Sony Honda Mobility announced pre-orders for the AFEELA (once known as the Sony car). The AFEELA 1, starting at $89,900, will be produced in the US with official sales beginning in California in 2025 and delivery by mid 2026.
The car cabin is said to offer a “unique sound system” with optimally placed speakers and displays. The system uses Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Technologies for immersive sound. We’ll bring you reviews on the infotainment system as they are reported.
The AFEELA comes with a free three-year subscription that includes a selection of entertainment content, 5G data and ADAS.
The package also includes an AFEELA Personal Agent that lets the driver control in-car functions via natural voice as well as “enjoy conversations and receive activity suggestions.”
The car has 40 sensors (cameras, LiDAR, radars, ultrasonic sensors) that combine with an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) with a computing power of up to 800 TOPS (can perform 800 trillion operations per second) and AI technology.
AFEELA 1 is available in two trims: AFEELA 1 Origin and AFEELA 1 Signature. The price starts at $89,900 for AFEELA 1 Origin, and at $102,900 for AFEELA 1 Signature, which includes 21-inch wheels, a rear entertainment system, and C-CMS (Center Camera Monitoring System).
US production is scheduled at an existing plant in Ohio.
Be cautious on buying EV’s. With the rebates they put on the cars and the negative stigma if/when you decide to trade them in, the depreciation is GHASTLY! I bought a 2023 BMW i4 for 52K in Jan of 2023 and thought it was at a steal. I attempted to trade it in a year later and found out it was only worth 27K! more than half loss in a year. The dealer explained the stigma in that on top of the government rebates eating away at the value, the general public somehow thinks that buying a used EV is like buying someones old cell phone. You never know how they charged it.
So what you save on going to the pump, you lose in equity on the vehicle. I know that new cars lose value but not over 50%!!
Buyers beware. If you are gonna go EV, I suggest a good used one.
No exterior pictures of the car? How would anyone preorder a $100K car without at least a concept rendering of the exterior?
We’re adding one