While safety has undoubtedly been an area where Scandinavian brands have excelled, they are also some of the most reliable European cars. The 2022 Polestar 2 is the latest car from the electric and performance subdivision of Volvo and it has to meet some expectations to be worthy of the name. However, the car has not exactly been the favorite of Consumer Reports and since many people pay heed to them, it is worth exploring why this has been so. It is priced competitively and starts at an MSRP of $47,200. This makes it cheaper than several of its counterparts that offer the same kind of equipment. Rivals in the segment include other modern electric vehicles like the Tesla Model 3, the Kia EV6, and the Hyundai Ioniq 5. Let us see how Polestar 2 reliability compares to our expectations through this article.
2022 Polestar Polestar 2 User Complaints and Problems
While Consumer Reports scrutinizes this car on several counts, they are mostly based on ergonomics, infotainment, and other areas. We haven’t come across many Polestar 2 reliability issues from these reports. However, looking at online forums and so on reveal that this car has one common complaint associated with the 4G network function failing and cutting the car off from any communication. When we look at the NHTSA website to find out about consumer complaints about the 2022 model, there are quite a few of them. These are explained below.
Mechanical problems:
- There was one report of a driver receiving a warning regarding the propulsion system requiring a service. The vehicle seemed to function fine mechanically but the warning reappeared.
- One owner reported that the car’s rear brake pads adhere to the surface of the rotors, especially in humid climates. This might be an issue associated with the material selection of the brake pads.
Electrical system problems:
- Several owners have reported problems associated with connectivity. This includes emergency service connections, SOS dialing, and other things that affect crisis response. There have been more reports of similar incidents and it seems to be the most common complaint in the car.
Safety problems:
- One owner reported that the seatbelt indicator light turns off even if the seatbelt is not buckled in. This happens a minute or so after sitting inside the car. This might also switch off the airbags because they are activated based on the seatbelt. There have been other complaints associated with the same problem as well.
- One complaint was lodged regarding the rear cross-traffic alert. When this feature was added as part of a software update, it started engaging so harshly that the owner suffered from whiplash and had to undergo chiropractic treatment.
- One contact has reported complaints about the lane-keeping assist steering the car onto freeway exits when used on the freeway. This intervention happens abruptly and with great force on the steering, hence the driver has to take control back with much difficulty.
Miscellaneous problems:
- One owner has reported that the car is fitted with summer tires even when sold in cold climates during winter. This is a cause for concern as it could pose to be a safety risk.
- One contact has reported that the parking sensors could get water inside them and that this causes a malfunction.
|
Category |
Number of complaints |
|---|---|
|
Mechanical |
2 |
|
Electrical System |
8 |
|
Exterior |
0 |
|
Interior |
0 |
|
Safety |
3 |
|
Miscellaneous |
2 |
Although the 2022 model year of the Polestar 2 has just been released, it has already reported a total of 15 complaints. The 2021 model has had only one complaint and the fact that reliability has become worse as the model years progressed is a bad sign. There seem to be a large number of owners reporting the same electrical system issue as well. The brand should interfere at some point and issue recalls fixing the problem.
2022 Polestar Polestar 2 Recalls
Probably the only thing that Polestar 2 owners can rejoice about is the fact that the Tesla Model 3, its main rival, has a lot more issues. But what is worrying is that several active safety technologies that Volvo pioneers are also causing malfunctions. If the manufacturer has actively made an effort to fix these things through recalls, it is still a good sign and we would be able to depend on this car. But such an action has not taken place. The one to recall issued was associated with the powertrain but it did not even cover Polestar 2 range issues. Take a look at the recall below.
|
S. No. |
Date |
NHTSA Campaign Number |
Issues Noticed |
Additional Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
February 24, 2021 |
21V110000 |
High voltage disconnect may cause drive power loss |
A battery energy control module microprocessor may reset and this can cause the high-voltage system to disconnect. The sudden loss of power may cause an accident. |
We can see that Polestar has fixed one major issue in their cars through the recalls and this was reported on the NHTSA website as well. We do not know exactly how many cars are affected by the other problems but looking at the number of complaints, the connectivity issue seems to be widespread. We are expecting a recall regarding that one soon.
Which model year of the Polestar Polestar 2 should you avoid?
The Polestar 2 is one of the latest products from the brand and has only been on sale since 2020. At this time, its reliability has slightly worsened over the years and the later cars have reported a lot of complaints. This is in contrast to nearly every other car which reduces the number of complaints over the years. In the category of electric cars, it might be a safe bet and hence we cannot recommend any particular model year that you should be completely avoiding.
Should you buy the 2022 Polestar Polestar 2?
The 2022 Polestar 2 is the best car in its category in terms of build quality but suffers in other areas such as range. And while it may be extremely safe, some of the features have turned out to be problematic. Another thing to note is that the reliability reputation is currently stained due to the presence of the connectivity issue. This has resulted in a lot of owners losing trust in the car. As long as the brand responds well to these problems, we would recommend that you buy the car.
