#52 (EN): Solar charging, 1000, financing needs
Happy holidays to all of you, whatever you do. Again, we've managed to put together a complete year's worth of unofficial follower news every week on every Sunday.
For the second year in a row! Over 150 weekly reports to the community since 2019. Next Sunday is already 2023. Happy New Year, see you there.
+++HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK +++
Community New Year Book
Tech: Solar store proven under real conditions
Campaign: State of the art, 1000 cracked
CFO: Updated info on financing requirements, high risk addressed again,
Corrected Terms & Conditions
Community Council 2.0
Sono: New member on the supervisory board
Headlines in major media in Germany
+++ WE ARE COMMUNITY +++
There are so many of us, and we have chosen the Sion and the project for such different reasons. And some against it, too.
I would like to make a book/PDF as a "New Year's gift" for all of us, with our stories in it. Why have you reserved? And when? How do you currently feel between "everything can be gone" and "now more than ever"? Write to us. The result will be nicely formatted and available for download on the Community Blog and on Facebook in the first days of January. The editorial deadline is 31.12.
So if anyone has time and desire between the holidays, please feel free to send us a few lines for the book/PDF on the Sion and yourself to:
E-Mail: story@sono.community
+++ SOLAR CHARGING +++
We have often seen that the solar cells in the Sion can generate electricity. What was still missing was the proof that the energy also arrives in the battery. Last Tuesday (13.12.) was the day.
Time-Lapse recoding of the solar yield and energy charged.
Solar records are broken in the summer, and in the winter the system has to prove whether anything at all comes out of solar charging. And it came!
It was one of the shortest days of the year (December 13th), and the weather conditions were average. No completely clear sky, no rain, but very cold. The Sion added about five kilometers of range, which is a bit below plan, but not far off. And there is still room for improvement, one too many consumers was on too. The video explains that. And Sono has disclosed the measured values in a PDF.
What comes out clearly is what high value the solar panels provide in the sides. In winter, the sun is flat, and you can't always choose where to park in the city - so it makes sense to have cells all around the car. There are always leaves on the roof in the fall and snow in the winter, so the vertical surfaces also make sense.
The real highlight of the development is the "MCU," the control unit that charges the solar energy into the high-voltage storage unit - and can even still charge the 12-volt on-board battery when there's little light, so nothing gets lost.
Here the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3wJi9wBlf8
And here are the measurement results to read (PDF).
https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/10315/221222_solar_test_ergebnisse_13_12_2022_de.pdf
+++ COUNTER +++
Sono crowdfunding and Christmas, if this continues, this will soon belong together like day and night.
With 1000 (as of 12/24) of 3,500 Sion equivalents, Sono has reached 28% of the campaign goal. In Amsterdam, Jonah said that there are already over 6,000 people behind these pledges.
Currently we are in the "Christmas low", between mulled wine, presents and visiting relatives there is little time to top up, lots of costs and no salary yet. And the risk is high, even if the money comes together, because of course more money has to come from the capital market. CFO Torsten explains this over and over again. Not everyone can do it, and it should really only be reserved by those who are aware of the risk.
We have feedback from the community that the Sion can be very convincing live. It is necessary to show the Sion. It also needs new reservers, otherwise it will be really hard.
After Christmas, we're off to Oberhausen and Frankfurt. Take the opportunity to see the Sion. A photo collection from Hamburg was shown to us by Carsten in the group, thanks for the pro photos!
The development of the pledges (thanks to Mika):
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wWyd5dy85SGPzlnAmfPqMD3EVE_94qpsQGbGq6w8AZg/edit
Link to Carsten/Photos:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/sonosion/permalink/2079862992404411/
Link to the events:
https://sonomotors.com/de/events/
+++ BOOT SILL +++
The boot sill of the SVC3 is higher than that of the SVC2, and is now referred to as a "changing table" by some in the community.
Carsten has elicited an info from the team in Hamburg: There is reason to hope that the loading edge will be reduced by about the piece above the catch hook of the lock (5 cm). Likewise, the flap will open wider. This coincides with rumors from the Bertrandt tours.
(via comment)
+++ COUNCIL 2.0 +++
The community is professionalizing itself through a "Community Council".We do not have a final name yet. From the basic structure, we form focus teams that are specifically interested in the following topics. All of them are in the "overall project" team.
Finances
Technology & Development
Sustainability
Communication
Production, Aftersales and Service
Community-Orga (Forum, Tools)
For this purpose, we are forming - due to current events - a temporary "Intensive Team Campaign", which deals with everything around the campaign.
Thursday we met digitally with the first groups - about 35 people. We'll prepare the proposals, then we'll pick you all up, and then more are welcome to join in. We just have to sort ourselves out first.
+++ FINANZIERUNGSSTRATEGIE +++
With all the videos and tweets and events from Sono, many no longer see through. The best thing is still the printed word and a cup of tea. And then you can read through everything at your leisure.
Sono has put the entire financing strategy into writing:
https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/10257/221220_sono_motors_funding_startegy_ger_vf-1.pdf
It is important to mention the risk here as well - and of course the opportunity. In parallel, there is also a new, very informative financial video 2 with Torsten. Here are very many of your questions incorporated and it is explained a lot!
+++ T&C | 75/100 MIO. +++
The new Terms & Conditions V15 are active since Tuesday 20.12. Sono has taken the criticism to heart, Laurin has explained the circumstances on Twitter. There was an internal threshold, but it had not made it into the first AGB V13. "In the campaign stress," as Laurin explains.
There are currently three T&Cs in parallel, depending on which one you have agreed to. For you, the T&Cs that were valid when you last topped up or reserved always apply. New terms and conditions do not apply automatically.
If you want to have the latest - Laurin pointed out in a tweet - then you can add another 1 euro. Then the new terms and conditions automatically apply. It also explains where the 40 days come from that Sono grants itself for extension: "In addition, we have built in the option to extend the duration of the campaign up to 40 days. Why? Because we want to keep open the possibility of collecting further money from investors. However, in a classic capital increase, this is only possible with a so-called "quiet period" of at least 4 weeks. That means: 4 weeks after the end of the campaign --> at the earliest such a capital increase. Therefore 40 days."
https://twitter.com/LaurinHahn/status/1605144570991284224?t=ebGK82zsMW4niq1KdKnh2w&s=19
The new T&Cs conclude the topic. The entire Twitter thread is here (even without logging in, for those who do not want to be on Twitter)
https://twitter.com/LaurinHahn/status/1605142651866677250?t=-x-F5cnET_mBwp7b85cERQ&s=19
So the community pressure was successful, at least in part. What remains to be seen is how the pledges will be made up if the campaign is successful. We have planned an intensive team for this topic in the new Advisory Board 2.0 so that we can form a solid opinion together for all of you.
+++ NACHRANGDARLEHEN +++
A page with the conditions of the subordinated loan has been online since Tuesday. A maximum of 3 million euros can be collected in this way, with an interest rate of 7%. The process is not located directly at Sono, FFAV is the service provider that already organized the subordinated part last time. The page seems to have been activated a bit early by the service provider, it is not yet possible to subscribe (as of Saturday) - work in progress. The attachments seem to be older. Sono is informed.
+++ SPOILERS +++
We had started collecting names, locations and functions of the SVC3 in the form of a community list. Shortly after, Sono published all the numbers and names of the SVC3.
Aber hey, “no front", as we say when we try to sound cool.
+++ GENERAL ASSEMBLY +++
Sono held its Annual General Meeting for the year 2021. Since Laurin and Jona hold the majority of the voting rights, it's all pretty unspectacular.
The biggest new piece of information for us is that the supervisory board now has five members again. Arnd Schwierholz joins, former CFO of Flixbus, previously with Lufthansa and AirBerlin. An experienced Supervisory Board member with a strong financial background. Welcome, Arnd. There's a lot to do.
https://www.startbase.de/news/sono-motors-beruft-arnd-schwierholz-in-den-aufsichtsrat/
https://sonomotors.com/de/press/press-releases/decisive-year-for-sono-motors/
+++ HEADLINES +++
Sono's campaign makes it into many of the top media in Germany. Here's an excerpt:
BILD: When will the Sion finally be built?
Computer Bild: Just before sunset
A solar car at any price
Ecomento: In the worst case, the money is gone:
https://www.elektroauto-news.net/2022/laurin-hahn-sono-motors-worst-case-geld-weg
BILD: Does the Sion still see the sun? (Paywall)
Ecomento: Sono Motors: "2022 was a decisive year".
https://ecomento.de/2022/12/21/sono-motors-2022-war-ein-entscheidendes-jahr/
163 degrees: SONO MOTORS - SION faces the OFF again. Or not after all?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWIDkNcPj30
ADAC: Sono Motors: Start of series production of the Sion already questionable again
https://www.adac.de/rund-ums-fahrzeug/autokatalog/marken-modelle/sono-motors/sono-motors-sion/
Kicker (soccer magazine!): Sion from Sono Motors: Finally over and done with?
https://www.kicker.de/sion-von-sono-motors-endgueltig-aus-und-vorbei-929029/artikel
+++ SPONSORING +++
More and more companies are trying to give the campaign a hand. Two examples:
ShiftPhone advertises Sono on Twitter: We think: The Sion belongs on the road.
https://twitter.com/shiftphones/status/1605873787962007554
On Mastodon, the Twitter alternative, someone is even offering e-scooters at half price if the campaign is successful.
https://climatejustice.social/@magdock@mastodon.world/109519732294032852
+++ TOOLING +++
The development continues, Sono is apparently investing in series tools in order to continue giving power in the direction of production in Finland. On the one hand, this is of course good, on the other hand, money goes out of the till.
https://twitter.com/SonoMotors/status/1606328917962416128
+++ FUN FACT +++
The time for solar e-cars is coming. Bilal Ahmed. Math teacher from Kashmiri in India, has built himself a solar e-car. The basis is a 1988 Nissan Micra with gullwing doors, which he first converted into an e-car and then supplemented with monocrystalline solar cells.
It, too, relies on full-surface solar integration in the sides. Similar to the SVC1, the all-around view is somewhat limited, as everything from the back seat up is really full. What I find smart is the possibility to open the hood towards the sun.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=508062203990956
Have a nice week, have a nice rest of the year. Stay healthy. We are also taking a few days off with family and friends.
Sebastian, Astrid. And the whole admin team.