Volvo’s Polestar hot rods have been around for awhile, but they’re still rare, and the idea of a high-performance Volvo painted acid-trip blue is still very amusing.
Both the 2017 Volvo S60 Polestar sedan and V60 Polestar wagon get a thorough refresh for the new model year. They look basically the same on the outside, but underneath there’s a new 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine from Volvo’s “Drive-E” line, replacing the old 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six.
The new engine is both turbocharged and supercharged, and produces a stout 367 horsepower. That’s 27 hp more than the old engine, although torque decreases from 369 pound-feet to 346 lb-ft. All-wheel drive and an eight-speed automatic transmission are mandatory.
Both cars will now do 0 to 62 mph in 4.7 seconds, cutting 0.3 second from the old versions. Top speed is still limited to 155 mph. The quicker acceleration is due not only to the extra power, but also some weight loss. Volvo says both models are 44 pounds lighter than before. Polestar also retuned the cars’ electric power steering, and added larger front brake rotors.
Since it purchased Polestar last year, Volvo has schemed to turn it into a full-on performance sub-brand like BMW M or Mercedes-AMG. That process will start with larger production runs. Volvo plans to grow Polestar sales from 750 units last year (just 265 cars were imported to the U.S.) to 1,500 in the medium term. Polestar started out as an independent company building performance parts for Volvo, and was eventually contracted to manage its racing and performance road-car operations before being bought outright.
Eventually, the Swedish manufacturer also plans to introduce more models, including some with plug-in hybrid powertrains. Right now, Volvo offers the same T8 “Twin Engine” powertrain in the XC90 crossover and S90 sedan, so it seems logical that those models could be the first Polestar plug-in hybrids. They probably look good in blue.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.