Sony Honda Mobility, a joint venture between the two Japanese companies, announced that it was canceling the development of the Afeela 1.The move, which also halts work on its second model, an SUV, follows Honda’s decision earlier this month to cancel the launch of three EVs that were supposed to be built in the United States.Sony Honda Mobility is refunding everyone who had paid a fee to reserve an Afeela 1 ahead of its planned launch, initially only in California, this year.
When Honda announced earlier this month that it was canceling plans to build three EVs on an all-new platform in the United States, we immediately assumed this spelled disaster for Afeela. The joint venture between Sony and Honda aimed to build an electric sedan in the same Honda factory in Ohio, but the company initially said it was “operating as usual.” Now, however, Sony Honda Mobility has confirmed what we had suspected: the development and launch of the Afeela 1 sedan has been discontinued.
Sony Honda Mobility
Sony Honda Mobility had also announced a second Afeela model at CES 2026, an SUV that essentially looked like a high-riding version of the company’s electric sedan and was due out in 2028. In its official statement, Sony Honda Mobility said it was also stopping development of this model.
Sony Honda Mobility said the decision to suspend work on its two planned vehicles came after discussions between the two parties, Sony and Honda. The company said that Honda’s decision to backtrack on EVs means Afeela will not be able to use “certain technologies and assets that were originally planned to be provided by Honda,” and that therefore, Sony Honda Mobility “determined that it does not have a viable path forward to bring the Models to market as originally planned.”
The Afeela 1 was first revealed at CES 2023 in prototype form, with the official production specification shown at CES 2025 ahead of planned production by mid-2026. Despite having the backing of two major technological forces, the Afeela 1’s spec sheet disappointed. The dual-motor powertrain, expected to be provided by Honda, was good for over 400 horsepower—not too shabby but nothing mind-blowing—while the estimated range was only expected to be around 300 miles, a middling figure made more disappointing by the Afeela’s starting price of $89,900 for the base Origin trim or $102,900 for the Signature trim.
Sony Honda Mobility
It also didn’t help that the Afeela 1 looked like it was designed to be in the background of a video game. Sony Honda Mobility pitched the Afeela 1’s selling point as its advanced driver-assistance systems and powerful onboard computer, but we’re not sure how much that would’ve moved the needle given the bland styling and so-so performance figures.
While this move effectively sounds like a death sentence for the venture, the company said it “will continue discussions with Sony and Honda regarding its future business plans.” Still, Sony Honda Mobility will provide full refunds of the reservation fees for anyone who had plunked down the cash to grab a spot for an Afeela 1, so it seems fairly certain that the joint venture won’t produce anything soon, if ever.
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Caleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan.
