Polestar's Formula 2030 Concept Lets Drivers Rearrange Eight Physical Controls

Polestar has given its new Formula 2030 concept car a center console with eight slots for physical controls — buttons, knobs or switches — whose precise placement and function the user, not the designer, determines. The concept, unveiled this week, is the first under design chief Philipp Römers, who took over the brand's design leadership last year.

Römers frames the car as continuity rather than rupture. He calls the 2030 "a bold evolution of our already well-established design DNA" rather than an entirely new design direction. The statement positions the concept as a refinement of existing Polestar design language under new leadership.

What does the center console change for drivers?

The console responds to a documented shift in sentiment. In recent years, a backlash has built against touchscreen-heavy interiors, with drivers and critics calling for the return of physical buttons, switches and knobs. Polestar is one of the few brands that appears to be acting on that demand — though the execution raises questions about how far configurability should go.

The eight controls sit in a grid arrangement between the front seats. Because the user configures their layout and assigns their functions, the same slot can hold a rotary knob or a toggle switch depending on preference.

Where the design may fall short

The execution has drawn criticism on two specific grounds. First, the controls themselves resemble the components of a vintage Braun stereo rather than automotive-specific hardware. Critics who welcome physical controls say they expect them to be purpose-designed for driving tasks, not off-the-shelf-looking modules adapted from consumer electronics.

Second, the grid layout places the slots close together. That proximity, critics argue, recreates the core usability problem of screen-based controls: the driver must look down at the console to select the correct control, rather than identifying it by touch alone. Widely spaced, ergonomically differentiated controls — a large knob for volume, a distinct rocker for climate — allow eyes-free operation in a way that a tight grid of similar small controls does not.

The preferred alternative, according to this critique, is a layout carefully resolved by a design team with ergonomic experience: fixed locations chosen for reach and muscle memory, and controls purpose-designed for their specific automotive function.

A test case for configurability

The Formula 2030 arrives as the industry debates how much control to hand back to users after a decade of touchscreen consolidation. Polestar's answer — user-configurable physical hardware — is novel precisely because it splits the difference: it restores tactile input while leaving layout decisions to the individual driver.

Whether that trade-off between personalization and ergonomic design holds up in practice will become clearer if the concept's console pattern migrates toward production vehicles.