CES 2021: Sono Motors presents Sion

In principle, the Sion, which company founders Laurin Hahn and Jona Christians present as an SEV, or Solar Electric Vehicle, at CES, is the opposite of the loud and colorful bling-bling in Las Vegas: Because of the now cleverly integrated solar panels, it is only available in black and is extremely functional and space-efficiently designed. Thus, Sono COO Thomas Hausch in the presentation also drew on the good old VW Beetle, which is supposed to reliably take its passengers everywhere. Friedrich Wolf, officially a senior representative at Sono Motors, also presents the Sion as the beginning of a new car era without bling-bling.

American Garage Story - but one that results in a fundamentally sensible and well-thought-out product

However, the garage story of the two buddies Hahn and Christians is typically American, as they have known each other for years and actually developed the original Sono in their garage near Munich on an old Renault Twingo and decided that such a vehicle needed to be built. Despite this, they stuck to the ecologically correct approach, which co-founder Jona Christians explained in an interview with the online magazine Der Klimareporter in this way:

“It cannot continue that 100 million vehicles are produced every year, even if all of them were to be electric cars. We do not see it as our task to sell as many vehicles as possible but to offer a system that brings you from A to B with the most resource-efficient means of transport.”

And this is gradually becoming a reality, especially as the Sono comes with many additional features – such as bidirectional charging, which has a completely different significance in the U.S. and the subsequent discussion round than in Europe and is particularly appreciated there.

At CES, bidirectional charging is especially appreciated

Briefly to the facts, which will not change fundamentally even in the near-production vehicle: The Sion will be manufactured in the former Saab factory in Trollhättan and come with a liquid-cooled 35-kWh battery that, according to the WLTP standard – depending on the weather and driving style – is supposed to offer up to 255 kilometers of range. Thanks to bidirectional charging, the Sion can not only take in and store electricity but also give it back as needed. All common electronic devices can be operated and charged via a household plug (SchuKo) with the Sion as an energy source at up to 3.7 kW. Through the Type 2 plug, the Sion can deliver even more power. Other electric cars and heavy current devices can be operated with up to 11 kW. The charging power at a fast charger is a maximum of 50 kW DC via CCS - then 80 percent charge level is reached within 30 minutes.

The boxy outlaw look that offers plenty of space inside is also likely to go down well in the States. Even more intriguing, however, are the planned services: You should be able to decide via an app how much power you want to give and at what price. Other app users can see the offer and the exact location of the Sion, turning it into a mobile charging station with which you could even make money. The My Sion app also provides current information on the Sion's status and allows you to use it without a key – a smartphone is enough. Of course, ride-sharing and pooling possibilities are also included. It is entirely up to the users how long and with whom they want to share their Sion or allow it to be shared. And it is precisely this well-thought-out app that is likely to become one of the highlights of the Sion.

What is also sustainably thought out and brings Christian's quote from the beginning to life: The clever three-stage maintenance system that keeps repair costs as low as possible: Spare parts should be able to be installed independently without extensive prior knowledge, and the disclosure of the workshop manual enables a widely expanded network of independent workshops. Only for repairs in the high-voltage and bodywork areas do you need to go to the workshop, and for this, they cooperate with a renowned service provider from Europe. The Sion is scheduled to go into series production from 2022 for 25,500 euros gross, which is just under 21,500 euros net.

What does that mean?

With their appearance at CES, the founders and leading minds of the start-up have made another push and should finally have gained more attention even beyond the Atlantic – especially the app and the possibility to use the Sono as a power plant in the Great Plains or on the California beach were well received at CES.