With solar panels on the hood and roof, the model recharges the battery while driving or when parked outdoors.
An electric vehicle that travels long distances without needing to charge, such as the Mercedes concept car that iFood News has already shown, it's a good thing, right? Now, how about one that is powered by solar energy and can stay away from recharging points for months because it is capable of charging itself even on the move?
This car exists and is preparing to hit the asphalt. In November 2022, the Lightyear, one "startup-Dutch automaker, will put it on the streets and roads of Europe the Lightyear 0, informs the website Mashable. The first tests were carried out in Spain, and it is possible to see the vehicle in action here.
The company estimates that, thanks to this innovation, this new electric vehicle will be able to run for up to seven months without needing to be recharged (depending, of course, on the amount of sunlight available). And it can reach a range of 6 to 11 thousand km per year using a free and clean source of energy.
For this to happen, it was necessary to install a “solar farm” on a smaller scale. The Dutch solar car has 5 m² of solar panels fixed to the roof and hood — they are like the panels used in calculators that do not require batteries or chargers, but in larger proportions. Therefore, the vehicle can be charged at any time, while driving around or when parked outdoors.
According to the manufacturer, self-supply with the help of the Sun will guarantee a range of 70 km per day, which may be enough to cover the distance traveled on a daily basis. The calculations take European weather conditions into account, so imagine the performance potential in a sunny country like Brazil?
Autonomy has its price
The Lightyear 0 battery has a range of 625 km, but in practice it can exceed 1,000 km, as the car can be recharged while driving. The fact of having four motors in the wheels, according to the automaker, prevents a greater loss of energy.
The vehicle reaches 160 km/h and, on the road, traveling at 110 km/h, you can easily cover a distance of 560 km. This would easily cover a one-way trip between Rio de Janeiro (RJ) and Belo Horizonte (MG).
If the sun is not so abundant, it is possible to charge the electric vehicle at any outlet, including those at home. In them, the autonomy gain is 32 km for every hour plugged into the electricity grid. At fast charging stations, this number reaches 520 km every 60 minutes.
But all of this has a cost. In this case, it is very high: the automaker only put 946 units on sale in this first wave, each one costing US$ 236 thousand (or R$ 1.3 million).
