- Polestar faces US sales ban from 2027. The decision has disrupted its 32-dealership network, leaving dealers and owners uncertain about future operations and service support
- Dealers became alert. Some dealers were surprised by the ban, while others had anticipated it but their advice was ignored.
- Volvo’s potential role in change. Despite the complications, Volvo’s network can assist with servicing, but there are obstacles to selling remaining Polestar stock through Volvo dealers.
- Dealership in limbo. Franchisees are uncertain about the future of their investments and facilities, with no clear plans.
Ground level: Polestar’s unexpected US sales ban has created chaos for dealers and owners with uncertain plans for future operations and inventory management.
AI assisted, editor reviewed
The US government’s decision to ban Polestar from selling cars in the US under a rule banning Chinese technology has thrown the automaker’s nascent 32-dealership network into chaos. Now dealers, owners and Polestar’s corporate teams are struggling to figure out how vehicle service, sales of remaining 2026 stock and even disposal of real estate will work after the company has been forced to abruptly cease operations, according to multiple dealer sources who spoke to Drive.
This is an unprecedented situation. Brands come and go over the years, but even when automakers shut down for financial reasons, the writing is on the wall. This time, dealers say when Geely-owned Polestar shared the news last Thursday that the government had revoked its certification to operate in the US, they were given no warning that a decision was imminent.
At least one major retail building is in the midst of construction that may never be used. Others say they saw it coming and their advice to change the brand was ignored. Frustrations are sky high, and flashes of anger are already evident.
A dealer who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation from Polestar said drive There are still about 2,800 new Polestars coming to the US market. That would make the majority of those cars all Polestar 4s, as the 2026 Polestar 3 was not sold in the US as the automaker planned to drop that model by 2027.
“What’s the program on the car?” The source asked rhetorically regarding lease incentives. “We’ll be selling these 2026s halfway through 2027. I don’t know what consumer demand will be on these, it’s just going to be the cheapest lease and risk it. I don’t know who else is going to sign up for it. There’s no appetite for cars when there’s no brand to support it. It seems like there are too many cars on the ground here for us to get out.”
“We don’t know what we’re doing. We can’t pull the lever fast enough!” Source added. “What are we doing with hundreds and thousands of dollars worth of fixtures?”
Adding to the disappointments is the fact that Volvo, which spun off Polestar in 2017 and is also owned by Geely, received authorization earlier this spring to continue selling cars here despite its ties to China. Thus, Volvo’s dealer network is an obvious fallback to handling Polestar service or even helping to sell off remaining inventory, but it’s also fraught with complications. Polestar has been prohibited from selling cars at Volvo dealerships since it was established as an independent company. A Polestar and Volvo dealer may share the same premises, and the Volvo dealer may service Polestar’s cars, but the showrooms must be in separate buildings.
A Polestar enthusiast and owner got in touch to highlight an example of just how dirty it’s getting drive And that provided an email sent by Reza Fatemi, general manager of Polestar Los Angeles, on Friday, 24 hours after Polestar announced the ban. The dealership, which is owned by Galpin Motors, will relocate to the Galpin’s Volvo location “to serve you even better,” the email said. A similar notice was pinned to the top of their website on Wednesday.
Galpin Volvo completed a massive renovation last year and doesn’t have much space to build a new building for the Polestar, so it’s unclear how this will work. We contacted Fatemi for comment but he declined to take our calls, though a salesperson on Tuesday confirmed the move was being taken.
Tuesday night Polestar enthusiasts and owners received an email from Polestar Los Angeles with an “urgent update” stating that as of today, July 1, 2026, Polestar Los Angeles will “consolidate our sales operations to our Galpin Volvo campus in North Hills.” The email also said the Beverly Hills showroom would be closed, and all sales, inventory and staff would be relocated to North Hills.
Given the hyper-charged nature of it all, this doesn’t sit well with our anonymous source.
“A year ago we went to Polestar and said this wasn’t working and we should get Volvo involved. Polestar was for it, and Volvo wasn’t involved. Can’t believe Volvo is going to allow it (now),” he said. The dealer source said, “We are operating as a status quo, unfortunately it is not the status quo. I would have loved to have done this a year ago, had we known the brand was not going to make it. It should never have left Volvo.”
drive We also spoke with Matthew Hyken, president and CEO of Prestige Auto Collection Group, which includes Volvo dealerships, Lincoln dealerships and Polestar dealerships in New Jersey, who poured cold water on the idea that Volvo would be willing to allow Polestar sales through their facilities, but said they expect to handle a fair amount of used Polestar sales by next year.
“Volvo will not let us sell the remaining 2026 inventory from our showrooms. Once the remaining 2026 inventory is full and liquidated, we can sell the remaining off-lease vehicles as we wish,” Heiken said. “Volvo can’t tell us what we can and can’t sell (used). Having customers come to our Volvo showrooms to sign paperwork is not a violation of our licensing agreement.”
After we shared our findings with Polestar, a spokesperson told us that the relocation of Polestar Los Angeles to a Volvo dealership “had been planned for some time and is not related to last week’s announcement.” He said Polestar “will have its own dedicated retail space and brand experience” and that the move is part of a “broader transition from a direct-to-consumer sales model to a retailer-led retail strategy.”
Meanwhile, when we checked with Volvo, a spokesperson shrugged off the whole mess.
“Volvo Cars and Polestar are two different companies and have separate retailer networks and servicing agreements. Polestar has said they will ‘continue to support customers, including providing access to its service network.’ For further comment, we urge you to contact Polestar directly.
Hyken’s New Jersey Polestar dealership debuted in an original Tesla location within the Short Hills Mall. Their dealer group is currently in the process of building a flagship Polestar dealership which is not yet completed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with my building. I don’t think any of us know what we’re going to do with our buildings.” Haiken said. The dealer principal is hoping that someone will arrive and wants a flagship building. “I don’t think any of the 32 dealers know what they’re going to do with their buildings at this point.”
Max Muncy of LaFontaine Automotive Group, owner of Polestar Detroit, told drive“We are currently evaluating our options with both Polestar and existing brands and most importantly, communicating with our existing customer base about their leases and future ownership.”
We called several other Polestar dealers across the country, and few had any answers about potentially joining forces with Volvo or what their operations will look like in the coming months. A salesman at Polestar Tampa hung up the phone abruptly when asked what the dealership’s plans were going forward. A salesman named Michael at Polestar Austin told drive“I’m not sure, nothing has been discussed with us yet.” And a salesman named Junior at Polestar Miami said that “There is still a lot of meetings and communication to be had. Still waiting for the action plan to be completed. Right now we are running as normal as usual, but obviously things are not normal in the long run.”
Heiken took note of the situation and pointed out that such a thing had never happened in modern times. “It’s really unfortunate, because the brand is still around. It’s not bankruptcy. You can go to Canada and buy a 2027 Polestar 2. You can go to Sweden where Polestar lives in the same showroom with Volvos, and I called them, and they’re selling more Polestars than Volvos. Plus, we have a very healthy lease maturity to fall back on and we have to market these cars. This Saab “It’s a very different scenario than Fisker, or Fisker, or any other brand that left America or went bankrupt.”
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