Polestar Synergy Is the Single-Seat Electric Supercar We'll Never Have

Curiously, this concept car is not the result of a single project but of three. Swapnil Desai and Devashish Deshmukh created the exterior design, while Yingxiang Li conceived the interior of the car. Although Desai and Deshmukh are from India, they live in France, while Li is from China. Polestar decided to merge all their ideas into a single vehicle, which brings the names of these designers written on the cabin sides – as if they were their drivers in a race.

Sadly, the Synergy is not a working prototype: it is just a mockup, even if Polestar prefers to call it just a scale model. It would have been fantastic if the Swedish brand's excuse for the delay was related to changing its mind and making it a drivable machine. Being electric would make it even easier for this vehicle to move around – and Polestar had very interesting options on the shelves to do that.

The company's battery electric vehicles have very powerful motors. Check the Polestar 2: When it comes with a single motor, it delivers 299 hp (223 kW). The dual-motor configuration gives the driver 421 hp (314 kW). Although the Polestar 3 is pretty recent, it only comes with two motors but with high-performance options. The entry-level vehicle counts on 483 hp (360 kW), while the Performance Pack handles 510 hp (380 kW) to the driver. A one-off concept would not need more than that. It could also be very light with a small battery pack, enough for it to move on its own for short distances.

Polestar executives must have considered that it would be too much work for a vehicle that only had to materialize what the design contest winners conceived. In fact, the Swedish brand found another use for its scale model. The Synergy is also a symbol of the company's partnership with Mattel. Although the concept car is something nobody should be able to purchase, smaller scale models may allow some kids and collectors to have it as Hot Wheels toys.

After the 1:1 scale model leaves the IAA 2023, it will be shipped to the US. Polestar wants it to be one of the main stars at the Hot Wheels Legends Tour in El Segundo, California. The event will happen on October 7, after which it will tour several Polestar locations on American soil. It would not surprise anyone if the concept vehicle also visited some European Polestar Spaces.

Supposing the Synergy had any chance of becoming a real car, it would be sold in incredibly limited numbers for a small fortune. Such a halo car would depend not only on deep pockets but also on tiny and young drivers who can enter the 1.07-meter (42.1-inch) tall battery electric vehicle (BEV) without making a fool of themselves. Although it is 4.56 m (179.5 in) long, the main concern would be getting in and out of the Synergy. Some sports car fans often take too long to have enough money to enjoy them. When that happens, they are no longer flexible enough to do that graciously. Asking for help is often necessary, which makes these guys prefer expensive and comfortable SUVs. The Polestar 3 was certainly conceived with that in mind.

Although the Synergy is a mere possibility for the Hot Wheels catalog, the production vehicles from Polestar will undoubtedly be among those that the Mattel division plans to offer in smaller doses. We may even see them in the crazy derivatives that the toy company conceives. Maybe even the Polestar Design Contest 2022 winners will help Hot Wheels with them. Polestar did not mention if it plans to hire Desai, Deshmukh, and Li. Although the Swedish brand is controlled by Geely, its design studio is in Gothenburg, Sweden. Geely may have room to hire Li in one of its local studios in China.

Nowadays, all customers eyeing a high-performance Polestar are waiting for the Polestar 5, a vehicle that does not present a back window. That idea started with the Precept concept and made it to the production car. Polestar argues that it makes the vehicle lighter and more structurally rigid. That may become a distinct design feature in all future vehicles from the brand. For the record, the Synergy also presents it. Unfortunately, that will only make a difference for Hot Wheels die-cast models – if the concept car gets to meet any customers by being produced as smaller-scale models.