Sony’s Afeela 1 has been hot concept property on the CES stage since what feels like forever, but now it has made the jump from shiny flashbang to production reality. I’ve sat inside the completed sedan on the show floor and the message is loud and clear: This isn’t a tech demo anymore. Finally, with U.S. assembly at a Honda plant in Ohio, first units designated for California and a starting price of $89,900, Afeela is heading for actual roads.
From CES Spectacle to U.S. Production Reality
Sony initially presented Afeela as a mobile tech test bed; now the company is, through its Sony Honda Mobility joint venture, making it for customers. Gone are some of the silly exterior details that we’ve seen on previous show versions, making for cleaner surfacing and a less comically droopy front end. The changes, overall, make the design appear less “concept” and more premium sport sedan.
Importantly, the cabin and driver interface are finished. The company has been coy about overshooting specs before certification, but it reaffirmed the U.S.-built Afeela 1 you’re seeing at the show is the same one that’s going to be coming as early as this year. That is something which previous iterations have lacked, and it changes the level at which shoppers — and competitors — will take this car.
The Entertainment-First Cabin and Driver Interface
From the driver’s seat, the first thing you notice is a sweeping display that now spans the entire dash without a vertical break in it as on early versions. The single, clean panel sounds modern and, more important, operates that way. The interface is customizable almost to a fault: Drivers can pin navigation, vehicle stats and media in a way that feels personal while not being prescriptive.
The rear seats come with their own screens and side entertainment portals. Sony plays to its strengths here: passenger streaming is built in, and there’s a clear path from the rear to PlayStation gaming — a savvy reference to the company’s ecosystem. It’s a rare EV that has an interior truly designed for downtime, not just drive time.
Materials and fit are somewhat less of a baggy afterthought than the show car’s patriotically white-on-white playset. The quiet solidity typical of the price bracket was there in the show car’s cabin, along with supportive seating and intelligent storage. Even more important, the software had a certain cobbled-together feel to it, and that is where so many newbie automakers fall short.
Under the Skin, Tech That Matters for Afeela 1
Final U.S. range and acceleration numbers weren’t provided on the show floor, but the technology stack is based in relevancy and credibility when it comes to partners. Sony Honda Mobility earlier described a platform based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis for infotainment and driver assistance, and had shown UI elements created using Epic’s Unreal Engine for realistic graphics. Earlier prototypes had a thick sensory suite — dozens of cameras and radars plus lidar — to enable advanced driver-assistance features. The production car on show has the same neat exterior sensor packing that hints at similar ability.
Sony, too, has hinted at a long-term pursuit of more autonomy in cars, although without the same background that Honda’s limited-market Level 3 experience affords. Short-term, we can expect solid Level 2+ help and over-the-air updates, with a safety roadmap that more easily squares with how the laws will soon be drafted than attempting to leapfrog straight into full autonomy.
Price, Availability, and Rivals in the U.S. Market
Afeela 1 at $89,900 goes head-to-head with highly regarded premium EVs: the Tesla Model S, Mercedes EQE, BMW i5, and Lucid Air Pure. That’s a crowded neighborhood, and price alone will not carry the day. Sony is betting on the best in-car experience, believable driver assistance and Honda build quality to differentiate its first production EV.
The timing could be advantageous. U.S. EV sales have recently surpassed one million units annually and as a percentage of all light-vehicle sales, they’ve reached the low to high single digits, according to Cox Automotive. Growth has cooled, but shoppers are now graduating beyond the early adopters and valuing charging convenience and software polish. If Afeela can hit the ground running with a sleek interface and smooth updates, it might have more than just novelty on its side.
The rollout begins in California before spreading to other states, a practical move given charging density and consumer demand on the West Coast. Look for leasing to play a significant role — as both a matter of price advantage and in addressing residual-value fears that continue to haunt the segment.
Afeela SUV Prototype Suggests a Broader Family Plan
Sony also debuted an Afeela Prototype SUV suggesting an explicit next step.
The taller bodyline extends the sedan’s tech and appearance, but there is space inside for families to carry what their cargo needs will be. Few details were available, such as whether the model shares a platform with said sedan, but the design language and cabin philosophy are a match. A couple of years later, then, Afeela starts to sound less like a one-off than a lineup.
That’s important because credibility in the car business is not won with a single model. It’s won through scale, service and software that gets better over time. After straddling the production model of the Afeela 1, it’s obvious that Sony’s “vaporware” moniker is no longer a comfortable fit. The rubber meets the road, though, when those first customer cars roll off the Ohio line and begin clocking miles — and updates — on U.S. streets.
