Polestar 2 Bows Out in China After 200,000 Units, New Successor Due in 2027

The Polestar 2 has quietly reached the end of the line in Luqiao, China. More than six years after the electric fastback first entered production there, the last examples have reportedly rolled off the line, closing a chapter that built the brand from scratch.

Polestar hasn’t issued a formal announcement yet. That hasn’t stopped it from steering European buyers toward cars already in stock instead of taking fresh factory orders — a softer but telling signal that configurable builds are done.

From Volvo sketch to volume seller

Built in Luqiao since March 2020, the 2 racked up just over 200,000 units in China, with Polestar having previously claimed more than 190,000 sales worldwide. The car’s DNA is older than the badge: it started life as the Volvo 40.2 concept shown back in 2016, while its showroom sibling, the 40.1 study, grew into the XC40.

Norway, unsurprisingly, became a second home. Over 16,000 Polestar 2s found Norwegian owners, and Polestar Norge has credited the model with powering its early foothold in the market.

The biggest technical shake-up came in 2024, when Polestar shifted several key versions from front- to rear-wheel drive and reworked the powertrain underneath.

The successor will not be a facelift

A replacement is slated to arrive in early 2027, and Polestar has already made clear it will be an entirely new car rather than a heavy refresh. Norwegian outlet TV 2 Broom reports it will take the form of a crossover, though the company has stayed quiet on body style, platform and where it will be assembled.

Polestar 2 in numbers: 200,000+ units built in Luqiao · Production from March 2020 · 190,000+ global sales · 16,000+ sold in Norway · Successor arriving early 2027

The timing is awkward. One of Polestar’s most recognisable products is leaving the stage before its stand-in is ready, leaving dealers to work through stock.

A tricky handover

The model change lands in the middle of a busy reset at Polestar. First-half 2026 global sales edged up just 0.4 per cent to 30,423 vehicles, while revenue slipped roughly four per cent to 1.36 billion US dollars — offset by a substantially smaller operating loss.

For the full year, the company trimmed its growth outlook from low double digits to a low-to-mid single-digit range, pointing to the Polestar 2’s wind-down and shifts in its US business as factors.

That US picture is getting harder. Under the Connected Vehicle Rule, Polestar will be barred from selling new cars there from model year 2027. With roughly 80 per cent of sales now coming from Europe, the continent carries more weight than ever for the next generation.

There have been bright spots. Polestar opened 2026 with 13,126 vehicles sold in the first quarter — its strongest Q1 to date — before the pace cooled.

Meanwhile, the Polestar 4 SUV, launched in September 2026, is already rolling out of Busan, South Korea. Ordering is open, but European customers are in for a wait: first deliveries start in the fourth quarter of 2026, and the German configurator currently shows a January–February 2027 window.

For a brand whose first all-electric model was the 2, this is more than routine housekeeping. Whatever replaces it has to carry real technical weight — and hold the line while Polestar reshapes its line-up and leans further into Europe.