The upcoming AFEELA EV, a joint effort between Sony and Honda, is now out there for viewing to the general public in Los Angeles, upfront of its scheduled California launch in 2026.
We first heard about Sony’s upcoming EV again at CES 2020, the place the corporate introduced a shock EV idea which, frankly, we by no means thought would occur.
Quick ahead to now, and after a variety of developments and a partnership with Honda, Sony is now promising that the automobile will probably be out there subsequent yr – in California, not less than. It not too long ago began taking $200 reservations, although these are restricted to California solely in the interim.
Prematurely of this launch, Sony Honda Mobility (SHM) is now displaying the automobile to the general public, in what has turn into a well-liked methodology for EV makers (ever since Tesla and George Blankenship pioneered it): opening a mall location.
That spot is true within the coronary heart of the place the AFEELA EV could be the most well-liked – Century Metropolis, a neighborhood of Los Angeles with an extended historical past of attachment to the film business, on the Westfield Century Metropolis mall on Santa Monica Blvd.
The studio opened to the general public this weekend, and will probably be open for the subsequent six months (till August 1). The general public can come round at any time and take a look on the automobile and ask questions, or can guide a demo of the automobile’s inside and applied sciences (however no check drives but, although).
We beforehand had an opportunity to get arms on with the AFEELA prototype on the similar mall, although that was at a short lived sales space reasonably than a devoted area. It was filled with fairly a couple of neat options, however there was nonetheless a variety of work to be executed.
As a reminder, SHM not too long ago introduced a $89,900 base value for the AFEELA, although left the door open for extra subscription charges for some options after an preliminary 3-year interval. The primary out there trim degree, the AFEELA 1 Signature, will begin at $102,900.
So, in the event you’d prefer to test it out for your self and are in Southern California, you possibly can head on over any time, or guide a time slot upfront for an in-car demonstration.
Electrek’s Take
I’ve been impressed with the maturity of the tempo of Sony’s bulletins with this automobile. Whereas it appeared a bit of pie-in-the-sky initially after they introduced the idea, yearly they’ve refined it and have largely refrained from making unrealistic guarantees or loopy timelines, in contrast to another EV startups on the market.
That’s, till final yr, after they joined the AI buzzword bandwagon, which appeared like a complete waste of time. Plus, the current announcement of a $90k base value and extra suggestion of long-term subscription charges for characteristic use was not nice to listen to – however that hasn’t been finalized but, so we’ll must see precisely the place issues go from right here.
There does nonetheless appear to be a variety of work to do over the course of the subsequent yr earlier than the AFEELA’s “mid-2026” launch, however issues do factor to be progressing at an inexpensive tempo
And, oddly sufficient, regardless of its late entry to the EV market, that is nonetheless going to be one of many first Japanese EVs out there within the US. Toyota has the bZ4X (and the derivate Lexus RZ and Subaru Solterra), Nissan has the Leaf and Ariya, and Honda has the Prologue (and Acura ZDX) – which is made in partnership with GM. In the meantime, an organization recognized for its client leisure merchandise goes to leap into the pack with the remainder of its nation’s auto business – by constructing a ground-up EV earlier than a few of its countrymen did so.
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