The community funding push that Sono Motors launched in early December, 2019, went on a little longer than originally advertised, but the company behind the PV-packed Sion family EV has come out of the other side with more money in the pot than was hoped for.
We first got a glimpse of the an electric five-seater with photovoltaic cells embedded into its roof, hood, rear and doors back in 2016, when renders were posted by the Munich-based mobility startup. The PV panels are not designed to charge the Sion's batteries completely, but to add extra range. Not much, but potentially enough for up to 5,800 km (3,604 mi) of essentially cost-free range per year.
After finding that financial investors had very different goals to those of the company, Sono Motors decided to turn to its existing and future supporters to help raise funds for the first production prototypes.
Initially meant to run for the whole of December, the community funding campaign was allowed to run on into this month, and after 50 days the company's coffers are brimming with €53 million (almost US$59 million). Breaking down fund investors shows that 75 percent of the pot came from reservation holders, 19 percent from existing and new investors and the remainder from loans and donations.
"53 million euros, invested by the center of society, for the forward-looking and sustainable mobility concept of a start-up is a clear signal, also directed at politicians to make adjustments," said Laurin Hahn, CEO and co-founder of Sono Motors. "Electromobility and the support of young companies in Germany has to be pursued faster and more vigorously. We at Sono Motors now see it as our responsibility to live up to the trust placed in us by our supporters. Together with the community, we will continue on our path to bring the Sion into production as quickly as possible."
The Sion has so far attracted 13,000 reservations, and the money raised over the last few weeks will be used to build series production prototypes and to lay the groundwork for production proper. Sono Motors is planning to manufacture 260,000 vehicles over an 8-year period at a former Saab facility in Trollhättan, Sweden.
Source: Sono Motors