Polestar 3 sets new EV range record with 581-mile drive

The Polestar 3 has claimed a Guinness World Record for the longest trip on a single charge by an electric SUV, travelling almost 600 miles.

The unmodified Polestar 3 Long Range Single Motor managed to cover 581.3 miles on a single charge on UK public roads with a trio of efficiency driving specialists at the wheel.

Sam Clarke, Kevin Booker and Richard Parker eked out the large SUV’s energy efficiency to 5.13 miles per kWh – significantly better than its official WLTP figure of 3.53m/kWh

The epic 23-hour drive also saw the newly released long-range version of the Polestar 3 cover 143 miles more than its official range. The car hit its WLTP range of 438 miles with an indicated 20% left in the 111kWh battery and went on to cover an extra eight miles even after the range indicator hit zero.

The drive saw the trio begin in Norwich and tackle “mostly flat A and B roads” along with the occasional stretch of dual carriageway in their pursuit of the new world record.

Kevin Booker, who now holds five world records for driving efficiency, said: “Setting this record alongside Sam and Richard is a great achievement – especially in a large SUV such as the Polestar 3. There’s always jeopardy, and our attempt could have been hampered by the adverse weather conditions and traffic we experienced – there was a lot of standing water during part of the day, meaning more resistance from the tyres and lower efficiency. But, finishing up on 0% at nearly one o’clock in the morning knowing we’d beaten previous records was a fantastic feeling.”

Sam Clarke, who recently set the electric motorbike world record with Verge, added: “Since we first started setting records, we have noticed how much more driving it is taking to achieve them. While we aim to push the car to the limits the car is also pushing us to our limits. I am pleased to be setting the first electric SUV journey record, and to do it in such a capable EV like the Polestar 3 has been a real pleasure.”

Matt Galvin, Polestar UK managing director said the new record had consigned to the history books the idea that EVs can’t travel far. He added: “While Kevin, Sam and Richard pushed the Polestar 3 to the boundaries of its range capability, it goes to show how battery range has improved exponentially over the past few years. For a large luxury SUV to go way beyond a London-to-Edinburgh distance is truly impressive.

“When this achievement is coupled together with real world independent tests such as Norway’s El Prix winter range test earlier in the year where the Polestar 3 Long Range Dual Motor won against 23 other electric vehicles, it goes to show: long distances are perfectly achievable with minimal fuss.”

While the Polestar 3 has claimed an impressive new world record for electric SUVs, it still has some way to go to match the longest-range electric car ever – a Lucid Air GT which managed a staggering 748 miles on one charge of its 112kWh battery.