The Sounds in Polestar

In the U.S. it will be about another year until the Polestar 2, an electric sedan that is, not surprisingly “designed to compete with the Tesla Model 3,” will be available. (There is a Polestar 1, but that is a limited-edition model, with the 2 being made for a larger market.) The Polestar 2 has two electric motors—one in the front and one in the back—for a total 300 kW of power and has a targeted range of 275 miles. Polestar is spun out of Volvo, which is owned by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, so suffice it to say that the odds are exceedingly good that there will be a Polestar 2, that it isn’t a cloud car destined to disappear in a puff of nothingness.

One of the things about electric vehicles that’s different than traditional internal combustion engine-powered vehicles is that because there is no engine noise, the sound in the cabin is more apparent. Which is probably why the company is working with Dirac, a Swedish audio company, and Harman Kardon, the audio system supplier that is seemingly ubiquitous in the automotive space.

The audio company is using its Dirac Unison system with the Harman hardware; it measures the listening space and based on that information is able to precisely optimize the impulse and frequency response of each speaker. In addition to which it has an approach to bass management that is said to be particularly unified and tight within the cabin.

Dirac Unison system improves sound. (Image: Dirac)

According to Lars Carlsson, Dirac General Manager of Automotive Audio, “It is sophisticated digital audio that will allow the autonomous vehicle cabin to transform into a mobile home theater, conference room, and entertainment center – each of which is inherently reliant on exceptional sound quality.”

We look forward to hearing it. Next year.