One Charge Challenge: From Sweden to New Zealand

Seventeen thousand nine hundred and fifty-one kilometres (or 11,154 miles). That is how far Google Maps tells us our HQ in Sweden is from Polestar Christchurch, on the South Island of New Zealand.

That’s a long way from home for a Polestar 2. No matter though, because potentially the greatest roads in the world for driving are scattered across the beautiful islands of New Zealand.

One, however, stands out above all: the drive from the West Coast of the South Island, all the way across to Christchurch. At approximately 230 km, you will arrive with plenty of battery left regardless of which Polestar you take, but that drive across the ‘high country’ is just so good, you might want to turn around and do it all over again.

For this trip, we have a Polestar 2 Long range Single motor. With every single one of our cars focussed on feedback and dynamics, it is well suited to the never-ending twisty turns that wind up and over the mountain ranges of New Zealand.

Before we start our adventure, a word about charging. New Zealand is powered almost entirely by geothermal and hydroelectric power. For a country with so many rare and endagered species of animals, and with such spectacular landscapes, sustainability is absolutely at the top of the agenda.

Starting out from Greymouth on the West Coast, you almost immediately turn inland. This is where New Zealand’s road network starts to deliver. The landscape changes so fast, you can go from beach to jungle, and all the way to desert and mountains, all within the space of an hour.

Following the Taramakau river, the Polestar 2 rapidly starts to climb. Being an EV, it doesn’t matter how high you go, as performance isn’t affected by the oxygen content of the air. Don’t worry though, we aren’t going that high today.

The first major wow moment is the Otira Viaduct. Essentially a floating section of road through a huge tree-lined valley, it is a spectacular piece of engineering and a great opportunity to test out the car’s power and torque. The whole run-up to it is through twisty, winding climbs where having that performance on-tap makes a big difference.

Not long after this you will arrive at Arthur’s Pass. Chances are here you will see a one-of-a-kind mountain parrot, the Kea. Famous for being particularly mischievous, they are big fans of chewing on bits of your car. It is worth the risk, though. A few pieces of trim on a Polestar 2 versus seeing one of the rarest animals on the planet is a chance worth taking.

One other thing…for Lord of the Rings geeks, Arthur’s Pass National Park is the location of the Misty Mountains in the films. You can see why they chose it.

A couple of kilometres later, the landscape changes again completely. With the altitude comes a sort of high desert grassland. This is the ‘high country’ and is home to some amazing wide-open driving roads.

Dotted along the route are ‘stations’ and ‘homesteads’ that often form a combination of farmland and five-star hotels. They are truly incredible luxury stays and worth the spend if you fancy exploring or pausing your road trip. Wilderness Lodge is a particularly famous option.

What follows is a spectacular drive through open grassland, lakes, and mountains, before gradually heading into Christchurch. Whatever you do though, don’t stop the exploring there. It’s a beautiful city with an incredible mix of café culture and old architecture.

So in the space of just under three hours, you can see everything from beaches to jungles, with rare wildlife in between, before arriving in one of New Zealand’s best cities. It’s worth it alone just for the excitement of the drive but add in the views out the window and you might have one of the all-time great road trips.