Two of Japan’s most iconic names are coming together. Sony and Honda will partner to build and sell electric cars.
Sony’s EV Ambitions
The electronics-maker has long planned to get into the electric car business. Sony even showed off two complete electric vehicles (EVs) – one a sedan and one an SUV – at January’s Consumer Electronics Show.
The company offered nearly no details on the Sony Vision S-01 sedan and Vision S-02 SUV at the time. Both midsize, they were conservative designs with huge, arcing greenhouses not unlike Tesla products. Sony showed footage of the two EVs testing on American roads, but gave no details on their powertrain or performance specifications.
Honda Going All-Electric, Hydrogen-Powered
Honda, meanwhile, has announced plans to sell nothing but electric and hydrogen-powered cars in the U.S. by 2040. The company will release its first all-electric model – the Prologue SUV – for the 2024 model year.
The Rest is Vague for Now
The partnership, the two companies say, will “engage in the joint development and sales of high value-added battery electric vehicles (EVs) and commercialize them.”
Details beyond that are fuzzy. In a press release, the companies say they will “proceed with negotiations toward executing various definitive binding agreements, including a joint development agreement and a joint venture agreement, with a goal of establishing the New Company within 2022.”
That leaves most details up in the air. This could simply mean that Honda factories will produce the cars Sony has designed, and Honda dealers will sell them. Or it could mean that an entirely new slate of designs is coming. We’ll bring details as we learn them.
