Journal 17

Polestar Precept

This has to do partially with what Precept is. What it isn't is a concept car, whose reason for existing is to show how cars could be in a future where both money and materials are inexhaustible. Precept is to show how cars should be. It's our roadmap for the future, an embodiment of Polestar's ambitions, and our commitment to a future which is more sustainable. It's the opposite of a concept car. It's a commitment car. It's the next step.

The press has picked up on it too. Even a cursory glance of the press clippings over the last few weeks shows that Precept is being recognized for what it is: a promise of a near future, rather than a vision of a distant one. See below:

“The Precept is a sharp-looking sedan, and while Polestar isn't talking performance just yet, it's easy to imagine a production-ready version of this electric car that absolutely hauls.” - The Verge

“Many of these concepts look at the distant horizon, but for 2020, Polestar is setting its sights on a slightly more immediate future.” -Roadshow by CNET

“Polestar announced a plan for its future interiors to feature sustainable, lightweight materials, and now we're seeing the first fruits of this labor.” - Motor Trend

“Compared to many concept cars, the Precept's interior design looks somewhat restrained and realistic.” - Car and Driver

It's created just as much buzz with the public. Polestar China hosted a one-hour panel program with key industry figures, discussing both the nuts and bolts of Precept along with what it symbolizes (and drawing in a viewership of almost 15 million).

And what Precept symbolizes is the next stage of electric mobility. One that isn't relegated to car show stages. Precept is a proof point: that sustainable interior and exterior materials can reduce waste and still look (and feel) premium. That in-car systems can be more responsive and intuitive than they've been up to now. That a design language is something that's constantly evolving. And most importantly, that all this is just around the corner.

This is arguably the most important point we're making with Precept. Changes need to happen, and they need to happen now. Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath has stated as such in a number of recent publications. “The way electrification is being implemented is not satisfying and is certainly too slow,” he said in an interview with Automotive News Europe. “We really should be talking about the next step.”

“Just reducing CO2 is the wrong focus,” he continues. “Let's face it. The question is not about reducing CO2, it's about removing it. The car that produces no CO2 is what we should be striving for.”

Emissions-free driving is often attacked by internal combustion holdouts who point out the emissions involved in the production of EVs. And they're not entirely without a point. But like the journey towards a fully electric future, the journey towards CO2 neutrality and complete sustainability is just that: a journey. Steps are being taken all the time, and each one that brings that future closer is worth discussing. Such as upcycling used and discarded materials to create interior and exterior car components, like the PET-bottles-to-3D-Knit Cinderella story seen in Precept. Or using sustainable materials that are already (literally) growing in the ground, such as the flax composites made by Swiss innovators Bcomp, also to be found in Precept.

To call Polestar Precept the “next step” is almost a little inaccurate. It's a step we're already taking. It's in the right direction. And we're hoping the industry will follow along.