Revealing its new electric performance SUV, the Polestar 3 brings sustainability and design edge into a new age. Habitus editor Aleesha Callahan chats with Nahum Escobedo to learn about the design language and process that brought it to fruition.

With distinctly Scandinavian minimalism at its core, Polestar is a new generation of electric vehicle brands shaking up expectations. Adding to the electric vehicle revolution, the Swedish company recently revealed its soon-to-be-released Polestar 3, which will be hitting Australian shores in 2024.

Senior exterior designer Nahum Escobedo shares insights about the design process that went into creating the sleek and refined curves of the new SUV model.

“Our process is very unique and very exciting. Now with electrification and designing electric cars, it’s a very different structure, it’s a different way of thinking. Before you even start designing something, you have to become aware of what kind of technology you’re dealing with. That’s before we even put pen to paper, which is a very interesting process because this opens up creativity.

“The more you read about all of these technologies, it really paints a picture. And as a designer, you start to ask questions like: ‘I wonder if I should have this sort of setting, I wonder if I should change the way the lamp functions.’ You get very, very creative,” says Escobedo on the freedom that comes with designing for a new paradigm.

[RELATED: How does the Polestar drive, and what is the closed loop material logging model?]

While the evolution towards more sustainable vehicles brings sweeping changes with it, there is also an element of not wanting to alienate drivers. This was another consideration in the development of the Polestar 3, as Escobedo shares: “If you come up with something so drastic, I don’t know if people will be able to accept it. For us, we have made some conscious decisions. For instance, the Polestar 3 is not a typical seven-seater SUV or your typical sportscar, we’re doing something a little bit different, more in-between. We’re gradually making changes so that people can get used to it.”

The Polestar 3 is pitched as a combination of an SUV with definitive sportscar styling. This means the seats are lower to the ground to give the experience of a performance drive while having the higher clearance of an SUV. One sacrifice to achieve this is a smaller rear window, and when asked about the choice, Escobedo muses that maybe in the future we won’t even need them at all. Of course, this is only possible because of the large dashboard screen, and satellite-enabled cameras.

The decisive direction of the Polestar 3 puts design front and centre. “We came to the conclusion that we have a very unique setup, so we have to push and see how far we can get to with this and the more we developed this idea, we became aware that this is something unique,” says Escobedo.

The Polestar 3 is a testament to a design philosophy that pushes boundaries while embracing sustainability, setting the stage for a future where luxury and conscience coexist seamlessly.

Explore the specs in more detail at polestar.com/global/polestar-3

We think you might be interested to read more about how the Polestar drives.