Earlier today, Honda became the latest automaker to curtail its EV expansion, announcing that it would be canceling the development and launch of three electric vehicles—the 0 saloon, the 0 SUV, and the Acura RSX—all of which it previously planned to build at its Marysville, Ohio assembly plant.
The move is surprising, as Honda made a pretty big deal of launching these cars last year, and even went as far as showing off a camouflaged prototype of the production-intent RSX in August. At the same time, the decision sort of makes sense, as the flattening demand for expensive EVs likely wouldn’t have resulted in any profit for Honda.
All three of those cars were supposed to be based on the same next-generation EV platform from Honda. But they weren’t the only cars set to use that platform. The Afeela 1, the electric sedan born from a joint venture between Honda and Sony, is also based on this architecture. But now that the company supplying that platform is pulling the plug on its own cars, the future of the Afeela, and Sony’s dream of becoming a company that sells cars, is now in jeopardy.
It’s not just the public who doesn’t really know what the future holds for Sony Honda Mobility, the joint venture responsible for developing, launching, and selling the Afeela 1. In a statement to The Autopian, a representative told us that it’s up to the people in charge of each respective brand:
Sony Honda Mobility is aware of Honda Motor’s decision to pause its EV business in North America. Our parent companies, Sony Group Corporation and Honda, will hold discussions on how this affects SHM, there for there is no more information that we can speak to at this moment. We are operating as usual.
We will keep you informed when we have more news.
Basically, no one really knows right now whether or not Sony Honda Mobility will continue the development of the Afeela 1 or pull the plug. It’s worth noting that the company was pretty far along in making sure the Afeela was ready for the road, having conducted trial production runs last year at Honda’s East Liberty assembly plant (which is, importantly, separate from the Marysville plant where Honda planned to build its EVs). It showed off a production-intent prototype at CES in Las Vegas last year, and currently has six studios throughout California where you can schedule a time to sit in the car to check out its gigantic panoramic screen.
Even if the car is ready to launch and SHM has a place to build it, not having the support from Honda to continue development of the platform might be an issue. On top of that, the Afeela, with its unknown reputation, two 241-hp motors, estimated 300 miles of range, and $89,900 price tag, isn’t exactly competitive, and it’s going to be fighting in what is already a low-volume segment of the market. A Lucid Air Touring with AWD, for example, makes 620 horsepower, gets 406 miles of range, and costs eight grand less.
It’s possible that instead of hitting pause on its next-gen platform altogether, Honda could be consolidating its EV efforts into this one car, decreasing its footprint in the arena without leaving it altogether. If Honda and Sony are willing to spend a bunch of cash on extra development, it could pivot the Afeela to hybrid power, and push its launch date back a year or two, leaning on Honda’s move to spend more on developing a new hybrid powertrain, set to be released in 2028. It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve heard of a carmaker adding an engine to a car previously designed to be EV only.
I am not quite convinced Afeela was supposed to use the 0 Series platform. The DC fast charge rate is only 150kW, clearly pointing to a 400V architecture. But the 0 Series is targeting a 15-80% charge in 15 minute, which certainly sounds like an 800V architecture. Can one architecture support two different voltages? Sure. But why give the crappy setup to your $90,000+ sedan?
My viewing experience strongly indicates that SHM spent at least a much advertising this vehicle as they did building it. Even as it faces the brink, every third ad I see is hawking the secret emotional magic that could have been the Afeela 1. This car has so much charged mystery around it that it could make the Tucker 48 look like little more than a low-production flop.
Or not.
I’m not saying this is what happens when people throw multiple tons of money at the concept of a car for people who don’t care about cars. I’m saying it’s one of the things that can happen.
Even being cancelled, sales forecasts will still be accurate for the model.
Just an experiment that should have never been teased as an eventual car for sale. Related to my thoughts under other articles right now — nothing that is this long in development is going to be the right vehicle when it is ready for production, anyway. Look at the ID Buzzkill.
This project was never going anywhere.
Our economy is heading directly for the toilet. We need more ~$30,000 EV’s not $60,000+ ones.
America is just one market, I don’t read that announcement as killing all Honda EV cars everywhere.
Yeah, since America has an unusual need for vehicles much larger than what’s popular elsewhere, these were mainly US market products. The only effect on the rest of the world will be that Honda won’t have a large, flagship electric car available.
Still seems like a very shortsighted decision to fully cancel a car that could have still been sold elsewhere. China for sure, and specific European, Asian and Middle Eastern countries that have decent demand for larger, higher end vehicles.
Hopefully they at least leverage the research and technology from these into other cars coming soon (preferably some cheaper ones) so this entire project wasn’t a waste. Otherwise it was just billions of $ flushed only to continue lagging behind their competitors in pure EV technology.
The Afeela 1 always looked like a pretty awful product since the beginning, it only makes sense as a development platform for Sony’s L2+ ADAS and cockpit software systems that just happens to be sold to consumers. Sony is probably better off just making a few more prototypes instead of mass production and develop those systems internally.
Sony is going to be forced to stop sinking money into a stupid project. They’ve legitimately lucked out here.
Too bad, Afeela could have been the SpaceJet of automobiles
So this is because [suitable language would get me arrested] policies have made gas so cheap that they are practically giving it away?
Gas is cheap?
I was sarcastically pointing out the bad timing of going back to gas only.
First some idiot upends the EV infrastructure, declares war on cheap electricity, then starts a war with a country whose only recourse is to take out the petroleum infrastructure, then seems surprised.
Does anyone know why we are having a war and what the end goal is?
Anyway, it seems like whipsawing back and forth on EVs it kind of stupid.
Thanks to power ravenous data centers and other *reasons* electricity isn’t necessarily a cheap option. Where I live its been either slightly more expensive or ludicrously more expensive than filling a tank with regular gasoline.
The end goal is the same as its always been; enrich the very few at the expense of everyone else by whatever means possible and do it in such a way as to minimize the negative consequences on those very few.
I think a solar panel, a battery for when you aren’t home and to power the house, and a smallish car on the plugin hybrid/range extender spectrum would be the way to go. Assuming of course you have a roof or south facing wall. A beater truck if you actually need it.
If you live in a city, then that’s a whole different set of needs and resources, unique to each city. I lived in Manhattan with just the beater truck for example, because if something won’t fit in a subway or taxi, it won’t fit in a small car either.
Also in the 1980s-90s a ford F100 was actually useful in NYC. Modern pickups would be totally useless jokes.
To do that though you have to own the property and the free right to the roof so solar is not an option for rental properties, HOA controlled communities, or most apartments regardless of which way the roof faces. Which sucks but solar panels are more efficiently utilized in commercial solar farms anyway so those folks can still use solar but at full commercial rates. Which again in my area has until recently always been pricier than gasoline.
I expect gas prices to be high for a while but come down eventually just like they have after every other shock, 2022 being the most recent example. Data centers slurping up all the electricity OTOH that’s permanent and it will take a lot longer to increase supply of steady power to meet that insatiable demand.
You missed the sarcasm, centered around shortsighted governmental decisions and yet another unnecessary war.
We still have a government? I thought it was just some delusional twit and a handful of sociopaths that fired the government.
For example the point of a strong defense is to avoid having wars. Presumably a department of war is not even pretending to be defense against wars.
This is even more pointless that the wars against Iraq, unless it’s some sort of political distraction. Even Bush senior’s “defending democracy“ when defending Kuwait’s monarchy was at least a reason even if a stupid one. Not as stupid as junior’s total fuckup tht left everything worse than when it started.
Back on topic, for all the claims of being against government intervention to manipulate economic policy the current regime, I hesitate to call them the government as they have delivered on their promises of mostly destroying the government, They have pretty much borked everything, and blaming the automakers for bad planning is weak tea at best, although the American industry concentrating on big expensive trucks is going to crash spectacularly when it does.
Anyway, back to politely not calling attention to all that more than absolutely necessary.
Wake me when we know what this colossal tantrum or whatever is allegedly about.
“although the American industry concentrating on big expensive trucks is going to crash spectacularly when it does.”
If it does it will likely mirror 2008:
Taxpayer funded bailouts, finger pointing, TARP, “recovery”, inflation and way more trucks, even bigger and more expensive than before made “affordable” with longer term financing.
Well the auto companies got hit hard in 2008 because they had become banks, and their loans went bad. The car making part of the business was fine, or at least ok. Thank goodness they aren’t stupid enough to do that again.
Googles who is holding auto debt.
Oh shit, never mind.
To sleep…perchance to dream. (To an abrupt end of this bizzaro world F up we are nightmaring right now)
If it doesn’t get a base vehicle from Honda… does it become a Sony Walkman?
Lol. If it continues living on as a simulation, it becomes a Sony Discman.
Honda says “rewind” to Sony.
More like eject.
Just goes to show you can’t plan too far into the future. What you dream as future might not be far enough in the future.
Where is my flying car?
They got the flying cars if you want them. The problem is they don’t have landing cars.
Just drive any car off a cliff.
I hope so. Sony bricked my favorite phone I’ve ever had a few months ago. I hope they blow their next console launch too.
Wasn’t the Afeela supposed to come out last month?
It was, but they weren’t feeling it..
Jokes aside, according to the Internets, launch date was expected mid to late 2026, or within the year.. (that last one sounds musky)
So they’re technically still within the timeframe.
How did they brick it?
Downloaded a Sony update and it stopped calling out. Then they wanted $250 to fix it.
That sucks. If it were me I’d look into undoing the update myself or just replacing the stock OS with Lineage but I’m a curmudgeon.
Huh, normally Sony waits till there’s some customers before stranding its products
COTD.
I can see it now.
Sony, feeling jilted by Honda, moves forward with completing work on the Afeela 1, updating the onboard computer from 16-bit to 32-bit along the way and greatly improving the 3D graphics for all on-board displays.
They complete the work to launch the car (with assistance from various parts suppliers, including one supplier who previously had a massive hit together with Honda), launch at a respectable price, and it is a total hit.
They immediately begin work on the follow-up Afeela 2, upgrading to a new storage medium and making in-car entertainment a secondary focus, leading to the best selling car of all time.
And everything on it requires a subscription. Afeela kind of sick about it
I’ve seen the Afeela in person in Santa Row. Just kill it. It was a terrible idea.
That interior needs to be killed with fire. Lots of fire.
“Afeela fine!”
“Shut up, you’ll be stone dead in a moment.”
I think I’ll go for a drive.
I feel happy!
I feel happy!
This car seemed like a long shot anyways? Stupid brand name (at least for the US market), anonymous styling, stupid steering yoke, a sedan…more sad Honda is canning it’s EVs (and shortsighted too?) though honestly IDK how close it had actually gotten to production, no way that weird breadvan SUV thing was going to do numbers.
I don’t get why they even needed to create a new brand that sounds like a generic iPhone charger purchased off Amazon. Sony and Honda both have good reputations and established names, why the hell isn’t it just “Sony-Honda” or “SHM”?
Lol for real that’s exactly what it sounds like!
I heard Honda got very close to production with the 0 cars, though I agree that the product was probably too strange to work (especially with the pricing estimates I saw)
The 4 people who were going to buy it will be devastated, I’m sure.
4 people! Don’t you think you are being a little generous.
What’s the Venn diagram of people who want a car with a yoke but don’t want a Tesla?
They already bought a Lexus RZ
Forgot about that thing (I am sure my brain ejected it from my consciousness intentionally). So nope, Sony has no hope at all.
I don’t know why any automaker would make any decision based on the US market anymore. The vast policy swings that come and whiplash them every week are just not a sane setting in which to make business decisions. Plan things based on the rest of the global market. If they work for the US, fine, sell them there too for as long as you’re allowed to. If not, fuck ’em.
Exactly. The rest of the world is much more forward thinking that whatever the US is right now.
Honda is in a weird place for a non-American global automaker in that they have very low European sales, Mazda sells 2-3x more in the region and it only barely beats Mitsubishi’s numbers. So their main markets of US/Canada, China, and Japan make up a bigger share of their total sales than most brands. They have a decent presence in India and Southeast Asia but the 0 EVs would be too large and expensive for those markets. China is off the table as well because they’d be far too uncompetitive. With the US out due to tariffs and incentives, that only leaves Canada, Japan, and Australia, which is far too small of an addressable market. If they had a decent presence in Europe like Toyota or even Mazda, the story might change.
True. It would REALLY help automakers if the USA would accept vehicle built to EU regulations. There really isn’t a reason not to as the EU is ahead of us in pretty much every area: safety, security, fuel economy, and emissions.
The only thing holding us back is pride and politics.
This is why we effectively have no allies left or trading partners. We can’t be trusted anymore to make rational choices. They’re all going somewhere else, leaving us isolated.
True. I’m Canadian and run a manufacturing business. We have dropped all marketing spend in the US and have been aggressively dropping all US content from our supply chain. We’re closing US client accounts too and not missing them. There are plenty of other export markets for us and they’re happy to replace their old US vendors with us instead.
The world is encapsulating the US in scar tissue just like an abcess. And it’s working just fine for us.
Hey, you know how the orange orangutan was talking about Canada because more US states?
Can you guys invade us instead, and we become provinces? I’d move up there, but even being north of the 38th parallel is too cold for me!
Sorry, no. The thought infection is way too pervasive throughout the entire society. You’re going to have to deal with it first, then maybe we can talk.
The only cars that make sense for Sony would be electric appliance-mobiles. Since that market is looking like Monty Python’s Black Knight, this is a huge favor for Sony.
This thing is never gonna launch in the states. It’s not a crossover, the range isn’t good, and it’s too expensive. Never gonna happen.