Living with a Polestar: to Corsica and back
When reading about EVs, you often hear about the lack of range, the hidden environmental effects, and the high costs. But driving electric is not the hassle you might believe. To show you why, we thought it best to let one of our customers tell their story.
It definitely turned a few heads when people saw us relaxing inside our perfectly air-conditioned car
On a chilly Thursday afternoon, just outside central Gothenburg, we met up with Polestar owner Frans and his two sons. On our quest to learn more about what it is like to live with a Polestar, we asked him about everything from charging to the experience of driving electric.
Born and raised in Gothenburg, Frans is a father of three and runs his own carpentry firm. In his younger years, Frans drove a 96’ Passat Kombi with Aston Martin painted on the side. Many years have passed since then, and now he drives a Polestar 2. When asked why he has chosen to drive electric, Frans could name a couple of reasons. “The main reason is environmental of course” he begins, “but it is also just fantastic to drive electric.”
When he first got his Polestar 2, Frans was met with mixed reactions. People in his surrounding highlighted the fact that EVs are not as climate friendly as one might think, and that charging it would be a hassle. “My argument is that if you have to buy a new car, it is of course much better to buy an electric than a diesel car,” Frans notes. He also did not understand the economic argument as Frans showed that he had saved money by switching to electric. “Had I been driving diesel I would have paid up to 40,000 SEK last year, which is double the cost I have now” he says. Our research has shown that driving electric is better for both the environment and your personal expenses. And Frans is just one example of this.
Although some were sceptical, Frans told us that he has never owned a car that so many of his friends wanted to borrow for a test drive. “Even if you are only allowed to drive at 90 km/h, it’s still very fast,” Frans says and smiles.
Last year, Frans drove his Polestar from Gothenburg to Corsica, and back again. With the whole family in the car, he drove through Europe and made several stops along the way. If nothing else, this shows that driving electric does not limit what you can do with your car.
While waiting for the ferry to Corsica in 38 degrees heat, no car was allowed to be running their engine. Consequently, people were stuck in the heat with no air condition. However, this was not the case for Frans and his family, since their car didn’t have an engine to turn off. “It definitely turned a few heads when people saw us relaxing inside our perfectly air-conditioned car” Frans says and laughs.
On the way back, he had to stop ten times to charge between Corsica and Gothenburg. With kids in the car, Frans thought it worked well, “you drive two and a half hours and then you charge for half an hour” he begins, “for a family with children its quite nice as the kids get to run around for a bit and you get them away from their screens.”
Although Frans describes the trip as a great success, he still sees room for improvement. More specifically, he noticed that the infrastructure for charging is still lagging behind. Many times, he had to stop to charge even though he had plenty of range left, simply because the next opportunity to charge was too far away. “If there were twice as many charging spots I could have always driven until I was practically out of battery and then recharged,” he notes.
Nonetheless, Frans stresses the fact that these are problems he never faces in his day-to-day life. He charges his car at home, and therefore never has any problems with his car running out of charge. Whether driving to work, driving the kids to football practice, or driving to the forest for an afternoon walk, he never thinks twice about the charge of the battery. “It is great to always have a fully charged car,” Frans enthuses. We had prepared questions regarding range anxiety, but Frans simply doesn’t have any. “I think you might have it in the beginning, but you quickly realise that if you plug the car in overnight, you will always be able to drive where you want to drive,” he says.
The average driving distance in the UK is 20.4 mi per day. In essence, what Frans shows is that your day-to-day journeys do not require 400 miles of driving. And when they do, a little bit of planning and determination, can take you to Corsica and back.
Last year, Frans drove his Polestar from Gothenburg to Corsica, and back again. With the whole family in the car, he drove through Europe and made several stops along the way. If nothing else, this shows that driving electric does not limit what you can do with your car.
On the way back, he had to stop ten times to charge between Corsica and Gothenburg. With kids in the car, Frans thought it worked well, “you drive two and a half hours and then you charge for half an hour” he begins, “for a family with children its quite nice as the kids get to run around for a bit and you get them away from their screens”.
While waiting for the ferry to Corsica in 38 degrees heat, no car was allowed to be running their engine. Consequently, people were stuck in the heat with no air condition. However, this was not the case for Frans and his family, since their car didn’t have an engine to turn off. “It definitely turned a few heads when people saw us relaxing inside our perfectly air-conditioned car” Frans says and laughs.
Although Frans describes the trip as a great success, he still sees room for improvement. More specifically, he noticed that the infrastructure for charging is still lagging behind. Many times, he had to stop to charge even though he had plenty of range left, simply because the next opportunity to charge was too far away. “If there were twice as many charging spots I could have always driven until I was practically out of battery and then recharged” he notes.
Nonetheless, Frans stresses the fact that these are problems he never faces in his day-to-day life. He charges his car at home, and therefore never has any problems with his car running out of charge. Whether driving to work, driving the kids to football practice, or driving to the forest for an afternoon walk, he never thinks twice about the charge of the battery. “It is great to always have a fully charged car” Frans enthuses. We had prepared questions regarding range anxiety, but Frans simply doesn’t have any. “I think you might have it in the beginning, but you quickly realise that if you plug the car in overnight, you will always be able to drive where you want to drive” he says.
The average driving distance in the EU is 32.9km per day. In essence, what Frans shows is that your day-to-day journeys do not require 400 km of driving. And when they do, a little bit of planning and determination, can take you to Corsica and back.
Nonetheless, Frans stresses the fact that these are problems he never faces in his day-to-day life. He charges his car at home, and therefore never has any problems with his car running out of charge. Whether driving to work, driving the kids to football practice, or driving to the forest for an afternoon walk, he never thinks twice about the charge of the battery. “It is great to always have a fully charged car” Frans enthuses. We had prepared questions regarding range anxiety, but Frans simply doesn’t have any. “I think you might have it in the beginning, but you quickly realise that if you plug the car in overnight, you will always be able to drive where you want to drive” he says.
The average driving distance in the EU is 32.9km per day. In essence, what Frans shows is that your day-to-day journeys do not require 400 km of driving. And when they do, a little bit of planning and determination, can take you to Corsica and back.
