#48 (EN): Continental, Sono Solar, Man Cave
Happy Sunday and happy 1st Advent. The year is almost over again, unbelievable.
+++ CONTINENTAL +++
In addition to the powertrain and the control of some ADAS components, Conti's All Season tire is also coming to the Sion, the tire press reports.
https://reifenpresse.de/2022/11/21/sion-von-sono-motors-rollt-auf-dem-allseasoncontact-von-conti/
That's not all - Conti itself issues a detailed press release, emphasizing its long collaboration with Sono and with young companies in general.
Source: sonomotors.com
https://www.continental.com/de/presse/pressemitteilungen/20221121-solar-power/
Sono, HEISE and others have a nice graphic of how much Conti is in the Sion. Under the headline "Sono Motors gets driving assistance system from Continental", it is revealed, among other things, that the "Smart Entry System" comes from Conti, which recognizes users when they approach the vehicle and opens the door. The start-stop button is also from the Conti shelf. With the start-stop button, I first thought that prosperity had broken out at Sono - in the Mercedes EQS, the button looks almost exactly the same, but if it's a carry-over part, then all is well.
And here is the Sono press release:
+++ TECH VIDEO #19 | CONTI +++
Fittingly, there is a video with Markus from Conti. The recordings were made a few weeks ago. Markus is the Daniel Düsentrieb, who does much more than just testing. The Conti message has almost overtaken the video again, but this way it fits of course.
I know that many would like to have the videos in German. The tech videos are a low budget production. I think it's great that the engineers are allowed to have their say and Sono makes that possible. The experts come from all over the world and English was the language.
Everyone complains that we don't have enough engineers - there's no better advertisement for the profession. And you can see how much detail work goes into the vehicle after all.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KSs-E0yAFqY&feature=youtu.be#menu
+++ PRESSE-ECHO +++
The Conti announcement has generated quite a bit of response. The usual suspects are reporting:
https://www.elektroauto-news.net/2022/sono-motors-continental-vertiefte-kooperation-sion-entwicklung
Sono Motors buys from Continental for solar car Sion:
Sono Motors expands cooperation with Continental for development of the Sion:
+++ SONO SOLAR +++
Solar on Every Vehicle" cannot be implemented worldwide with Sions alone. Sono also wants to supply other manufacturers, and the "Sono Solar" division will take over this part.
There are currently 22 partners, explains Lars from Sono, with whom they are working on integration.
+++ FINANZEN +++
Sono still needs to raise money. In column #41, we dissected the SEC filing and highlighted page three: 242 million still missing in total. Sono wants to raise 122 million by the end of the year to keep the timeline. So far, we haven't heard anything.
SEC filings are hundreds of pages long, but structured in a very strict scheme so financiers know directly where to look and don't have to wade through pages and pages of prose. Some sites even pull out the numbers automatically, that's how standardized the structure is.
I also had to learn how to read them first, for the first big filing I spent several evenings on it to process all the contents. Asti and Andreas prepared the first documents for us here last year, and sat over the PDFs for a whole night to be able to give you quick info. In the meantime - we all got a lot quicker.
The latest financial update from Sono is dated 10/13 - it's about the "Committed Equity Financing": Sono is allowed to issue shares to Berenberg, but only limited.
Michael from Breaking Electric News Youtube Channel had several questions about finance issues last week - and even produced his own YouTube video on this. I offered a background discussion, but he declined.
We still have to wait for an update, it seems.
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1840416/000110465922108489/tm2227558-3_424b3.htm
+++ CNBC | SOLAR +++
"Solar-powered cars are here - but can they catch on?" asks CNBC. The Sion is included, along with Aptera and Lightyear. At Sono, they highlight how cost-saving they are.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pu2vJ3DBpEE
+++ PASSED +++
I passed all requirements to drive the prototyped and can hit the test track for the next tech videos! And you guys will hopefully driving in the Sion soon too. Driver training completed, high voltage training completed, safety briefing done.
I had to look very "neutral" in places during the safety training. I am currently setting up a three-phase test installation in my garage for bi-directional charging. Based on your feedback from the bidi survey. And some of what was shown as a warning was quite familiar from my garage.
Thanks again to everyone who participated in the survey on bidi. I now have four manufacturers working on an AC-Bidi wallbox. I am not allowed to name names yet. Some e-car from China is supposed to be able to do this, I just haven't found out who yet. All the more important that we also have a solution from Europe, with the Sion.
+++ FURN IT +++
The furnishing of Waldmeisterstraße is very special in places. Room dividers made from old windows, carpenter's boards as workstations, and used furniture. Andreas, for example, organized furniture for the Sono Office that would otherwise have ended up in the scrap along with the hydro plants. Throwing away is far too often economical; recycling makes work.
Sono is growing and needs flexibility. It's great that you can now buy used furniture on a subscription basis and without stress. In the start-up scene, Sono has found an exciting approach here with NORNORM. Furniture by subscription remains contemporary, flexible and subject to the circular economy. Thanks to Kay for the link.
https://fundscene.com/nornorm-stattet-bueros-von-sono-motors-aus/
These soundproof telephone booths from the photo are really good, by the way. I was at Sono's second building for the first time on Thursday, there are some of the boxes on the third floor and I was in there briefly. It's completely silent inside.
The info came a week too late for me, I'm building a garden shed as a home office right now. Soon my "Man Cave" will be ready, self-sustained with 2.2 kW solar peak, Victron Multiplus inverter, 5 kWh storage and 150 MBit internet. Complete island grid.
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_Cave
+++ EVENTS +++
Jona last week gave a lecture at LMU Munich: "Science and Business in Times of Multiple Crises: Between Research and Entrepreneurship of the Future". Some of the lectures go online, this one is not available yet.
Tomorrow, Sono is participating at the German Equity Board:
https://ir.sonomotors.com/events/event-details/sono-group-participates-deutsches-eigenkapitalforum
+++ FUN FACT +++
(Attention, rated 18)
We already covered one or the other curious product related to Sono.
The latest name twin is black, like the Sion, compact and can be used flexibly. Instead of €29,900, the "Sono No. 2" costs only €29.90. To avoid any confusion, this is not a low-budget towing hook for the Sion. I won't put a link now, everyone can search for a picture of the "Sono No. 2" themselves on Google. Best in private mode with image search.
Stay healthy and all of you have a nice Advent season.
Sebastian, Astrid