After six months living with a Polestar 3, this is my honest final verdict

It’s time to hand back the keys – or, er, uninstall the app – to our Polestar 3. After six months, did this luxurious EV live up to its hefty price tag?

In so many ways, yes it did. We all love the way it looks a little bit like an SUV, but also a bit like a coupe on the outside, and its interior feels genuinely expensive throughout.

The 3 is also fantastic to drive, with intuitive steering and great handling that all helps it feel much lighter than it really is.

However, when you aren’t in the mood, the 3 will also play the relaxing cruiser, with suspension that sponges away lumps and bumps and particularly good wind noise suppression at motorway speeds.

Talking of motorways, this is probably the first EV I’ve spent time with that caused me zero range anxiety at 70mph. Our single-motor model will do 300 miles on a full charge in winter and a decent amount more in summer, which is really all anybody needs.

And let’s not forget about that Bowers & Wilkins sound system. It’s a relatively expensive option when paying cash, but will make a negligible financial difference paying on finance or when taking a 3 as a company car. If you like music, it’s well worth the small extra.

This is an honest review, though, and there have been negatives that can’t be ignored.

The 3 arrived with software issues resulting in blank screens and hesitating app commands, which admittedly were quickly solved with an over-the-air update. However, after going back to Polestar a couple of months later to have a free upgrade (that all 3 owners were offered) more problems began.

The infotainment system ran more smoothly, but the app and physical key cards started playing up even more, resulting in frustration that such simple functions on such an expensive car could be a consistent problem.

Carwow’s global content director Iain Reid and deputy reviews editor Tom Wiltshire spent time with the 3 towards the end of its time with us and reported similar likes and dislikes.

Iain loved the 3’s looks and interior quality, plus the fact the boot would easily accept his dog’s cage, but found the app and key issues unacceptable at Polestar’s price.

Tom thought the 3 was easily one of the best SUVs to drive on sale and that its electric range was a huge plus, but that, again, the software glitches and key issues let the car down when in so many areas it excels.

The good news is that the 3’s problems are software-related and like the latest smartphones, modern cars can be constantly tweaked over the air. That means owners of early Polestar 3s like ours could well see things improve over time – hopefully.

For those of you buying a brand new Polestar 3, there’s even better news – for 2026 it is now radically different. It looks the same, but gets a new battery, 800v tech, new motors, more power but also more range. Crucially, it gets a new Nvidia chip orchestrating all this behind the scenes.

We’re yet to try one, but we look forward to seeing if this new recipe erases those issues and helps the Polestar 3 reach its true potential.

Remember, you can buy a brand new or used car right here on Carwow. And you can sell your car, too. We’re here to help you through every step of your car-changing journey.

Living with a Polestar 3 report 3: four months in

I started the previous update by pointing out I’d never lived with a car that has been transformed quite so much by an over-the-air update.

Well, it’s happened again – although this time it was much less over-the-air.

The short story is that Polestar has announced that anybody buying a Polestar 3 from now will be getting a significantly upgraded SUV.

Model year 2026 cars get different, more efficient batteries, Polestar in-house developed motors that produce more (but sap less) power, 800v charging for faster top-up speeds and a faster Nvidia processor running it all.

So what about people like me who have the 2025 model? Well, if you bought a 2024 or 2025 Polestar 3, Polestar is already booking these cars in to be upgraded at your local dealership for no extra charge.

Sadly, all you get is the new processor, because Polestar can’t start hacking the car about to put the new battery, motors and charging infrastructure in. But, hey, it’s not all bad news.

The new Nvidia processor, called ‘Orin’ is apparently capable of computing information eight times faster than the previous Nvidia unit. I’m told that’s not only better for infotainment usability, but also battery efficiency.

Well, after a week of driving the 3 with its new brain I can tell you it boots up much faster after being left dormant for a few hours, it reacts to inputs on the Polestar app quicker and the infotainment is definitely snappier between screens and in loading music.

I’ve also found the battery level and remaining range to be even more stable and quicker to right itself to your driving style. I know how far the 3 can go on a charge having taken it to the very end in our EV range test, but that extra reassurance will go a long way for people who haven’t.

The only downside of all this was that the 3’s key fob ran out of battery while it was away, which has rendered it useless. I can still lock and unlock the car with my phone, but for those who don’t want to use their smartphone as the car’s key it means carrying around a bulky key card. Here’s hoping the new 2026 Polestar 3 simplifies the whole key process!

We’re yet to try that new model, but once we have we’ll link to its updated review here.

Living with a Polestar 3 report 2: two months in

Cars never used to completely change part way through your time with them, I’m sure of it.

I’m hardly old, but having driven thousands of different cars as a motoring journalist over the years, cars used to start off a certain way and pretty much remain like that until you handed them back. Not any longer.

We took delivery of our Polestar 3 having driven two other examples extensively in our review and range test videos, and both behaved impeccably. However, the 3 dropped off for our six-month test was instantly a pain in the arse.

To explain, it still drove every bit as well and was just as spacious and high quality inside as those other 3s, but its software gremlins were enough to drive me mad. Literally, I suppose.

First the car wouldn’t always recognise the key, so you’d need to open Polestar’s app and manually unlock the car that way. No app, no getting in the car.

Then the car would make a decision each morning; can I be bothered to offer Apple CarPlay today? It might do, but it usually wouldn’t.

But by far the most infuriating was intermittently blank infotainment screen and driver’s dials. The car would open and drive as usual, but would display nothing at all on its displays.

And, because everything is operated through the main infotainment screen, that meant you could control…nothing at all.

I was a bit gutted. The cars we’d driven before didn’t suffer any of these problems, and so much of the car was still great. Thankfully, the solution was just around the corner.

I jumped online and found that there was an imminent software update, thanks to plenty of other owners complaining of similar problems. This was downloaded to the car overnight, over the air, and in the morning it was as though I had walked up to a different vehicle.

It opened immediately. It connected to my iPhone immediately. The system was quicker to fire, snappier to respond and I haven’t experienced a blank screen since. One update, one car transformed.

We usually write one of these updates one month into running a car, but I wanted to give it an extra month to make absolutely sure the update stuck, and I’m happy to report it certainly has.

And now the 3 is back to its best, we’ve lined up its direct rivals – the BMW iX, Kia EV9, Hyundai Ioniq 9 and Volvo EX90 – to compare it against in every area, from the way it drives to its software and what it’s like to be a passenger.

The video will go live on our YouTube channel very soon. I’ll be back here to update you on how it went plus how the 3s range is holding up this winter after a few more hundred miles on mixed roads.

Living with a Polestar 3 report 1: introduction

I am a huge fan of Polestar and what it stands for. Of all the manufacturers that sell electric cars, I think it does the best job of being honest with its impact on the environment.

I think its cars look great on the outside, and because they are based on Volvos and use similar materials, they are superb to sit in too.

It’s also a brand that doesn’t attract bad vibes on the road – for whatever reason, people don’t seem offended by Polestars as they often can be with certain German motors.

We’ve already filmed the 3’s review and we all loved it. We’ve also filmed an electric car range video and the 3 went the furthest of any SUV we’d ever tested. So, I am really excited to spend some more time getting to know it.

In fact, that range test is why I opted for the single-motor version with its 111kWh battery, a combination that should mean nearly 400 miles of range, even on the motorway.

The car looks great in its silver-gold paint called ‘Jupiter’ and I love a light-coloured interior, so it had to be the white leather, which Polestar calls ‘zinc’ – although I might regret it with my three kids.

Of all the options available, though, there was one that could not be ignored. I love music and after driving the 3 briefly on our other tests I found it had the best sound system of any car on earth. No, really, the entire earth.

This incredible Bowers & Wilkins system costs £3,400 as a standalone option or can be had as part of a pack. It has 25 speakers, produces 1,610 watts of power and brings noise cancellation tech, speakers in the front headrests and even Dolby Atmos surround sound.

At this point you are essentially sat in a moving cinema, plus the system was dialled in at none other than Abbey Road Studios – you may have heard of it. It’s expensive if you’re paying cash, but doesn’t add much if you’re paying monthly and will really help the car’s residuals.

With so many positives, I’m struggling to see how this Polestar 3 could annoy me, but let the next six months of Polestar life commence to find out.

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