Solar car start-up Sono files for insolvency, customers likely to lose deposits

Munich-based electric car start-up Sono Motors has filed for insolvency and it is unlikely that clients will get their pre-payment for one of its PV-clad vehicles back, reports Süddeutsche Zeitung.

The Munich-based company wants to reorganise itself in administration, but legacy costs from the failed car program are simply too high, according to restructuring experts.

Sono had received more than 44,000 pre-orders for its “Sion” electric vehicle, which Sono Motors was planning to launch in 2024 at a price of €30,000. Some customers had already paid the full purchase price for the car, others only part of it. In total, around €44 million are at stake, according to the report.

Launched with a crowdfunding campaign in 2016, Sono Motors developed an electric car covered in solar cells to extend its range.

However, the launch of the “Sion” had to be postponed repeatedly because of financial issues, and the company abandoned the project altogether earlier this year.

Clean Energy Wire. Reproduced with permission.