Sony and Honda unveil their new EV car

The partnership unites Honda’s know-how in autos, mobility technology and sales with Sony’s imaging, network, sensor, and entertainment expertise.

The EV prototype car Afeela is displayed during a Sony news conference before the start of the CES tech show on Wednesday | Photo Credit: AP

Sony and Honda unveiled their new EV car, Afeela, at the CES tech show on Wednesday. The duo will jointly produce the vehicles.

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The joint venture between these companies was announced in March. The partnership unites Honda’s know-how in autos, mobility technology and sales with Sony’s imaging, network, sensor, and entertainment expertise.

The companies expect to take pre-orders of the car in the first half of 2025 and deliver the first cars to customers in North America in spring 2026.

Other markets, including Europe, will follow, but final dates are not disclosed yet. Production of the vehicle will take place at one of Honda’s 12 plants in the U.S. 

Sony and Honda have previously said that the new EV will have Level 3 automated driving capabilities under limited conditions. Level 3 autonomy means the car can drive in situations like traffic jams, but that the human driver must take over when the system requests it, TechCrunch reported.

The vehicle’s design includes the integration of external media along the front of the car to enable interaction with other road users and share necessary information.

The car will come equipped with 45 cameras and sensors inside and outside of it to ensure safety and security. The in-cabin sensors will monitor the driver’s status to prevent accidents.

The Sony-Honda JV will integrate Epics Games’ Unreal Engine, a 3D computer graphics game engine, into their vehicles for not just entertainment in cars, but also communication and safety, according to the report by TechCrunch.