Polestar powertrain optimisation delivers up to 421 hp in the new Volvo XC60
Polestar powertrain optimisation delivers up to 421 hp in the new Volvo XC60
Polestar, the performance brand of Volvo Cars, has introduced the latest-generation powertrain optimisation for the new Volvo XC60. With the Polestar enhancement, the new Volvo XC60 T8 delivers 421 hp, matching the optimised XC90 T8 as the most powerful Volvo models ever built.
The Polestar optimisation improves five key areas of the powertrain while retaining the Volvo warranty, class-leading emission levels, fuel consumption of 2.1 l/100 km (134.5 mpg) and a pure electric range of up to 45 kilometres (28 miles) for the T8.
Experience from more than two decades on the track with Cyan Racing, the motorsport partner of Polestar, has transformed the engine performance, accelerator response, off-accelerator response, and gearshift speed and hold, taking the XC60 to a new level of driving pleasure.
"Our goal is to create useable performance in everyday driving situations for Volvo owners who want an enhanced driving experience," said Henrik Fries, Vice President, Research and Development at Polestar. "The new XC60 has provided us with an excellent base to work on with a dynamic chassis and a state-of-the-art powertrain. With the Polestar optimisation, it makes the new Volvo XC60 a true drivers' car."
Two key features of the optimisation are the improved engine performance and gearbox functionality. The enhancements for the engine are made to provide greater power and torque in the middle of the rev range, the area most often used in everyday driving, for example when joining a motorway or when overtaking or exiting a corner.
The gearbox shifts faster, gearshift points have been calibrated to utilise the optimised mid-range engine performance, and the gear-hold function maintains the same gear when cornering with high lateral g-force in order to avoid unsettling the balance of the car.
A total of four XC60 models are available for Polestar optimisation in the UK, including the T8, T5, D5 and D4. For the D5, the Polestar optimisation boosts peak power from 235 to 240 hp, and peak torque from 480 to 500 Nm. The 0-62 mph time is also cut from 7.2 to 7.1 seconds.
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About Polestar
Polestar is Volvo Car Group's performance road car brand and was founded by Polestar Racing, today known as Cyan Racing. Polestar's birth was a result of Cyan Racing's race engineers' desire to explore how technology behind the multiple title-winning success in racing could be applied to the performance of road-going Volvo cars, on all roads and conditions in everyday life. The first road-going performance Concepts were launched in 2010, and the first performance cars, based on the Volvo S60, were ready in 2012. In 2015, Volvo Cars acquired Polestar Performance. Today, Polestar builds the S60 and V60 Polestar, 367 hp performance road cars with more than 250 developments over and above the standard Volvo products. It also offers Polestar Engineered performance hardware upgrades and engine software optimisations for existing Volvo products.
In the future, Polestar will become a new separately branded electrified high-performance car company. Polestar will offer a portfolio of bespoke Polestar-branded cars that will no longer carry a Volvo logo. Polestar will enjoy specific technological and engineering synergies with Volvo Cars and benefit from significant economies of scale as a result of its connection to Volvo. These synergies will allow it to design, develop and build world-beating electrified high-performance cars.
For further information
Duncan Forrester
Vice President, Global Head of Public Relations and Communications
duncan.forrester@polestar.com
+44(0) 7768 877877
Tw: @DuncanForrester
Johan Meissner
Press Manager
johan.meissner@polestar.com
+46(0)70 241 3234
Tw: @JohanMeissner