Awesome. I hope they succeed.
this post was submitted on 14 Aug 2023
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Solar modules are cheap, why not integrate them into the car? I'd love to get an extra 6 miles of range on my leaf per day just for being in the sun.
Perhaps, but repair expenses will certainly be crazy high.
Similar story to Aptera Motors, they collapsed and reformed in 2019 and they're raising money to put out a solar EV.
I guess… Aptera’s vehicle is much more innovative and much closer to production. What makes this car interesting? I can’t find the specs but it looks like a regular vehicle with solar on the roof which I don’t think is a very practical idea.
About 80% of all effort for the Lightyear cars is in efficiency.
You have the obvious, like weight and aerodynamics. But also things like in-wheel motors, which are much more efficient than normal electrical engines, since there are almost no mechanical losses. Or the rear-view camera's, which save a lot of energy on air-resistance.
Interesting. I hope it works out but I’m a bit skeptical that the conventional car chassis is practical for solar power barring some big improvements in technology. It just doesn’t have enough surface area compared to its weight and drag profile. If they pull it off that would be great but I’m skeptical they can build such a car at that price point.
Hmm, turns out this article was published on the 7th of April...
Cars are an inconvenient and silly location to place solar panels. This concept is just adding engineering complexity that need not be.
Idk, it's a device that's already fitted with huge batteries, so it makes sense to put them on something that can be charged
sigh..
No, it doesn't. Just because something 'appears' to make sense to laymen, doesn't mean it continues to make sense when you follow through with an investigation.
It doesn't make sense. If your goal is to make a crappier version of both a solar panel and a car, sure. But the amount of power you are going to get from the tiny amount of panels you can put into a car versus the massive power consumption they require is negligible. All your assumption shows is that you understand neither solar panels, nor cars.