The electric car brand Polestar’s days in the US are seriously numbered. Today, the company revealed that the US Commerce Department has declined to authorize imports of new Polestars from model year 2027 onward as part of a rule banning connected cars from automakers with Chinese links.
Polestar says it will continue to sell its existing stock of Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 SUVs and “will continue to support customers, including providing access to its service network.” But we can forget about the Polestar 5 sedan, the Polestar 6 roadster, or any future models making it to these shores.
The automaker was spun out of Volvo Cars several years ago as a pure EV brand by its corporate parent, Zhejiang Geely Holding, a Chinese company that also owns OEMs like Lynk and Co and Zeekr. And just weeks ago, Commerce authorized Volvo to import MY27 vehicles. At the time, Polestar told Ars that it was continuing to work with US authorities to meet the regulations; that work was evidently in vain.
US domestic auto manufacturing interests have been wildly successful in raising support for protectionist measures from across the political spectrum, although ironically, the Polestar 3 SUV is built in South Carolina at the Volvo plant near Charleston. Polestar 4s destined for the US were built in South Korea, although much of Polestar’s manufacturing is in China.
“The automotive industry is entering a new phase, based on regional dynamics. Our strategy reflects that, with Europe being our largest growth engine and our plan to manufacture Polestar 7 in Europe,” said Michael Lohscheller, Polestar’s CEO. “Our record sales in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026 show that we are making strong progress, with several new market launches taking place in Europe this year. In addition, we will continue to invest in markets where we have opportunities to continue to grow, like Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Canada.”
