How Long Till Solar Powered Car?

[wk057]

Even if you treated the whole top facing painted portions of the car as PV, and assumed the car was somehow in the sun all day every day... you're talking about something like less than 10 miles of range per day at best, also assuming very little losses. No rain ever, no clouds, and no parking in a garage or parking structure... and your car stays matte clean all year long. This just makes zero sense to do. The cost of the installation of such a system would simply never recover the costs in energy produced in any real world use case.

Solar *on* a normal usable car is probably the dumbest possible thing to expend resources on. Just put the solar where you charge, and more than you could ever possibly fit on a car, and be done with it.

 

[JRP3]

It does add substantial expense

As I've said previously I think Elon may know a place to get inexpensive panels, even custom made ones.

and interfere with sunroofs and the like

It would be an option instead of a sun roof, which would also reduce any cost differential.

and it won't add any significant fraction of the range a typical driver uses on a daily basis,

Agree, but, can eliminate vampire drain and give a few miles, which no other option can do.

 

[int32_t]

I'd rather have a long-range EV and a giant stash of solar at home -- my main charging station. Then that solar array can always be optimised for maximum harvest since it's always facing the right direction and be running my home when the car's in the parkade.

 

[JRP3]

Solar *on* a normal usable car is probably the dumbest possible thing to expend resources on. Just put the solar where you charge, and more than you could ever possibly fit on a car, and be done with it.

You are correct, if you are simply thinking of it as "solar power". However, if you think of it as an option, among many other options that cost a lot and do absolutely nothing other than change the look of a vehicle, (i.e. expensive rims, carbon fiber accents, paint jobs, etc.), then solar panels on a vehicle make just as much sense as those, with the difference being not only would they look cool, and provide a "geek" factor, they would actually do something. Basically I think much of the public seems to like the idea of a solar panel on a car, and if done right I think it can look good, (Fiskar Karma).

 

[Model 3]

Just for the record:

Elon confirms solar roof on the M3
View attachment 201176

 

[jgs]

Just for the record:

Interesting, though use of "probably" noted.

I'm pretty sure he's gone on the record in the past as saying solar panels on a car are a dumb idea. Of course, if he can profit because people want to buy that dumb idea, who's to say he shouldn't.

 

[nwdiver]

As much as I've criticized the idea of solar panels on a car as a waste of $$$... it actually WOULD be worth it to help extend the life of the 12v battery. Of course... it would be cheaper and more effective to simply engineer a better 12v system that doesn't cycle a lead acid AGM battery ~5x/day... But... absent that I'd rather have a solar roof than spend $400 to replace a 12v battery every year

Come 'on Tesla... FIX THIS!

The irony about solar panels on a car is from an energy perspective they actually make more sense on an ICE than an EV....

I have to say I love the poll results. Glad to be on a Forum where ~77% of the members have a basic grasp of physics

 

[tander]

Just for the record:

If they are making the solar glass for the roof shingles they might as well explore ideas for the cars too. Seems like they could run air conditioning or other things with it and get more range out of the batteries, and maybe some charging while parked. I still like the idea of parking at a trailhead and coming back a few days later to a car has done some significant charging. Now if they could just come up with a way to keep people from busting your window, that should be the next poll.

 

[deonb]

I still like the idea of parking at a trailhead and coming back a few months later to a car has done some significant charging.

FTFY

 

[tander]

FTFY

I don't know, if you look upthread, the math works if you assume current tech development continues. Things might happen sooner than you think if you're using yesterday or even today's stats/tech on your assumptions/projections.

 

[deonb]

I don't know, if you look upthread, the math works if you assume current tech development continues. Things might happen sooner than you think if you're using yesterday or even today's stats/tech on your assumptions/projections.

Even if you assume 100% efficiency, the math doesnt work out if you want the vehicle at all to still resemble the shape of a car.

 

[McRat]

GM Killed The Solar Car, tonight at 11 only on MSNBC.

(seriously, doesn't GM still hold the record for a solar car?)

 

[tander]

Even if you assume 100% efficiency, the math doesnt work out if you want the vehicle at all to still resemble the shape of a car.

A model s, 16.3' long, 6.41' wide. Assume only the top canopy is photovoltaic. About 1/3 the length, minus a foot in width since it tapers. About 5.4'x5.4' = about 29 sq. ft. Assume 100 watts per square foot, and 8 hours a day, 29x100x8=23,200/1000=23.2 kWh per day. If you knock that down to 20%, you're still getting 4.64 kWh a day. Not a ton but it looks pretty workable to me, especially if you consider $/time will get invested in these technologies over the next 5 years is probably more than the previous 50 or 100.

 

[Topher]

Interesting, though use of "probably" noted.

I'm pretty sure he's gone on the record in the past as saying solar panels on a car are a dumb idea. Of course, if he can profit because people want to buy that dumb idea, who's to say he shouldn't.

I am.

Thank you kindly.

 

[Topher]

about 29 sq. ft. Assume 100 watts per square foot, and 8 hours a day, 29x100x8=23,200/1000=23.2 kWh per day. If you knock that down to 20%, you're still getting 4.64 kWh a day.

100 Watts per square foot is nominal, normal to the sun angle. For a flat plate collector, the BEST daily average (u.s.) is only 5-6 solar hours. With a more reasonable 15% efficiency on the panels, that gives 2.4 kWh per day. A more average figure would be 1.9 kWh per day, or 6.3 miles of range.

Thank you kindly.

 

[Johan]

100 Watts per square foot is nominal, normal to the sun angle. For a flat plate collector, the BEST daily average (u.s.) is only 5-6 solar hours. With a more reasonable 15% efficiency on the panels, that gives 2.4 kWh per day. A more average figure would be 1.9 kWh per day, or 6.3 miles of range.

Thank you kindly.

Kindly understand that Elon was trolling those Twitter users.

(Trolling: The art of deliberately, cleverly, and secretly pissing people off, usually via the internet, using dialogue.)

 

[JRP3]

Kindly understand that Elon was trolling those Twitter users.

Interesting theory, but unlikely. They have the glass technology in place, they've proven they can make solar glass look like almost anything, they'll be making glass solar panels in huge volume on the solar side of the business, adding solar to some vehicle roofs as an option would be relatively inexpensive, and, as I've pointed out previously, would be the only option which could put any energy back into the vehicle. People keep asking about it, that means there is demand.

 

[Johan]

Interesting theory, but unlikely. They have the glass technology in place, they've proven they can make solar glass look like almost anything, they'll be making glass solar panels in huge volume on the solar side of the business, adding solar to some vehicle roofs as an option would be relatively inexpensive, and, as I've pointed out previously, would be the only option which could put any energy back into the vehicle. People keep asking about it, that means there is demand.

I was talking about the deployable solar canopy. The roof I'm sure they'll do, lots of dumb people are going to pay for that. And believe me that's going to be a high gross margin option.

 

[jgs]

I am.

Thank you kindly.

You're very welcome!

 

[JRP3]

lots of dumb people are going to pay for that.

Hey, I (might) resemble that remark! (If the price is right)