Happy Sunday and sandy greetings from sunny Croatia. Vacation is a must, and today's column is written on the beach. Could be worse.

+++ SPRINT REPORT +++

The new Sprint Report week 18 is here. From this week's videos and tweets, we know Sono is building the 16 full-scale "Series Validation Vehicles" and a bunch of experimental vehicles. "SVC3" is no longer allowed to be said, says marketing. The engineers in the Sprint Report don't care, that's the name of the thing, the end.

In progress: State of hot spots on solar panels

"Hot spots" are places on the panels where heat accumulates. Areas, corners, the reasons are manifold, the thermal imaging camera makes it visible. There are ways to dissipate the heat, but first you have to know where the hot spots are.

Adaptive cruise control (ACC) development decision needed

Should we as a community help? Ask us. No matter if the rim or trim, we decide on everything.

Infotainment head unit (IHU) software development slows down ADAS

For a long time, everything was green for infotainment, but for a few weeks, there are hints in the sprint report that the software development of the infotainment system is running slower than planned.

Lowlight: Torque value definition

Lefty loosey, righty tighty. If the values for the torque wrench are not correct, the faces get sad quickly. Back to the computer to enter a new value - and add a lowlight in the Sprint report: Check torque values.

Lifetime study for towing feasibility kicked off by 2 suppliers but taking time

Towing a trailer means more stress for the engine and the components. As a manufacturer, of course, you have to check that the parts will still hold up, over the entire planned lifetime of the vehicle. Currently, the item is set to "In Progress", let's hope it will become a highlight.

Highlight: Received and assessed offer from trailer hitch supplier

A trailer hitch supplier has submitted an offer. In times of inflation and supply chain issues, it's nice to read when a quote runs as a highlight.

https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/8092/sono-motors-dev-sprint-review-cw18-22.pdf

In summary, the current Sprint report contains no major surprises, either positive or negative. Work is being done. The main question that arises is - when will Sono be ready? When will we see the mini-fleet "SVC3"? Unfortunately, there is nothing to be found on the web so far. The map on the development page at Sono has no entry for this. We stay tuned.

+++ CDC / E-COATING +++

The Sion doesn't need a paint job, but a little corrosion protection is a must. The prototypes are dipped at a manufactory in Baden-Württemberg. The owner, Alexander, knows his stuff - and has the process completely under control. Everything is protected there, from vintage car rarities to police radar trap housings - they all need e-coating. A bodyshell is immersed in the tank for a few minutes to obtain the desired coating thickness, after which it is no longer silver - but black. The pumps have to run 24/7 in such a plant so that the liquid is always in motion, with no pause.

After the coating (KTL stands for cathodic dip painting), it goes into the oven for about an hour at 170 degrees Celsius. Here it also becomes clear whether work has been done cleanly, nothing of the resinous liquid may remain in the body frame, that would burst. That's why holes in the right place are so important so that everything drains away again after dipping. The body puts on 3-6 kilos after the process.

https://twitter.com/SonoMotors/status/1534150969465896962

Later, of course, it will be done in Uusikaupunki at Valmet. It's faster there. In addition to corrosion protection, materials are also applied to certain areas to reduce noise. The primer is also necessary so that it adheres to the aluminum.

You can find out everything else that can be coated at https://www.coating.de - a very exciting and helpful resource for do-it-yourselfers. There is even an "anti-pee varnish" - with 90% men among the reservation holders, it might come in useful.

Here is the complete video of the E-Coating. Because it was asked by some: the room on the left at the beginning of the video - this is not a hotel, this is the meeting room in my office.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUY5hnklkeA

+++ LIGHTYEAR ZERO TO ONE +++

Lightyear has been developing its One since 2013, and now the Zero is coming to market as a small series. 16 minutes you see the CEO Lex on stage with his work. 999 pieces are built at Valmet, the price: from 250,000 €. For that, you get energy efficiency at its finest, with wheel hub motors, 1,575 kg weight, and highly optimized aerodynamics, from zero to a hundred in 10 seconds. Solar ranges are now given on the homepage for southern Spain in spring/summer, up to 70 km a day. Here's the premiere video from last week:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLQfH_RVCKQ

+++ ARCHITECTURE 2022 +++

CTO Markus speaking at BEVA2022 . "Battery Electric Vehicle Architectures 2022 Next Generation Cost Competitive Engineering Strategies & Holistic Vehicle Design Concepts" conference (according to the homepage).

The home page looks a bit like it was a PowerPoint slide in a previous life, but the attendees’ list is very promising: in addition to Markus, there are representatives from Lightyear, GM, Stellantis, Jaguar, Ford, Rivian, and Mercedes-Benz. June 21-22, Detroit and online.

https://www.beva-usa.com/4/speakers/81/markus-volmer/

+++ FUN FACT +++

Together with the island nation of Tuvalu, German comedian “Otto” issued its first “Ottifant gold coin” in 2020, minted at Australia's Perth Mint. Now there is a new one-ounce gold coin - the "Sunnyfant 2022". Featuring Queen Elizabeth. and the Sunnyfant The price looks a little bit expensive.

The beautiful motto on the coin would fit the Sion: On the coin, it says in Latin: "Sol Lucet Omnibus". Below that you can find the German translation: "The sun shines for all".

https://www.edelmetall-handel.de/goldmuenze-1oz-ottifanten-2022-sunnyfant.html

https://philoro.de/shop/geschenkartikel/gold-sunny-ottifanten-1-oz-2022

(Thanks to Carsten for the submission)