Five years after its first prototype, Sony unveils the final version of its first electric car. The Afeela 1 will be marketed in 2026. But you will have to wait a little longer in Europe.
One of the big surprises at CES in 2020 is the presentation of an electric car on the Sony stand. Officially, the Japanese electronics giant does not want to become a car manufacturer, but simply wants to highlight all of its solutions for the sector.
But the outcome of the prototype, designed by Magna, is such that this excuse seems hardly credible. Two years later, Sony officially confirmed its entry into the automotive world by partnering with Honda to create SHM, Sony Honda Mobility, which will sell its vehicles under the Afeela brand. First objectives: the American markets, where the car will be produced, and Japanese in 2026. Then Europe in 2027 or 2028, all with a range which should include at least 3 models by 2030.
Sony at the meeting of the union of tech and automobiles
Sony's entire project clearly echoes the massive arrival of Chinese tech companies in the automotive sector, in particular Xiaomi and Huawei. And as a whole, the resulting product is quite close to these Chinese examples. But Sony needed more than 6 years to bring its vehicle to fruition. Starting later, Xiaomi has already sold 130,000 sedans in 2024.
This production version holds no surprises in terms of style, and its presentation in Las Vegas is mainly a matter of confirmations and prices. The exterior design remains identical to what was shown in 2023, then 2024. We thus find the smooth shapes, without any personality, the display area between the headlights at the front or the Lidar on the top of the windshield which is one of the 40 on-board sensors for L2+ level autonomous driving. New, two cameras appear on the pavilion, like the Nio models.
The interior layout was already fixed in the first prototype in 2020: a large strip of screens facing the driver and a rotary central control. The detail has evolved with a single screen covering the central and passenger areas, the arrival of recycled materials for 70% of the surfaces of the passenger compartment…
The two side screens are maintained despite the presence of conventional mirrors. Screens, but above all content. In addition to its own universe via Sony Pictures or Sony Entertainment, the Japanese group has already confirmed the presence of several partner applications: TikTok, Zoom, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Audible…
The whole will be served by high computing power, a complete voice assistant which compensates for the absence of physical controls, but also a state-of-the-art audio system, which integrates in-house noise cancellation technology.
If Sony logically expands on the electronics and entertainment part, electric propulsion takes a back seat. We are just talking about the autonomy of “more than 300 miles” (480 km – EPA cycle)… However, we know that the battery will have a capacity of 91 kWh and that the Afeela 1 will be equipped with two 180 kWh motors. kW each.
On the charging side, the power of 150 kW was mentioned, which is not good compared to the current market. Remember that Chinese manufacturers are releasing models with more than 500 kW today. The Afeela immediately includes a NACS port and accessibility to the Tesla Supercharger network.
A premium price
On the other hand, Sony has confirmed the prices of its first car, which is clearly positioned in the premium segment. The launch will therefore be with the Signature version at $102,900 (€98,800). The entry-level Origin will arrive a few months later with 19-inch rims (instead of 21), and without the rear screens or the central camera inside. All for $89,900 (€86,300).
Prices which immediately position the Afeela 1 against the Lucid Air. Despite the high technological content highlighted, these prices seem largely overestimated in relation to the vehicle's electrical services (power, performance, autonomous, charging, etc.).
Some of the technical components of this Afeela 1 will be found on board the Honda Zero models which will be based on the same architecture.
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The rest of your content after this announcement
