Photo: Sony
Sony has come up with a new term for the electric vehicles it plans to sell with Honda. It is calling them “rolling smartphones,” and there is a good reason for that. The company will focus on delivering at least Level 3 autonomy in its vehicles for a simple reason: it wants occupants “to pay more attention to the content and software services” it intends to sell. That will start to happen in 2026.
According to Reuters, Sony will open online reservations for its new EVs in 2025. In spring 2026, deliveries should start in the U.S., while Japanese customers should get their vehicles in the second half of that year. There are plans to sell them in Europe as well, but the two companies have not decided on the strategy for that market yet.
The new Sony Honda EVs will be produced by Honda in Ohio, where the Japanese carmaker recently announced it would have its battery plant in a joint venture with LG Energy Solution. The new factory will be located in Fayette County, to be more precise. The plan is for it to start delivering cells by 2025, which is pretty on time for Sony’s “rolling smartphones.”
By focusing on autonomous technologies, Sony wants its customers to spend more money on the services it plans to offer with its cars on a monthly subscription base. The counterpart is that it also wants to take responsibility for whatever happens while the vehicles are on its Level 3 advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). This is what Mercedes-Benz pledged to do with its Drive Pilot Level 3 system in the U.S. and Germany. Curiously, Honda was the first company to offer such a system with the Legend Hybrid EV sold in Japan.
Reuters said that the Sony vehicles would have a premium price tag, something that will help Honda establish at least one premium brand in the U.S. after struggling to do so with Acura for years. With Sony’s reputation for a great finish in all its products, it will probably try to keep it that way with its rolling smartphones.
The new Sony Honda EVs will be produced by Honda in Ohio, where the Japanese carmaker recently announced it would have its battery plant in a joint venture with LG Energy Solution. The new factory will be located in Fayette County, to be more precise. The plan is for it to start delivering cells by 2025, which is pretty on time for Sony’s “rolling smartphones.”
By focusing on autonomous technologies, Sony wants its customers to spend more money on the services it plans to offer with its cars on a monthly subscription base. The counterpart is that it also wants to take responsibility for whatever happens while the vehicles are on its Level 3 advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). This is what Mercedes-Benz pledged to do with its Drive Pilot Level 3 system in the U.S. and Germany. Curiously, Honda was the first company to offer such a system with the Legend Hybrid EV sold in Japan.
Reuters said that the Sony vehicles would have a premium price tag, something that will help Honda establish at least one premium brand in the U.S. after struggling to do so with Acura for years. With Sony’s reputation for a great finish in all its products, it will probably try to keep it that way with its rolling smartphones.
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