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On 25 July 2022, the time had finally arrived. We unveiled the Sion’s production design at our Community event ‘Celebrate the Sun’. At the same time we also presented our new Solar Bus Kit which, as a retrofit solution, is intended to reduce fuel consumption and inner-city greenhouse gas emissions. Both premieres are important steps on our way to making low-cost and easily accessible solar mobility possible for the masses.
The Sion will be produced in the heart of Europe by Valmet Automotive in Uusikaupunki, Finland. Start of production is planned for the second half of 2023, and after a ramp-up phase of several months, annual production of around 43,000 Sion is planned. Our goal is to produce 257,000 Sion within seven years. As a certified CO2 neutral company, Valmet Automotive follows a sustainable mission statement. Combined with over fifty years of experience in vehicle manufacturing, the company is the perfect partner for the production of the Sion.
After several funding rounds in which the community actively supported us, we succeeded in going public in November 2021. As a listed company, we now secure the necessary investments to get the Sion on the road. We are listed on NASDAQ on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SEV.
Our wallbox is the next logical step on the way to a world independent of fossil fuels. It turns the Sion into a decentralized energy storage unit that can be accessed at will. Unlike other wall-mounted charging stations, the Sono wallbox does not require an inverter, as this is already integrated into the Sion. This makes it significantly more affordable.
We teamed up with Sibros, a pioneer of Over-the-Air (OTA) Connected Vehicle Systems. Through the collaboration, the Californian company will provide end-to-end software and data management solutions for the Sion. Its future software updates, data collection and remote interactions will be handled by the Sibros Deep Connected Platform, giving us direct insight into vehicle data and fleet analytics, while also diagnosing and fixing potential problems before they compromise vehicle capabilities including malware hacks and other cybersecurity issues.
In June 2021, we announced that we will equip the Sion with a more powerful 54 kWh battery. The new battery increases the current range of the Sion to up to 305 km and increases the maximum charging power to up to 75 kW. It also forgoes the use of cobalt, nickel and manganese. Our Community surveys have shown that over 90% of members would like a battery with more range and a higher charging capacity.
We are committed to the vision of a world without fossil fuels, in which sustainable mobility is accessible and affordable for everyone. In line with this vision, we have developed a platform to further advance the integration of solar cells into vehicles. A truck trailer with photovoltaics represents the next stage of our solar technology. It highlights the many potential applications of the technology and challenges our historical dependence on traditional internal combustion engines.
Our first time at the Consumer Electronics Show was a truly special moment for us. We are very happy that we received so many exciting reactions and questions from people all over the world.
We have already installed parts into our prototype that are intended for series production. These either come from series suppliers or are near-series components. This is a big step forward for us, especially since this enables us to successfully implement the electric drive unit, the chassis, and the MPPT Central Unit, which are all intended for series production. In addition, all straight and curved exterior parts of the Sion are equipped with solar panels.
In December 2020, we accomplished another funding milestone. Despite a year full of global challenges, we succeeded in securing another funding round. An additional 45 million euros of investment by Swedbank Robur and DNCA Invest and some other investors, has enabled us to create further prerequisites for series production.
We took a look back on an exciting year on YouTube with our Community. During the event, we recollected the events of 2020 and explained how we mastered the challenges posed by the pandemic, especially with regard to the completion of the prototypes. We also gave exciting insights into the production of our new generation of prototypes.
With the help of over 13,000 supporters and more than 53 million euros, we have exceeded Community funding campaign goal to finance our next steps. In 50 days, a daily average of one million euros flowed into the campaign. This is a strong signal for us that our we are going in the right direction. Thank you!
At a time of ever-increasing equipment variations, we focus on the essentials in the cockpit of the Sion, namely functionality and intuitive operation. The Sion interior design takes into account the diversity of the vehicle’s usage with an appropriately robust and hard-wearing interior.
In June last year, we reached our milestone of 5,000 reservations. Today, just over a year later, this number has doubled. Ten thousand people showing their commitment to the responsible treatment of our planet and climate-friendly mobility through their reservation of the Sion. Thank you for your support!
The announcement of the series design was one of our most important milestones. A feature that shapes the design is the full-surface integration of the solar modules into the bodywork. In the series vehicle, the solar cells will meld seamlessly into the vehicle's surface and can generate up to 245 km (112 km on average) of additional range per week. Compared to the prototypes, the series version of our Solar Electric Vehicle (SEV) will be larger, longer and wider – for more interior space and comfort. Additional rear side windows ensure optimal all-round visibility.
Continental, one of the world's largest automotive suppliers, builds various vehicle components for the Sion, such as the airbag control unit or the powertrain's energy, charge and thermal management system. The Sion's 120 kW electric motor is developed by former Continental division, Vitesco Technologies. In addition to the motor and power electronics, the drive unit for the Sion also includes the powertrain. The integration of these parts into a single system unit reduces the size and weight of the drive system in favor of the vehicle's performance. Simulations have additionally confirmed the battery range of up to 305 km according to WLTP.
In 2017 and 2018, more than 13,000 test drives with the Sion we completed in 7 countries and more than 61 cities.
On July 27, it was time. Time to finally present the Sion – an innovative, cost-effective electric car for daily use – to the world. Almost 700 supporters as well as guests from politics, the media, and industry joined us for the event. The atmosphere was unbelievable. Reports in the media all around the world jump-started preorders, which soared unimaginably the same evening.
Your opinion counts. We asked for your feedback in multiple online surveys and received scores of suggestions and ideas for the Sion’s further development. Our team burned the midnight oil on more than a few occasions as they incorporated your wishes and suggestions into the CAD model. We’re hoping to present the results at a large release event.
We did it! Together with well-known partners in the automotive industry, we succeeded in developing two fully functioning prototypes in just seven months. We are extremely proud! A feat made possible thanks to our fantastic team.
It was unbelievable! We managed to raise over €820,000 through our crowdfunding campaign while newspapers, blogs, and magazines all around the world reported on us in detail. Thanks to your incredible support, we dared to take the next step and construct the first Sion prototype.
We established Sono Motors together with Navina in 2016. Navina contributed the design aspect to our then small team, giving Sono Motors its own identity. Our name, our logo, and, most significantly, our crowdfunding campaign are all her creations. Thank you, Navina!
We launched our project in Jona’s garage: the construction of a pre-prototype to prove that mobility can work differently and that renewable energies can be a solution to conserve finite resources, such as oil, and protect the environment. We wanted to demonstrate to the world that it is technologically possible to integrate solar cells into a car and use solar energy to generate extra range. Day and night, we worked on our car – our vision. And then the time had come. Our pre-prototype was working. It drove its first few meters, and the feeling was indescribable!
It all started with one critical phone call in which we, Jona and Laurin, discussed the wastefulness of oil consumption. There’s barely a resource more polarizing than oil. In spite of this, our mobility is still responsible for 61 percent of overall oil consumption – even though there are already alternatives available. This is why we decided to take matters into our own hands and bring about change.
