Never tried it myself, or felt the need to, but ESC can be toggled to sports mode. I doubt it will make a huge amount of difference unless you are really pushing it:

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Never tried it myself, or felt the need to, but ESC can be toggled to sports mode. I doubt it will make a huge amount of difference unless you are really pushing it:

Yeah the sports mode does just toggle ESC off, so doesnt have any other affect on the drive, only that it wont try as hard to save you if you lose grip.

 

Having had a few volvo hire cars to fill the gaps of recalls and issues all the sports/eco button seemed to do was change the revs between the gearing, i.e. held the gear at I think 2500 rpm rather than 2000 rpm. This obviously doesn't apply to a direct drive motor.

I think it's really useful that only really applies full power when the pedals to the metal as it makes it very easy to control the speed. What I didn't like is switching from the hire car after driving it for 3 weeks to the polestar as the polestar barely moved at the same point of depression that the hire car would kick in to a lower gear. Hopefully you will adapt to the change otherwise I could see why that would be an annoyance.

I wonder how much is psychological too as my wife finds the lack of engine noise less sporty but definitely knows when I floor it.

As for the steering, I can't say I've noticed it when turning in at speed but I do when parking. The ESC only loosens the grip when putting your foot down when turning so it feels like it will slip a bit more but still feels quite controlled in my opinion.

 

I wonder how much is psychological too as my wife finds the lack of engine noise less sporty but definitely knows when I floor it.

Late model Porsche 911 (non-Turbo) pulled up behind me at a red light this morning (6:30 am, so no traffic). Had a glance at the driver in the rear view mirror, and he was ready to “go.” So we hustled away from the light, down some twisty roads near the house. I can confidently say that he was working to keep up with me in the PS2, even though it didn’t feel like I was pushing that hard. Eventually, got to a long straight and I hit the go pedal and he had had enough.

This car is heavy, but it’s powerful, torquey, all wheel drive, and solid suspension (PP Ohlins) so it moves. I’ve had MX5, GTI, 4 series BMW, and have spent time driving S2000, 911, and Panamera GTS. This car is as “sporty” as any of those cars. See the PS2 Nurburgring videos if you need more confirmation of the sport bona fides.

 

I've gotten used to the pedal feel, but initially it did feel sluggish. Setting the steering to firm also helped, but my last car had a very quick, very direct steering rack, so its still a bit sedate. Still, I've gotten used to it.

FWIW, Polestar has said "performance improvements" are on the roadmap. What that means is anyone's guess.

 

I will of course get used to the pedal, but I'm not really sure why Polestar decided to go out on a limb here as its quite unlike any cars i've driven before. I think they just messed up and are trying to fit an excuse around it.

Again, with the steering its a small gripe having again been used to something better, but I prefer a tighter action on the steering, meaning I can make almost any turns without having to keep shuffling my hands on the wheel.

 

I can barely drive my wife's car because the slightest press feels like going full gas, lol. I've grown appreciate that it's more linear and there's more control, especially with OPD on, but it's a bit dramatic when you're not used to it, especially considering how common it is for cars to really front load the pedal travel. I had to turn Creep on when I first picked it up just to help get going.

Hopefully they add some options in the future.

 

I've gotten to the point where I love how the pedal works. Now when I drive a normal car, I'm struck by how lurchy it is. There's no lack of sporty power when I want it and even beat cars at the drag strip.

All this being said, I hope they do offer different mapping for those who want it.

 

This, I find the car extremely easy to drive quick... just floor it where appropriate. It's not hard.

 

Exactly. I love the control we have, especially when parking near obstacles.

 

It's a 2.3 ton family car. Never going to feel like a lotus Elise or an M3.

Up to about 7/10 it's good fun but there is no steering feel to speak of or any sense of it moving around. The dog gets sick much above that...

 

If your car feels sluggish and non-sporty there might be a problem with it. This car is anything but.

 

It depends how you drive. You have to tune into the dynamics of the car and change accordingly. I can drive with just one pedal very smoothly and lots of experiments over the week mean I know when to lift off at various speeds to get down to a crawl and zero. Lift off at 85mph is much shorter than I thought it would be.

Once you have got the pedal feel and response you then have to deal with the fact it is a heavy car - expect tyre squel if you chuck it around. Next to no feel through the wheel so you have to rely on other signals - like your brain hitting your skull !

After 600 miles I am impressed at how throwable the car is. Not the niblest through tight bends like roundabouts or 90 degree bends but still, dare I say, fun? It is great getting some 4 wheel drift through fast roundabouts. Reminds me of my c4s. LOL.

As for speed - if it feels slow then you or the car at fault.

 

The professional drivers who have tested this car think that it is very responsive, both from a throttle and handling perspective. Any average driver who thinks otherwise must not know much about speed or handling.

 

I can agree on that the stearing could be more responsive. It's quite numb. Besides that and that it's a heavy car I must agree it can be sporty. Kryten22uk didn't tell us if he/she has PP with Conti SC6 or non PP with the Pirelly tires. The SC6 tires adds a lot to the sporty feel of the car.

 

I can agree on that the stearing could be more responsive. It's quite numb.

Steering feel has never been a Volvo strong suit. But the car remains surprisingly agile.

 

Hard to tell what the original poster is referring to, but it may be the same as some reviewers/reporters mentioned. Some erroneously state that the PS2 is not as fast as the Model 3/Y, but it actually is (besides the performance models). What I believe they are referring to is that initiall jarring most EVs give you, wheel spin, which the PS2 does not allow. The PS2 is just as fast as others 0-100 km/h but picks up speed after the initial acceleration. It's by design and makes for a composed, controlled drive.
To my taste, great job Polestar. I actually don't want to see any drive mode selections. It's all in your foot, the pedal mapping is fantastic. How many times have I seen posts of other EVs with the constant "which drive mode should I use". This car makes it simpler, up to the driver, not drive mode settings.

 

Hard to tell what the original poster is referring to, but it may be the same as some reviewers/reporters mentioned. Some erroneously state that the PS2 is not as fast as the Model 3/Y, but it actually is (besides the performance models). What I believe they are referring to is that initiall jarring most EVs give you, wheel spin, which the PS2 does not allow. The PS2 is just as fast as others 0-100 km/h but picks up speed after the initial acceleration. It's by design and makes for a composed, controlled drive.
To my taste, great job Polestar. I actually don't want to see any drive mode selections. It's all in your foot, the pedal mapping is fantastic. How many times have I seen posts of other EVs with the constant "which drive mode should I use". This car makes it simpler, up to the driver, not drive mode settings.

I'm no expert and don't speak car jargon fluently, so be kind please.
What strikes me as totally different from any other car I've driven, is just how darn fast this car goes without me feeling it.
Wife has yelled because of the speed I'm driving, when it feels like I'm barely trying.
It has the ability to feel like I'm driving at half the actual speed.
Every other car going at these speeds, definitely feels like it is doing that, which I might have considered "sporty" before.
Driving highway speed and feeling like I'm cruising, is disconcerting somewhat.
This could be interpreted to be less "sporty" and rather feels a lot more stealthy and dangerous.
I understand now just how much, for me, the auditory feedback attributed to my previous perception of "fast" . Quiet fast feels much slower, weird....
Surreptitious and deceptive, but the speedometer clearly shows the rapid and high speed, whether it behaves in a more traditional "sporty" way or not.

 

Having had a P2 and TM3 Performance the acceleration of the P2 is more refined. Booting the M3 gives you whiplash with a sudden smack in the neck, whereas the P2 feeds in gradually to begin with then takes off. I prefer the P2 and was happy to sacrifice a couple of tenths on the 0-60 for it.
Steering on both is a little numb I agree, but switch off all the safety goodies and its likely to kill you, just like the Tesla!

 

I totally agree with the OP - you need to press the P2 accelerator much further down for a decent response than other cars I've owned. Our XC90 T8 takes only a slight peddle press. When I go from that to our P2 it's sometimes embarrassingly slow to pull away. I would much prefer for it to respond to a lighter touch. I don't think it would affect parking etc. we have no issues creeping or parking in our XC90. I don't race about, I'm just talking about normal day to day driving.

 

Considering the power available in an EV compared to almost any ICE, this argument makes no sense. In an ICE, no matter how responsive the pedal is, you always have to wait for the rpms to rise, or a turbo to kick-in, or a lower gear to be selected. There is simply no delay in an EV. You get as much as you want whenever you want. You are in direct control. No ICE has that type of linear control curve.

 

I've had my P2 for a few days now, and whilst it might technically be quite a fast car, it was very apparent to me when I drive (and even my non-car-loving wife said!) how unsporty it is. You have to be quite club-footed with the accelerator to get any sort of response, and the steering is waaaay too long.

As far as I can tell, there aint no 'sport' or 'dynamic' mode, to quicken everything up a bit, as its stuck in grandma mode. Even my Volvo XC90 has a dynamic mode which quickens the throttle response!

I'm not sure you are driving the same car as me. I had the bank vault cleaned out yesterday before the alarm went off. I'm on the beach at the moment.

Firstly I have noticed the throttle response does change if I have my seat too far back.
Second the car is so quiet I don't realize how fast I am going until I check my speed. I use cruise to keep the speeding tickets away.
Toss all the loose items out of your car, find a windy section of road you know well and give-R!

 

So my wife has a much more succinct description, she says the ‘accelerator peddle is not sensitive’ but we both still love the P2 and overall both prefer it to the Volvo.

 

And that lack of sensitivity can be a really good thing. Electric motors have far more torque available at low speeds and that torque can be applied much more quickly than in an ICE car. If you are backing out of a small garage (or moving slowly in any confined area), you want some pedal "play" otherwise the car will be quite jerky and lurch.

People who can't finesse the pedal just really aren't that good at driving (there, I said it).

 

At delivery in December, the accelerator was a lot more jumpy than it is after applying the most recent 2 OTA upgrades; my conclusion is that they tweaked the accelerator pedal mapping a bit.

I've gotten used to it, so when I drive my XC70 T6, I lurch forward from a stop 😬. I think the P2 provides more control, even if I do have to depress the pedal farther. Planting it still knocks me back in my seat, and the suspension keeps it amazingly flat in the turns: it has less body roll than anything I've ever driven, which is amazing for such a heavy car.

So yeah, it's not like a lightweight sports car (such as the aforementioned Lotus ), but for a sedan I'm very pleased.

 

not sure what “sporty” means really.
i just know I need a lot of self regulation to not constantly speed in this thing.
I think the pedal mapping and torque response is basically the converse of what’s expected from an ICE. Between that and the generally quiet and effortless operation, the car ends up being sneaky fast, at least for me while I drive. So long as traffic allows I’m almost routinely now 20-30+ mph of the speed limit here, not on purpose.

 

I like the exact precision I can get with the throttle mapping in the P2. I can creep along at 1 foot per hour (seems like) or slap my head into the headrest and get to 100mph in seconds, but I can also get just about any other speed and acceleration level I want with the linear and long pedal range. I really like having that level of control, and I can stomp to the floor pretty quickly if I want full blast takeoff. I'm very happy with the way the engineers set up the pedal travel mapping personally.

 

This.

I'm not surprised some initially find the throttle response sluggish, but you do get used to it and I prefer it now. During my initial test drive, I knew it had a ton of power and torque and so tried to ease the car forward when indicated to follow the lead car. I started pushing, kept push, looked over at my partner like "is this thing even on" and then it slowly started moving forward.

Thing is, it's much more efficient to slowly accelerate and this pedal mapping helps promote that, but once you're used to how far you need to mash the pedal to get the intended response, acceleration is instant when you need it.

I really hope they don't modify the default, but if they want to create some "sport" mode that reduces the pedal travel required, fine, I just wouldn't ever use it.

 

I haven’t got mine yet, so can’t comment personally. Top Gear, however seem quite complimentary about the performance and handling.

I guess everyone wants different things from a car and we all perceive things differently. After seeing / reading what was said, I’m certainly getting excited

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Polestar 2

Top Gear video review

 

I'm happy with the PS2 throttle response. The torque is there, and I won't be crying after 7000 Kms because the tires turned into Formula 1 slicks

 

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Once you are used to the throttle travel (I like OPD) it becomes second nature. Electric car dynamics are going to be different, rather than a huge heavy lump at the back, front (or if you have lots of money, the middle), an electric car has the weight low and spread (normally) along the length of the car. Plus at the moment, its a LOT of weight.
Whilst I find the handling a little 'dead' its also very well balanced, though I still find it very enjoyable to drive.
The weirdest thing is the nature of Electric power delivery, you get a punch in the spine on initial launch, but then it starts to feel like nothing is happening, then you are doing 100Mph .Since there are no gear changes and its just smooth acceleration, the sensation I was used to in an ICE is gone. Definitely need to re-calibrate my own senses, as suddenly doing 100Mph without really realising it is far too easy.

 

hmm well yes... This is not the normal tone of conversation we have here. every one is entitled to an opinion, and we all seem to be agreeing here but talking about different things

Yes the mapping of the Accelerator is what contributes to the fell of sportiness more that anything, for ages small ICE cars have front loaded the accelerator to give a feeling of ZIP as you pull away from the lights (Fiesta) this will rapidly drop as you move through the pedals travel.

The reason that many @Sports@ cars remap the accelerator using @Sport@ settings is to allow you to select a mode that makes the car feel the way you want it to in a particular situation.

When driving around town, having that initial post can make for a spotter and more commanding drive, others may find that it is to "jerky" and potentially aggressive for town driving.

This is all preference, and one of the things that we can/should get with a car that is so programmable is the ability to adjust it to preference.

As you know I play guitar (badly) but I like a guitar with a lower action to facilitate how I play, I don't like a gloss neck as I find it sticky. None of this is set best practice it preference.

I think adding different drive modes is a not unreasonable option. I often change the mode on my 3 series depending on how I am driving and I am aware that I could achieve the same by using manual mode and a heavier foot.

However to say that the Polestar is not sporty is to deny that it has been rated by many reviewers and drivers here as particularly sporty for its class, it just demands a way of driving that is different to an ICE.

 

I'm gonna have to reserve judgement on this for when mine arrives, but I was sure glad of the tame throttle response on my test drive, pulling out of a busy shopping centre (Trafford Centre, Manchester) car park, hving never driven even an automatic car before, let alone an electric. And I didn't get any chance to throw it around on the drive itself, or drive in any way sporty, but we'll see. I'm coming from a 4.2L Audi S5, which has a lovely, delicate throttle, so it's probably going to be a fairly drastic change, but it felt pretty natural from the moment I sat in the car really. Just had to give it a bit more right foot to get going properly.