US buyers are snapping up the last 2026 Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 before the Connected Vehicle Rule cuts off new sales.
Michael Lohscheller isn’t sugarcoating the math as Polestar’s remaining 2026 inventory in the United States is nearly gone. After that, most of its current US lineup disappears from new-car showrooms. The Swedish-Chinese automaker’s CEO says the clearance run has been good for business.
Polestar’s US sales hit 2,160 vehicles in the third quarter, more than double the 966 units it moved a year earlier. That bump came from buyers racing to grab a Polestar 3 or Polestar 4 before the window closes for those models under the new rule.
Polestar 3 First Drive
The company is close to selling out its remaining model-year 2026 cars in the US, according to Lohscheller, who said US sales were strong in the quarter “as we are now selling the last model year 26 cars.” Reports tracking dealer listings pegged the nationwide count at roughly 150 vehicles at publication, a thin sliver of what Polestar once stocked.
The ban stems from the Commerce Department’s Connected Vehicle Rule, which targets vehicle software and hardware tied to China or Russia. Polestar is majority owned by Geely and built on Volvo underpinnings with Chinese manufacturing ties. Starting with the 2027 model year, the brand risks losing the ability to sell connected vehicles in the US, although regulators are still weighing compliance options, including a Polestar 2 that uses updated connectivity hardware.
Polestar says it will not contest the ban, a stance the company reiterated even as it pressed regulators for clarity on how the rule would be enforced. The automaker says its US service network and certified pre-owned program will keep running once most new-car sales stop, so existing owners aren’t left stranded.
2025 Polestar 4 First Drive
Polestar’s global third-quarter volume reached 14,371 units, up 1 percent from 14,222 a year earlier. The company credits the US clearance activity with American buyers driving demand ahead of the coming US limits.
Lohscheller pointed to brighter spots abroad too, saying the Polestar 5 “is seeing strong interest in the UK, with Germany and Scandinavia also showing demand.” First customer deliveries began earlier this year, while Polestar 4 SUVs have already been arriving in European markets for months.
The company lowered its full-year volume growth target in September after demand outside the US came in below earlier expectations. Production plans keep moving regardless as Volvo and Polestar plan to build the upcoming Polestar 7 compact SUV at Volvo’s future plant in Slovakia once that facility comes online.
Polestar reports full third-quarter financial results on November 5, which should clarify how the US clearance affected margins against that softer international backdrop.
For now, the brand’s American chapter for its current crop of connected models is ending on a selling spree, and it has left owners asking what comes next for service and warranty support. The end of most new-car sales doesn’t end the brand’s US presence entirely, just its ability to put another new Polestar 3 or 4 in a driveway.
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