On the Dash:
- Polestar estimates Q3 retail sales at 14,371, up 1% year over year, with nine-month sales reaching 44,790.
- Sales excluding the U.S. fell 8% in Q3 and 0.5% through the first nine months.
- Polestar 5 customer deliveries have begun, while the Polestar 4 expands the brand’s reach into the European D-SUV segment.
On October 8, the Swedish EV maker Polestar reported estimated global retail sales of 14,371 vehicles in the third quarter of 2026, up 1% from 14,222 vehicles sold during the same period last year. Through the first nine months of the year, the EV maker estimated retail sales at 44,790 vehicles, up 0.6% from 44,511 in the prior-year period.
CEO Michael Lohscheller called the third quarter the company’s strongest yet, even as Polestar navigated increasingly challenging market conditions. Polestar cautioned that its 2026 retail sales figures remain estimates and may change as more data becomes available.
Although the EV maker began customer deliveries of the Polestar 5, the latest addition to its premium EV lineup, the company aims to use to reach a broader segment of customers. Lohscheller said the start of deliveries marked an important milestone for the EV maker. However, the company didn’t disclose how many Polestar 5 vehicles it delivered during the quarter.
Meanwhile, the Polestar 4 broadened the company’s portfolio and gave Polestar another avenue to grow beyond its existing customer base. Lohscheller said the model extends Polestar’s reach to new customer groups entering the D-SUV segment, which he described as the largest and most dynamic in the European premium EV market.
Reporting now excludes the U.S.
Polestar also began reporting retail sales excluding its U.S. business after U.S. authorities recently made a decision on the Connected Vehicle Rule. Excluding the U.S. market, Polestar’s Q3 retail sales totaled an estimated 12,211 vehicles, down 8% from 13,256 a year earlier. For the first nine months, sales outside the U.S. reached 40,773 vehicles, down 0.5% from 40,968 in the same period last year. Even with those declines outside the U.S., total global sales still edged up, which reflects modest overall growth.
As the EV maker enters Q4, the company is delivering the Polestar 5 to customers while expanding the reach of the Polestar 4, and global sales for the first nine months remain slightly above last year’s level. Polestar said its new models are designed to attract additional customer groups, so dealers and investors will now watch whether the expanded lineup translates into stronger sales growth through the rest of 2026.
