Solar Electric Cars Are Hot

[Taylor Martin]

C'mon. C'mon. That thing looks bootiful. Gorgeous.

It gets 450 miles per charge, will get 7 miles back every hour just by baking in the sun. That's not a lot, but it's free gas, and I like free things.

My dad is already convinced that his next car will be an EV. My first electric car will be a solar EV. They're cool. And this Lightyear One is rather hot.

It does cost 175k to reserve, and is only available in Europe, so it makes cars like the 1,000 mile Aptera look affordable.

That is all.

[davesaddiction]

@taylor-martin said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

7 miles back every hour*

*every hour, in Arizona, in August, from noon to 1:00

[HammerheadFistpunch]

@taylor-martin I think solar has gotten cheap enough that it makes sense to put panels on the roof to take load off the alternator, but in terms of traction battery charging...its not even close. If I covered the entire roof of the cruiser I could probably get 500 watts up there. that nets me 2.2kw of power on a good n sunny day. That wouldn't get me 5 miles in traction, but it terms of house load...huge. DOUBLE my current battery capacity and it would completely free up my alternator which would increase my MPG.

[SamV8]

@taylor-martin said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

will get 7 miles back every hour just by baking in the sun.

converted to overcast blighty works out at an extra 6ft of range

[MUSASHI66]

@taylor-martin We have different definitions of gorgeous.

[EssExTee]

@hammerheadfistpunch I'd want roof panels even if all they did was run the AC while parked.

[HammerheadFistpunch]

@essextee exactly. I saw that Thule makes a roof box with a solar panel and I thought "Hey, thats a good idea! run a vent fan to keep the stuff from roasting or getting mildewy...oh...they are using it to charge phones." Lame.

[ForSweden]

️🥵

[ranwhenparked]

@taylor-martin Electric or not, that is quite attractive. Legacy automakers seem to be in a contest with each other to make the ugliest car possible, and you've got startups that come on the scene with decent designs.

Would like it better without the black cladding though, make the wheel skirts look more integrated into the body.

[HammerheadFistpunch]

@taylor-martin Based on my math, they are looking at capturing 5kwhr of solar under ideal conditions. if they are close to Model 3 consumption (340 watt/hr per mile) and we assume 300 wthr/mile that comes out to about 17 miles per day, not 7 miles per hour. That's if you park it outside all day and it's a nice sunny day with no shade.

[MM54]

@hammerheadfistpunch Yeah, the reality is solar cars don't work, even with the best panels and the perfect weather, they aren't big enough to recharge themselves at any appreciable rate.

[beefchips]

@taylor-martin spend that money on a much cheaper BEV and a solar panel setup for your house. Cheaper to buy and you can run your house on the solar system too.

[Punkgoose17]

@hammerheadfistpunch The Lightyear is much lower power consumption than the Model 3. Smaller in wheel motors, lower weight, better aerodynamics.
They did say 7 miles of charge per hour is Southern Europe on an ideal day, Belgium is still 5 miles per hour, and Norway or Scotland is 3 miles per hour.

[Punkgoose17]

@taylor-martin The Lightyear One is my favorite electric car. I saw they were durability testing prototype 009. Unfortunately it does not have a production intent interior and has a roll cage. They said they are fine tuning their simulation software, so after they do that, they will need to do durability testing with a full production intent car.

[RallyDarkstrike]

@taylor-martin I'm hoping the Nobe or Aptera come to Canada...at the moment they are the only EVs I would love to have in my stable!

That Lightyear is pretty cool though!

[BaconSandwich]

@rallydarkstrike I wish I could buy an Aptera. Such a neat looking vehicle. Although given I now work from home, I don't need a commuter car anymore.

That still doesn't stop me from wanting to build my own...

[RallyDarkstrike]

@baconsandwich You just need something fun and interesting for weekends then!

[HammerheadFistpunch]

@punkgoose17 if they want me to believe those numbers they need me to believe this will be a minimum of 2x as energy efficient as a model 3 (153 watt hr/mile)

[TheJWT]

@taylor-martin said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

175k to reserve

As in you pay for the entire car before it's built? Or does it cost even more than that?

[Taylor Martin]

@essextee said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

I'd want roof panels even if all they did was run the AC while parked.

No more dead batteries!

@HammerheadFistpunch I don't know what you mean by house load, but I agree the technology isn't ready to constantly charge cars. I hope that happens one day, the sun's pretty darn powerful.

[Taylor Martin]

@samv8 said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

converted to overcast blighty works out at an extra 6ft of range

Funnily enough, this car will only be available in Europe. And while I'm no European, I'm pretty sure there's a good deal of rain.

[Taylor Martin]

@musashi66 I like it, and the rear wheel covers. It's slick. But to each their own.

[Taylor Martin]

@ranwhenparked said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

Would like it better without the black cladding though, make the wheel skirts look more integrated into the body.

Or just paint the car black! I think they have to be that color for the solar panels.

[Taylor Martin]

@beefchips said in Solar Electric Cars Are Hot:

spend that money on a much cheaper BEV and a solar panel setup for your house. Cheaper to buy and you can run your house on the solar system too.

What if I had both? Solar car, solar house, solar life.

[ranwhenparked]

@taylor-martin The wheel arches are solar panels?