warmth, nature and human touch. One of these new materials is the Signature Weave, a co-development with sustainable composite company Bcomp that uses a hard material called ampliTex. Think of this like a futuristic carbon fibre. This bio-based composite is made from flax, is 40 per cent lighter than plastic and uses 50 per cent less fossil fuel-based materials.

More bio-based textiles can be found all over the Polestar 5 – from carpets spun from recycled fishing nets to headliners made from PET and more. There’s also a soft material called MicroTech, which is made from fossil-fuel-free PVC and a bio-waste-based alternative to naphtha (an oil usually derived from petroleum or coal) produced from things like agricultural waste and biomass. Luxurious Nappa leather is still on offer as an option, but it is sourced from Bridge of Weir, a Scottish leather maker known for its ethical, animal welfare-secured and chrome-free leathers; a natural by-product of the food industry. 

Something interesting to note here is the wider conversation that is starting to come just from talking about how a car is made, where its materials come from and what’s in them. In turn – to Polestar’s advantage, no doubt – shining a light on what sustainability can mean within the wider industry. Polestar’s answer to this is a very Swedish, egalitarian-esque “join us”. According to its sustainability spokespeople, that’s the whole point of being transparent in their methods, successes and failures.

Which brings us back to the importance of a halo car – a showcase of what’s possible without the limitations of high-volume model pressure and from which all future technology trickles down. In the case of what this move by Polestar says about the next era of mobility, it prompts the question: will we soon expect all cars that promise a better future to have the solid credentials to back up their claims? As well as the performance stats and emotion? It’s a big ask, for those not as agile as Polestar is. But as Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller said at the Polestar 5’s reveal, when put on the spot about his decision to choose a GT over, say, a more commercially proven compact SUV, “This is absolutely a halo car. This segment is not a volume segment, and it is, of course, absolutely a brand shaper, and we want to build a premium brand.” Before he added with a smile, “Just don’t underestimate its impact”. 

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