New Polestar design supremo looks to future

POLESTAR will unveil a concept car and more 'Beast' performance models in the run up to the Polestar 7 SUV, as new head of design Philipp Römers stamps his vision on the company's design.

- Phil McNamara

Römers, who worked on the Audi e-tron GT's exterior during his 25 years at Volkswagen Group, outlined his vision in an exclusive interview with Auto Express. “The reason I quit the Audi job and took on the Polestar challenge is because becoming [studio] head of a design-driven company is very cool.”

He admits he's joined during “tough times” — Polestar lost more than $1 billion (£0.75bn) in the first six months of the year — but global sales also rose to 30,289, and the flagship Polestar 5 sport GT is now entering the market. “From Polestar 5 on, I can start to develop the cars of the future.”

The Chinese-owned, European-based EV startup is a commercial minnow but its acclaimed design has become a lighthouse the industry watches closely.

So how radical will he be? “When I started, I thought about whether to do a revolution or an evolution. Polestar is a young brand and its awareness still has to be lifted. So it would really be a mistake to make a revolution, to do something completely different.”

The Polestar 7 - a compact crossover arriving in early 2028 - is set to be Römers’ first all-new Polestar. A teaser image of the car under a cloth hints at a sleek, low-roofed SUV with flared wheelarches and “dual-blade” lighting.

“The main architecture and the appearance will be a little more dynamic, to express performance,” explains the German-born designer.

He reckons some Polestars look quite vertical - perhaps thinking of the 3 SUV's pinched rear, the 5’s downturned rear lamps or the range’s deep bodysides - and it’s something he’s keen to address with more horizontal elements.

To him, Polestars are all about “characterful details: no traditional grille, dual-blade-lighting and the Polestar 3's bridge”, the raised section across the nose that channels air onto the bonnet to smooth its flow. “You can imagine [we'll] do something striking yet very Polestar,” he hints.