No rear window is no problem for Polestar 4, says car-maker

When the 2024 Polestar 4 arrives in Australia in August, priced from just over $81,000, each and every example of the all-new mid-size electric SUV will come with a solid steel rear ‘windscreen’ – instead of a traditional glass one – that you can’t see through.

Instead, there’s a camera on the back that streams live footage to a high-definition screen where the interior rear-view mirror would normally be.

Polestar says the camera provides better rear vision than a conventional camera – or mirror – and that the deletion of a glass rear window creates more rear headroom along with a luxurious ‘business-class’ experience.

As well as digital interior rear-view mirrors, many car brands now offer digital door/wing mirrors, but they have been criticised because drivers need to train their eyes to look at small monitors in different locations to the exterior mirrors.

But the Polestar 4 will bring something that’s never been seen in a modern passenger vehicle and it could put customers off.

Polestar’s global head of product communications, Brent Ellis, acknowledged that and said it would be “a very knee-jerk reaction, but understandably so”.

However, based on the huge number of Polestar 4 orders already received Down Under it seems Aussies are ready to embrace a brave new rear windowless world.

“It’s fantastic technology and it’s something you’ve just got to get used to,” conceded Ellis, who said that the camera system’s pros outweighed its cons.

But he also confirmed the lack of a rear window would only apply to Polestar’s coupe-like models… for now.

“This is the strategy for coupe body styles, so Polestar 4, Polestar 5. Polestar 3 with more of its vertical hatchback, it doesn’t need that. Now could we be like tons of other OEMs and put a digital rear-view mirror but still have that rear window? I don’t know at this point.

“But the key factor here is because we can use the camera and the digital rear-view mirror… to get rid of that rear window in a coupe body style, we can push the bulkhead back and create more headroom, add a bigger glass roof that stretches farther back and deliver a beautiful, cosseting, business-class experience,” said Ellis.

We had the chance to sit in the back of the Polestar 4 recently and it certainly is a very different sensation without a rear window, while the power-adjustable rear seats add a premium touch.

The rear-view camera set-up also provides a much wider field of view than a conventional mirror, however, we didn’t get to drive the new Polestar 4 – only poke around inside it while stationary.

We’ll be driving the new Polestar 4 in April, at which point we’ll be able to provide an independent critique of how the bold new set-up works – during both day and night driving.

“We’ve done some night driving and that is particularly impressive because you’ve got the HDR screen and then the colour, the sharpness and the contrast is there,” he said.

“You’re not getting glare from headlights because the camera can adjust its exposure so you actually seeing the traffic behind you absolutely crystal clearly, and you’re also seeing the environment not just other cars,” insisted the Polestar exec.

Indeed, Ellis believes the system is so good that negative feedback from owners will be minimal, although he admits that longer test drives will be crucial in proving to customers the tech works.

“That’s also something that our retail teams are taking into account because, you know, taking a test drive for five minutes around the block, that’s not going to be enough,” he said.

“So it’s about consumer education, sales people understanding how the technology works. Technology can be intimidating but you’ve got to give it a chance as well.”

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