Polestar’s Formula 2030 Lets Owners Program Eight Physical Controls for Daily Use

Polestar’s concept cars have a way of reaching the road. The polestar formula 2030 show car continues that pattern. The Precept, a four-door GT revealed online in 2020 after the Geneva Motor Show was canceled, became the Polestar 5. Nahum Escobedo, who designed the Precept’s exterior, now heads exterior design across the brand.

The polestar formula 2030 is the first show car from head of design Philipp Römers, who joined from Audi in 2024. Polestar calls it the physical manifestation of its wider Formula 2030 strategy. It previews the next Polestar 2, due in 2027, and the Polestar 7, which follows a year later.

Concept cars often preview what automakers build next, and Acura’s latest show car makes a similar case. Acura Nexera Vision: Performance and Innovation at Monterey offers another look at that concept-to-road pipeline.

Polestar Formula 2030 proportions and stance

Polestar lists the Formula 2030 at 4,680 mm (184.3 inches) long, 2,021 mm (79.6 inches) wide, and 1,350 mm (53 inches) tall. The wheelbase measures 2,780 mm (109.4 inches). The roof sits lower than the Polestar 5 grand tourer. The car is slightly shorter than a Tesla Model 3.

The proportions follow a classic four-door sports car recipe. The long hood and short overhangs frame a cabin pushed back over large rear haunches, on 22-inch wheels. Polestar says the car sits “somewhere between” the Polestar 2 and the Polestar 7 in size.

At the front, the Dual Blade headlights sit inside an aero wing above a shark nose and a deep splitter. Polestar says this face previews the next Polestar 2. A central spine ties the splitter to the body. A single vertical windshield wiper, a motorsport touch, sits on a visor-style windscreen that echoes the original Polestar 2.

The LiDAR unit hides under an aerodynamic shroud. It rises into view only when the car drives itself, so the roofline stays clean when a driver is in control.

Single Blade lights and a see-through trunk

Polestar removes the full-width light bar common on EVs and fits Single Blade taillights instead. The brand says these lights arrive ahead of series production. The graphic angles down toward the road. The rear glass wraps into the shallow side windows, interrupted only by a C-pillar. Polestar calls the rear “UFO-esque,” and Escobedo says the goal was to stay recognizable while challenging expectations.

The rear doors hinge at the back, and there is no B-pillar. Opening both sides exposes all four individual seats. Lift the rear clamshell and the trunk floor is transparent, with custom Polestar bags held in place by gold straps. Öhlins dampers are on display there too.

The frunk fits two race helmets and a fire extinguisher. A gold strut brace frames the space.

Eight physical controls in a cabin that changes shape

The driver faces a 20-inch HyperDIM, a curved Driver Information Monitor mounted directly on the steering column. A 12.2-inch center screen sits in a gently rising center tunnel. Drivers select one of three modes by sliding a selector forward across the console.

The cabin reshapes itself for each mode. In Autonomous, the center screen stays upright while the seat and steering wheel move apart. In Performance, the screen sinks flush into the console, and the steering wheel and HyperDIM move toward the driver’s chest. Polestar says this layout suits enthusiastic driving.

Below the center screen sits a panel of eight physical controls. Owners can choose rocker switches or rotary controllers for each slot, and they can program hot keys for their own functions. Polestar calls the setup a mechatronics solution. Juan Pablo Bernal, head of interior design, says the brand is rebalancing digital and physical controls to reach what he calls a “tactile harmony” for its premium positioning. Google Gemini handles voice commands, as it does in Polestar’s production cars.

Physical controls are back in fashion, and programmable keypads show how far that idea can go. Logitech MX Keypad with Nine Custom LCD Buttons is a useful comparison for anyone curious about tactile, reconfigurable inputs.

Nitrogen paint and a flax-based interior

Nitrogen is a new exterior color made for the polestar formula 2030 concept. Polestar says it reacts dynamically to natural light. It runs across the body, side cladding, splitter, diffuser, and wheels. Swedish Gold appears on the Brembo calipers and the luggage straps.

The seat backs use European flax and bio-based polypropylene in a grid weave. The exposed seat frames and cross-car beam are left visible on purpose. The exposed seat frames and cross-car beam use low-emission galvanized steel. The cargo area uses Bcomp’s natural-fiber composite.

Polestar has not released any powertrain details. Electrek reports that the company gave no battery size, range, power output, or price. Polestar has confirmed that design elements from the polestar formula 2030 will reach the next Polestar 2 in 2027 and the Polestar 7 in 2028. InsideEVs also reports that Polestar cannot sell model year 2027 and newer vehicles in the United States. It can still sell existing earlier-model inventory and support current owners.

The real test for the polestar formula 2030 comes with the Polestar 2 and Polestar 7. Those cars must keep the sharp stance and the physical controls to prove that the show car’s ideas made it to the showroom.

Via yankodesign.com

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