bpg
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Post by bpg on Jan 31, 2024 18:37:00 GMT
The black was just a reference to the number of black SUVs I see. Not a colour I would want again after my 'Panther Grey' - read black - Audi, harder to keep clean than a white car.
Anything just launching is worth a look, see how things are evolving. I'm still umming and arring about whether to change or not. The Focus did a grand job at the weekend moving crates of drinks, boxes of decorations and 18-21 year olds around for my daughter's birthday party, a milestone age. Pretty happy with it at the moment. The cost to change will keep me in petrol for around ten years* by which time we will be thinking about, or have, one car to replace the current cars.
*At current prices
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 10:38:26 GMT
It has frameless windows too. I like frameless windows.
And the interior lighting colour schemes are named after the planets. A bit like those ‘Moonswatches’ that created a stir in Instagram circles but probably less likely to fall apart on the way home.
I watched a video review by a chunky 1.88m German YouTuber, who looked quite happy in the back — to my eye at least as good in there as the CLS.
It’s probably just as well I can’t actually try one today. It’s tickling all the Take My Money buttons that I can’t quite match to the iX3 — competent and likeable as that is. I’m feeling that one of these would have enough design Easter eggs to get me over the wrench of parting with the CLS, even if it may not be such a rare sight on the roads.
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Post by Alanović on Feb 1, 2024 10:44:24 GMT
Not sure I'm ready for a car without a rear window.
The Luddite in me is strong sometimes.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 10:51:24 GMT
The more I think, the less it bothers me. The CLS is so long, and the rear window creates such a channelled view, that the interior mirror always seems to be set wrong anyway and I rely much more on the door mirrors. Reversing might be more of an adjustment, but cameras and automation are gradually taking that away. So maybe it’s a misplaced, last-century concern.
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Post by Alanović on Feb 1, 2024 10:55:11 GMT
Hmm. I just can't see it as an improvement. I'm even struggling to see it as "same as before". I just can't imagine thinking I wouldn't be better off with a window. Seems like a pointless gimmick to me.
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Post by Humph on Feb 1, 2024 10:57:32 GMT
Instinctively, it would bother me I suppose. Having said that, I often used to drive unreasonable distances with an estate car full of stuff that blocked the rear view mirror anyway and it didn’t ever seem to be a problem. Van drivers wouldn’t even think about it either.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 10:58:59 GMT
There is a point — or at least, it’s a consequence of a reasoned design decision . It’s to permit more passenger space, especially headroom, under an aerodynamic teardrop roof. Making space for a window would push the header rail forward, where it would encroach on the passengers’ heads.
And, as Humph points out, plenty of us have driven conventional vehicles with restricted rear views, without the compensation of the Polestar’s battery of cameras.
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bpg
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Post by bpg on Feb 1, 2024 11:00:43 GMT
Of more concern to me would be 800v Vs 400v question. Is that going to be the EV VHS Vs Betamax decision ?
The 4 is marketed as a coupé thing so medium to large dog owners need not apply. Just seems a bit daft to exclude a window on what opens as a hatch.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 11:03:43 GMT
The dog question is interesting. With light coming from above, in front and (there are tiny third side-windows) the sides, would a dog mind the absence of glass behind? It wouldn’t be like being in the boot of a saloon car.
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bpg
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Post by bpg on Feb 1, 2024 11:10:17 GMT
Dogs are nosey by nature and some breeds don't travel well at the best of times. Our dog is just like a mother-in-law on four paws, got to know what's going on, and the glass is just perfect for wiping his nose on with the rear window ledge being the perfect height to rest his chin on. He wouldn't be a happy chap stuck in a coal bunker with a skylight.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 11:19:15 GMT
Ah, fair enough then. A dog is only a faint possibility for us, but I suppose we’d have the option of a cage secured to a folded rear seat if the boot wasn’t to its liking.
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Post by Alanović on Feb 1, 2024 11:31:17 GMT
I don't like cameras instead of door mirrors, either.
I think these things are red lines for me. Sure, I expect they work for some folk, but I think I'm too far gone to adapt to such things, personally.
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bpg
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Post by bpg on Feb 1, 2024 11:41:07 GMT
Polestar next design step, replace the windscreen with a wide-screen TV and camera system.
Edit: Think of the savings on wiper blades, no need for a motor or linkages.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Feb 1, 2024 11:42:30 GMT
I’m actually with you on that. The view in a mirror changes as you move your eyes, which brings more useful information than a camera alone. And that matters more with door mirrors as they’re in free space with a wider potential field of view.
You’ll see from the 4 that Polestar agrees too. The frameless mirrors on the 2 are a delight to use, and the 4’s look similar, so no complaints there.
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bpg
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Post by bpg on Feb 1, 2024 11:45:37 GMT
The whole door mounted mirror body on the 2 moves rather than a sheet of glass on a mounting plate within a frame/body.
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