By: Dave Abrahams
Gothenburg, Sweden - This, Swedish car fans, is the quickest street-legal car ever to come out of the Polestar skunk works.
The new S60 and V60 Polestar are powered by a two-litre Drive-E turbopetrol four that’s been given it a beef injection courtesy of a bigger turbo, a supercharger, new conrods, hotter camshafts, a larger air intake and a higher-capacity fuel pump.
All of which is good for a monumental 270kW and 470Nm - putting them in the same class as Mercedes' manic A45 AMG. It drives all four wheels via a tweaked-for-Polestar eight-speed Geartronic automatic gearbox and BorgWarner all-wheel drive.
The cars are directly derived from the Cyan Racing Volvo S60 Polestar TC1 World Touring Car racer, using the same base chassis and engine, with Polestar-calibrated electromechanical power steering, special 371mm slotted front brake discs and lightweight 20 inch alloy rims.
And, even with all the extra mechanicals on board, Polestar has managed to reduce the all-up weight of the cars by 20kg, using lightweight materials wherever possible.
“The core philosophy is the same,” said Polestar Cyan Racing race and development driver Thed Björk. “developed by people with the same passion - it's about creating usable performance.”
PROPERLY QUICK
“These cars are properly quick,” agreed Polestar boss Niels Möller, quoting a 0-100km/h time of 4.7 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h.
The two new 60 models also mark the start of an expansion programme for Volvo's performance brand; production is to double from 750 cars a year to 1500, and the number of markets where Polestar cars are sold will increase from 13 to 47.
Just 32 new Volvo S60 Polestar sedans are allocated to South Africa, for delivery in the third quarter of 2016, with pricing to be confirmed closer to the time.