Solar Panel Roof Rack

I bet you'd get back less than you lose from the terrible aerodynamics... It works in principle for the Aptera just because it's so efficient to begin with but for anything else probably only get a couple of miles

 

The MC4 connectors look like the positive and negative ends are connected for transport. It looks like a 144 cell bi-facial PV module (400W to 500W at best) and it would only fit on the roof rack.

 

On second thought its two rv panels connected in series...that's only 2x150w at best.

 

300W of panels might net you 1.5 kWh on a sunny summer day. Half that on a sunny winter day or partly cloudy summer day.

So maybe 3-7 miles if parked outside away from shade all day. Which is probably offset by the increased drag.

 

No but I thought of using one of these to use as a backup to charge the car lol

https://www.amazon.com/K-Tor-Power-Box-50/dp/B07K8V4XB9/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=1GI0DYL0ITSH8&keywords=ktor&qid=1656678343&sprefix=ktor%2Caps%2C75&sr=8-3

 

Yeah but they’re carrying their own carport… easier preconditioning!

 

I don’t think you can charge the car while moving anyways because the car won’t let you drive unless it’s unplugged.

but it’d be cool if we had something like this:

 

Cool in theory but there are issues with stringing the entire array in series and you would have to park the vehicle facing east (west if you are in the southern hemisphere) so the trunk modules are minimally shaded by the vehicle. I don't think the 8 200W panels even realistically fit in a Model 3 trunk.

 

Was it the Mazda Millenia? Or 929? It had a rooftop of solar cells that was just enough to power a small exhaust fan to help moderate interior temps when parked on sunny days?

 

It was the 929 I believe. These days you can just buy flexible solar panels that will overheat and/or delaminate resulting in cell failure.

People are better off putting that money toward a grid-tied solar PV system especially when the Feds are still giving a 26% tax credit to the predatory leasing company for PPAs (aka highway robbery).

 

One company, Lightyear, is preparing a solar-powered car that lets you "drive for months without charging." We'll see.

 

I have my deposit in for an Aptera. Can't wait. Even though I have the ability to charge at home, it would be a perfect apartment car (up to 40 mi charging/day).

 

Marketing and a reality is Different as we know it. 40 miles a day is a tall order and probably for an ideal conditions. How big is the system on that car (in KWh)?

 

For the Aptera the key is the 6.8mi/kWh at 65mph and average around 10mi/kWh. It's incredibly efficient!

 

I'd like to have a semi-portable solar array that I could put up at work. We don't have any near-term charging options at work.

 

I found this video on why we don't yet have solar cars interesting. I was wondering why car roofs don't have integrated solar panels a couple months ago. He discusses the math and some of the companies working on solar vehicles.

 

Solar systems are very inefficient and people don't understand that; The number looks big enough and an easy sell/marketable but unless you see in details you won't understand it. Also Aptera is not a car, it is a motorcycle as I understand which may not be as safe as a car. I looked at it; I like the innovation but I don't believe it will be a success. I don't have the same feeling that I had for Tesla; But I do encourage innovation.

 

I had a 2010 Prius with the solar roof option. It covered a significant portion of the roof, but it was not for charging the main (or any) battery. It would run a fan that pulled in outside air so that on a hot day, sitting in the sun, the interior would stay reasonably cool. It really made a difference, though I doubt it could have done much more than power that fan; if the roof got too dirty its performance noticably degraded.

 

This makes sense.. Running some basic lights and fan.. yah - sure!