Honda Is Far Behind in the EV Race. Can Sony Save Them?
In the race toward a totally electrified fleet, there are few other large car companies which have done less to embrace this transition than Honda.
Currently, the Japanese automaker only offers the Honda E, a short-range electric vehicle, in Europe.
In the US, the automaker says that its “first volume BEV,” the Honda Prologue, is coming in 2024, and it is going to be based on GM’s Ultium electric platform. Then, last year, Honda announced that it is planning for a capacity of 70,000 Prologue electric SUVs in 2024.
Honda has been one of the most disappointing automakers when it comes to battery-electric vehicles. They have done nothing to establish their presence in the supply chain for critical materials – ie cobalt, lithium, rare earths – without which it is impossible to scale battery manufacturing.
Not only the Honda E, which is a very limited EV, is its only current BEV offering, but the Prologue, their first “volume BEV,” is only possible thanks to GM’s Ultium electric platform – so they are not exactly impressing shareholders with innovation.
Now it plans to basically only have 70,000 EVs in the US by 2024, which is when I expect EVs are going to completely take over the US market.
An automaker that currently sells 1.2 million vehicles in the US is planning to sell 70,000 EVs in 2024 and 500,000 in 2030.
Perhaps this is why the corporate leadership is trying to play catch up now, turning to the Sony empire for help.
The Japanese electronics and entertainment giant Sony announced on Friday that it would team up with Honda to develop electric cars for sale as early as 2025, becoming the latest company to throw its hat into the burgeoning market for battery-powered vehicles.
Sony, a leader in digital sensors and imaging technology, announced its ambition to enter the auto market in January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, unveiling a prototype S.U.V. that allowed passengers to play video games made for its PlayStation 5 console.
But rather than design its own cars, the company has opted to team up with a traditional automaker, seeking to avoid the pitfalls encountered by other tech companies that have attempted to make their own vehicles from scratch. Sony and Honda said in their announcement that they planned to form a new company this year that would manufacture cars in Honda’s factories.
The agreement is expected to give Sony access to Honda’s industry knowledge as well as its global network of dealerships and aftermarket service providers. Honda will get access to the technology essential to implement features like autonomous driving, and also to Sony’s wealth of entertainment options.
That will be crucial as the companies seek to compete against better-established electric vehicle manufacturers, as well as powerful tech companies, such as Apple, that want to put their own spin on electric cars.
Honda previously announced plans to make a variety of other all-electric cars, including at least two to be made under a tie-up with GM for the American market.