Long-term report: The Polestar 2 knows how to light things up

Growing up, you used to be able to recognise cars by their headlights. For me, it was cars like the MK2 Volkswagen Golf, or even models like the W211-generation Mercedes E-Class with its ‘double-bubble’ style headlights that you could spot and identify at night.

These days, it feels as though manufacturers are putting more emphasis on what their cars look like from the back, instead. Cupra and Volkswagen now have light-up rear badges, for example, while the full-width lightbar has become commonplace. You might argue that the Polestar 2 beat them all to the punch, mind you.

Because as I walked up to the 2 during the night recently, I realised that it has one of the most instantly recognisable rear lighting signatures around. It’s a car which is very easy to spot when you approach it in the dark, and I’ve been able to pick other Polestars out when driving at night, too.

That boomerang shape catches the eye easily and aside from a few other cars – like the latest 992-generation 911, for instance – it’s one of the few modern vehicles which is really easy to spot from a distance at night.

From the front, it’s a little less noticeable but I’m still very much in favour of the 2’s design. As I’ve mentioned in previous reports, a rear windscreen wiper would be a much-apperciated addition as, with all of the post-winter grit and grime accumulating at the rear of the car, it’s hard to keep things clean. I’ve been out with the spray and a cloth on numerous occasions just so I can see out of the rear of the 2, which feels like something of a backward step.

Speaking of cleaning, I’ve also been trying to keep the interior of the 2 looking as clean as possible, but it’s surprisingly difficult to do. There’s an area surrounding the gear selector which is a magnet for dust, but it’s hard to clean out and you’d only really be able to get it spotless with a clean paint brush which isn’t something I’ve often got to hand.

The seats, too, are finished in eco-friendly material which doesn’t clean up as easily as leather, despite feeling somewhat similar. When you’ve got a very large dog in the back (as I do frequently), this does make things trickier.

But one thing I can’t fault with the Polestar is its range and efficiency. Since around November-time, the 2’s readout has never slipped below a 330-mile full-charge readout and that makes for a very relaxing EV experience. In fact, the range is so good that I’ve only had to use public charging once in the last few months, relying instead on a full home charge which – for the most part – lasts a full week of general driving here, there and everywhere.

The Polestar app has been faultless, too, and it’s a breeze to use when you need to alter the charging limit or adjust the interior temperature. For instance, most of the time I set the car to charge to 80 per cent – it’s recommended to extend the life of the car’s batteries – but on the odd occasion when I know that I’m going to have to drive further, it’s easy to adjust that limit to 100 per cent via the app. The pre-heat function has also proved very useful during some recent cold snaps and again, it’s easy to activate via your smartphone.