Polestar 2 now offers a Bowers & Wilkins sound system option – this is how it sounds

Bowers & Wilkins is one of the most respected names in British Audio, known for its handmade floorstanding speakers and, more recently, its audiophile headphone range. The move into car audio is perhaps a natural one in today’s market, but it’s one that has been carefully executed.

The brand has partnered with a few select auto manufacturers that match the style of the brand. These are brands that are happy to work with B&W to create the right sound, without having to hide away their efforts. This has included BMW, Aston Martin, and, more recently Volvo and Polestar.

The systems tend to feature in only the high-end or flagship models, appearing in Volvo’s top-of-the-range EX90 electric SUV and the flagship Polestar 3. Now, though the system is trickling down to other models and has been made available for the first time in the Polestar 2, the company’s first all-electric model and its most popular car to date.

The sound system inside each model varies, depending on the space and the grade of vehicle. Among the most extensive is the system in the BMW iX, with a total of 30 speakers and 1410W of power. The systems on the Polestar 3 and Volvo EX90 are even more powerful, even with a few fewer speakers in the headrests.

Polestar 2 system

The system on the new version of the Polestar 2 isn’t as powerful or as equipped with the number of speakers as these premium models, but it’s impressive all the same. It has 14 speakers in total and is controlled by a 12-channel amp with 1320W of power.

The Bowers & Wilkins sound system for the Polestar 2 costs an additional £1,800 and is only available on the Long Range Dual Motor version, which starts at £51,160. It’s a similar setup to the Volvo XC60, the mid-size plug-in hybrid, and in many ways, the Aston Martin DB12 setup. So can Bowers still provide the same quality of sound in a more affordable car setup?

The giveaway to the presence of the Bowers & Wilkins sound system is right in the middle of the dashboard. The central tweeter, with the Nautilus design, has a cone extending back from it like a comet’s tail. It’s this and the two additional double dome tweeters that give the B&W system its clarity. The same three-tweeter setup is used in the BMW iX, but there it uses a diamond cone. For the Polestar 2, as with all other systems, we get an aluminium cone.

Bowers uses a material called Continuum for its cone material. While originally it used Kevlar, this new woven material is designed to be lightweight but much stronger than the paper construction of most speaker cones. The Polestar 2 uses Continuum in the 80mm and 2x 100mm mid-range speakers.

For the bass notes, the B&W system uses a Fresh Air design for the 200mm Woofer and 250mm subwoofer. This is an air-ventilated design that is built into the bodywork to allow it to move more air and therefore create extremely low bass.

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The sound system offers a range of adjustments, including an advanced multi-band equaliser in addition to the standard treble, bass and subwoofer sliders. Under sound experiences, it offers a Studio mode, which allows you to focus the sound for either just the driver, the front, rear or all passengers. There’s also a surround sound mode and room settings to recreate the acoustics of the Gothenburg concert hall (large reverb) or the Nefertiti jazz club (small reverb).

What doesn’t feature on the Polestar 2 is the new Abbey Road Studio mode, which has been created in partnership with the engineers at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London – the first ever dedicated music studio, and home to some of the biggest musical hits from The Beatles to Ezra Collective, as well as some of the most epic music scores. This mode, which recreates the sounds from those studios, is currently only available on the Polestar 3 and Volvo EX90.

The sound experience

Using an Android Automotive operating system, the Polestar 2 requires a wired connection to link to Apple CarPlay or Android Auto – rather than over WiFi, which is now more common. However, this is the easiest way to access your music, as the built-in Music player is fairly basic. There’s also no Dolby Atmos support in this model, which is a shame.

Straight off the bat, the sound is impressive from this Bowers & Wilkins system. Vocals are clear, there’s plenty of volume and tons of bass. I played through a range of tracks in my collection – ones I’ve used to analyse the quality of many a car audio system.

One thing I did notice was that the highs didn’t feel as crisp as those in the Volvo EX90 or BMW iX. It’s something that always stood out to me in B&W setups, and even increasing the treble here, I couldn’t get it to cut through quite the same way.

There’s no denying that bass, though, giving you a full, rich bass sound that envelops you as you drive – or sit and listen while parked up, in my case. Crank that subwoofer slider up higher and you can feel it in your rib cage. Get the right track and it feels amazing.

General listening volumes for me take this system to only a little over 50%, but there’s room for so much more. In fact, you’d be hard pushed to get this system anywhere near full volume, which shows that the 1320W amp is doing its job admirably.

Pitting this new system against some of the top audio systems available seems perhaps a little unfair. This is, after all, still a relatively affordable upgrade on a very affordable EV. However, it does still have those Bowers & Wilkins traits to the sound that make it very appealing, and is hands down better than your standard audio setup. If you’re planning to buy a Polestar 2, you’re going to want to pick this option.