MUNICH -- Sono Motors, the German startup working to serially produce a solar-charged electric car, said it has achieved a crowdfunding goal that will let the company stay in business.
The sum passed its 50 million-euro ($55 million) goal Saturday, the company said. It had hoped to raise the amount by Jan. 21.
Sono started the move to crowdfunding in December, after talks with potential investors broke down.
Financial backers had demanded the company give up on the Sion car because they said it cost too much to manufacture, the company said in a statement at the time.
"We realized again and again over the past few months that we have entirely different goals to traditional financial investors," CEO Laurin Hahn said. "Aggressive growth and quick profits are difficult to reconcile with a sustainable corporate and vehicle concept."
The crowdfunding pushed back the expected production start of the car to Sept. 2021. The company had originally planned to start in 2019.
If and when completed, the Sion would be able to charge conventionally through a power outlet or through solar panels integrated into the body that would recoup as many as 34 km (21 miles) of the car's 255 km range in a day.
Sono has attracted engineers from Nissan, Opel and Honda to develop the Sion, an electric car clad in crystaline silicon cells.
In a tweet published on Saturday, the company said, "Instead of giving up who we are, we decided to fight for what we believe in. By launching one of the biggest community funding campaigns in Europe. For a world in which every car on the street is electric and shared."
Reuters contributed to this report
