Sono Motors showcases the Sion affordable solar EV in the US

German company Sono Motors first unveiled the affordable solar EV Sion back in July, and now it's taken it on a road trip across the pond. The Sion is being showcased in the US for the first time, in a three-week cross-country tour which includes stops in Boston (on October 14), Detroit (on October 17), the San Francisco Bay Area (on October 24-25), and LA (October 27-28).

The tour started in Times Square in New York, where the images you can see in this post are from. Since the Sion's introduction, Sono Motors received more than 42,000 reservations and pre-orders for it, highlighting the high amount of interest it's gathered in the market.

The car is expected to go into production in the second half of 2023, although that may well slip - and the same goes for the intended retail price of €25,000. Both of these sound more like what the company would want to happen, not necessarily things that are guaranteed to happen.

The Sion is an intriguing vehicle nevertheless, with its integrated solar panels across all of its surfaces, comprising of a total of 456 solar cells. The EV is powered by a 120 kW motor that delivers 270 Nm of torque, and the battery is a 54 kWh LFP uint that should enable 190 miles or 305 km of range before you factor in the additional range enabled by the solar panels (which can apparently be an average of 70 miles / 112 km per week in "typical weather conditions" and up to 150 miles / 241 km per week in "optimal conditions").

Sono Motors is currently "actively evaluating American partnership opportunities" for the Sion, while expanding its portfolio of integrated solar solutions for fleets - these are intended to equip trucks, buses, trailers, and other commercial vehicles with solar panels in order to reduce fuel usage and costs "without compromising on range".