The passenger compartment of the Polestar 3 remained stable in the frontal offset test.  Dummy readings indicated good protection of the knees and femurs of both front seat occupants.  Polestar showed that a similar level of protection would be provided to occupants of different sizes and to those sitting in different positions.  Analysis of the deceleration of the impact trolley during the test, and analysis of the deformable barrier after the test, revealed that the Polestar 3 would be a somewhat aggressive impact partner in a frontal collision. In the full-width rigid barrier test, protection was good for all critical body regions of the driver and at least adequate for the rear seat passenger.  In both the side barrier test and the more severe side pole impact, good protection was provided to all critical parts of the body and full points were scored. Control of excursion (the extent to which a body is thrown to the other side of the vehicle when it is hit from the far side) was found to be adequate. The Polestar 3 has a countermeasure to mitigate against occupant-to-occupant injuries in such impacts.  The centre airbag performed well in Euro NCAP’s tests with dummy readings indicating good protection for both the driver and passenger.  Tests on the front seats and head restraints demonstrated good protection against whiplash injuries in the event of a rear-end collision.  A geometric analysis of the rear seats also indicated good whiplash protection.   The car has an advanced eCall system which alerts the emergency services in the event of a crash, and a system to prevent secondary impacts after the car has been in a collision.  Polestar demonstrated that the doors and windows would be openable to allow occupants to escape in the event of vehicle submergence.

In both the frontal offset test and the side barrier test, protection of all critical parts of the body was good for both the 6 and 10 year dummies, and the Polestar 3 scored full points in this part of the assessment. The front passenger airbag can be disabled to allow a rearward-facing child restraint to be used in that seating position.  Clear information is provided to the driver regarding the status of the airbag and the system was rewarded.  The Polestar 3 is equipped with a direct 'child presence detection' system, which prevents the car from being locked if a child is detected.  All of the child restraint types for which the Polestar 3 is designed could be properly installed and accommodated in the car.

The Polestar 3 has an ‘active’ bonnet.  Sensors in the bumper detect when a pedestrian has been struck and actuators lift the surface of the bonnet to provide greater clearance to hard structures underneath.  Polestar demonstrated that the system worked robustly for various pedestrian statures and over a range of speeds and, accordingly, the car was tested with the bonnet in the raised ‘deployed’ position.  Protection of the head of a struck pedestrian good at almost all test points on the bonnet, and adequate on the windscreen with some poor results recorded on the stiff windscreen pillars.  Protection of the pelvis, the femur and the knee and tibia was mixed, with good protection at some test locations and poor protection at others.  The autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system of the Polestar can respond to vulnerable road users as well as to other vehicles.  The system’s response to pedestrians was good in all test scenarios, including protection of those to the rear of the car. The system’s performance in tests of its reaction to cyclists was also good , including its protection against ‘dooring’, where a door is suddenly opened in the path of a cyclist approaching from behind.  Performance of the AEB system was good in tests of its response to motorcyclists, with maximum points being scored.

Overall, the performance of the autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system was good in tests of its reaction to other vehicles, with impacts being avoided in most tests.  A seatbelt reminder system is fitted as standard to the front and rear seats.  The car has a direct driver status monitoring system as standard, detecting driver fatigue and several types of distraction.  The lane support system gently corrects the vehicle’s path if it is drifting out of lane and also intervenes in some more critical situations.  The speed assistance system identifies the local speed limit.  The driver can choose to allow the limiter to be set automatically by the system.