Japan Today
business

Sony-Honda venture debuts Afeela EV from $89,900 in U.S.

28 Comments

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© KYODO

©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.

28 Comments
Login to comment

Quite a high preliminary sticker price (it may well drop in time as other EVs have) but the Sony-Honda Afeela sure does have the Tesla's covered in the looks department.

-1 ( +7 / -8 )

This is too expensive! Let's hope the this will be the first Japanese EV that takes quick charge, as opposed to the one on the market today (Toyota and Nissan), they are fine charging overnight but on the road they are horrible.

3 ( +7 / -4 )

........receive personalized activity suggestions,......

I wonder what that means?

3 ( +5 / -2 )

No thanks, just l’ll stick to my hybrid and fossil fuel engines

-8 ( +7 / -15 )

Soon to be known as a Sony-Honsan after the Nissan merger is complete.

-6 ( +6 / -12 )

I wonder what that means?

it means with collation of all your personal data and preferences it can recommend destinations and stopovers via the onboard tracking..

5 ( +8 / -3 )

No thanks, just l’ll stick to my hybrid and fossil fuel engines

Edgy guy is edgy.

Does your daughter know that you're making no effort to improve the environment in which she will have to live the next however many decades?

-5 ( +9 / -14 )

Soon to be known as a Sony-Honsan after the Nissan merger is complete.

Wouldn't it be a Son-Honsan-Afeel?

-3 ( +5 / -8 )

Soon to be known as a Sony-Honsan after the Nissan merger is complete.

Shonsan.

-4 ( +4 / -8 )

$89,900......

It could take 15/20 years, two decades before EV private transport for the people, ever become "affordable".

Levels of "road pricing" will ensure that luxury will be for a select financially secure minority.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

It looks like a shoe.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

generative artificial intelligence 

Sounds dodgy to me.

I'll stick to my 1995 Toyota Hilux Surf that we run on WVO (Waste Vegetable Oil).

Very dependable.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

At $89,000 starting price... it prices out most of the middle class and poor. Just give me a bare bones electric car without the bells and whistles, that has 400 miles of range and is priced $40,000 or below. Heck... 300 miles of range and priced at $30,000 or below and I'd be a buyer. All the gadgetry is BS... just more things that can break.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

It's very ugly .

-9 ( +2 / -11 )

My humble opinion affordable plug in hybrids.

A phased policy of smart transition to EV as tech allows that encompasses a range of vehicle choices instead of forced feeding the net zero, stop the oil, zealotry, that intimately cloud need to unify, tackle "climate change" globally.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Its very expensive.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Afeela.. tio?

receive personalized activity suggestions

=receive ads and sponsored recommendations while tracking and collecting all of your personal info.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Does your daughter know that you're making no effort to improve the environment in which she will have to live the next however many decades?

Do you honestly think that a EV is somehow better for the environment than an ICE? Plenty of evidence suggests the exact opposite.

-5 ( +3 / -8 )

Do you honestly think that a EV is somehow better for the environment than an ICE? Plenty of evidence suggests the exact opposite.

Show me the amount of dirty motor oil produced by an ICE car vs an EV over 4 years - we'll wait for the response...

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Rich people buying expensive EVs. Yes, that will reduce climate change. In about two centuries.

Cheap Chinese EVs or no green transition. Like it or not, those are the options.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

There is a cold storm in US and many parts of the world now.

I wonder how many owners of EV are having difficulty in charging their EVs since the cold saps away battery energy.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

@Tokyo Guy

Do you realize that your buying into the hypnotic narrative lie that EV's are better for our environments future? Please, take a moment to look up the resulting devastation being wrought on this planet.. its water, it's voiceless citizenry, in remote parts of the world and away from public eyes where most of this mining is being done. The process of mining lithium and materials necessary to make the ignorant heard of sheep feel good about being 'woke', by a political industry lining its pockets with lies and consumer ignorance.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Honda had a reputation as a cheap, solid, vehicle.

Over the decades, they've charged a premium over other brands with similar quality because they could.

I've owned Honda's since the early 1990s, but always felt like the slight premium paid was worth it for the overall value provided. I still own a Honda/Acura and it is a 2001 model, working well with few major issues over all those years. It has never left anyone in the family stranded anywhere. Even when the transmission failed a few years ago, it worked sufficiently to get to our preferred mechanic. The transmission is worth more than the vehicle now. ;)

Today, it isn't a pretty as it was new, some of the interior trim doesn't look new anymore, but the vehicle starts, drives and sounds like new. I remember buying it and thinking it was $4K overpriced at the time.

For EVs to be successful, a few things need to happen.

1) Govt mandates for high mileage across the entire line of vehicles SOLD, not offered, is a must.

2) Govt mandate for consistent charging plugs and input power. 1 plug to rule them all, everywhere in the world. Cheap adapters for everyone who already has a vehicle.

3) Charging locations need to be mandated for gas stations that slowly reduce fuel pumps and increase power-plugs over time, making it less convenient to have an ICE vehicle.

4) Reduce charging times for 90% full to less than 20 minutes. 5 minutes would be best, to match what fueling an ICE requires.

5) Govt price incentives only for the sub-$40K vehicles. No subsidies for higher-prices cars - none. Zero. Some sort of subsidy/tax credit for used EVs in the sub-$20K price range as well, but not for used, $20,001 and higher vehicles.

There are a few things I'd want too, but I'm fringe on these things, it appears.

a) No internet connection required for the vehicle to work fully.

b) No phone home required for maintenance or any other incentives.

c) Tested and validation of all electronic systems for a factor reset available to the purchaser, so that a re-sell to others 100% assures all the data is wiped and inaccessible to anyone without the owner's MANUAL approval.

d) All data stored in the vehicle's systems must be encrypted and that encryption must be tied to the owner and completely under his/her control. Insurance and vehicle makers cannot access it without written approval, for each access needed, from the owner. Providing access to simple maintenance-only subsystem data for 3 days should be possible for the owner to convey to a repair shop.

I have no interest in my vehicles selling my data to anyone, ever. Period.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

A feeeeeeel good, like I know I should…….

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Afeela a need.

A need for speed.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Show me the amount of dirty motor oil produced by an ICE car vs an EV over 4 years - we'll wait for the response...

In the US at least used motor oil is re-used. Much of it is re-refined into clean motor oil and some gets burned in power generation. I worked for a company that collected and re-refined used motor oil.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Waiting for the internal combustion Hydrogen Performance Cars.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

With Chinese alternatives this seems a little too late to the party. Good luck.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites