© Sono Motors Sono Sion SEVPlug-in electric vehicles appear to be quickly dominating the automotive scene, and for good reason. Electric vehicles are said to be much less harmful to the environment than petrol-powered ones and the driving experience and technology they offer is exciting. One problem that has plagued EVs, however, is range anxiety and the public perception that they're constantly stuck on a charger. This opinion is fast becoming obsolete thanks to new battery and charging technologies and the many companies that are constantly looking for new solutions to increase the range of electric vehicles.
Sono Motors announced in November 2022 that the solar-powered Sono Sion will go into production in late 2023. The Sion was developed in-house, while the rest of Sonos products were to be shipped at scale. The moving vehicle was set up to use energy from the sun while driving to recharge the vehicle, increasing its range from 190 miles per week to 70 miles per week. Unfortunately, it seems the $25,000 Zion wasn't meant for that.
© Sono Motors Solar Transportation by Sono MotorsSono Motors announced in a Feb. 24 press release that it would end the Sion program despite gaining more than 40,000 supporters for the solar-powered electric vehicle. Solar-powered EV charging isn't a perfect solution, as the 70 km/week figures cited by Engineering Explained and Sono for Zion show. That's not why Sono stopped making Zion. The press release states that the completion of the Sion program "positions the Company to implement significant cost-reduction measures," noting that Sion's asking price of $25,000 was not high enough and that costs stemmed from development and operating costs incurred . Zion was too big. According to Sono, 90% of the funds needed through 2023 have been generated by the Sion program.
In the future, Sono will focus exclusively on retrofitting and integrating solar products into existing vehicles, with a focus on logistics and transportation. Sono offers conversion kits for electric buses, refrigerated vehicles and vans. This B2B business model is designed to help Sono reduce operating costs and keep them in check during the economic downturn.
As a result of Sono Motors' turnaround, 300 employees were "laying off," according to a Twitter post, and the company has urged prospective employees to consider former employees when looking for talent in the space. Posting on Twitter is more than most employers do, but for many employees, it may be too late.
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