PV-clad electric car start-up Sono Motors files for insolvency

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 programme 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 euros. Some customers had already paid the full purchase price for the car, others only part of it. In total, around 44 million euros 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.