For anyone that's new to Aptera... they've been right about to launch repeatedly for the last 5 or 6 years, and taking pre-orders the whole time. I was following them with interest for much of...
For anyone that's new to Aptera... they've been right about to launch repeatedly for the last 5 or 6 years, and taking pre-orders the whole time. I was following them with interest for much of that time, but after a couple rounds of "hype release, take pre-orders, go silent", I stopped following as closely.
They could very well be about to launch this time for real, but also the company has been around in various incarnations since 2005 and hasn't released anything so far. For more info see Wikipedia, which could be read as a 20 year lesson in just how far you can go in raising funds without delivering.
I'll be exicted if it happens, but I don't recommend sending them any money just yet.
...carver managed about thirty years before finally fizzling-out, corbin's still kicking around as myers, and peraves i think remain an active company, best as i can tell...
...carver managed about thirty years before finally fizzling-out, corbin's still kicking around as myers, and peraves i think remain an active company, best as i can tell...
Comment box Scope: information, personal perspective Tone: neutral, curious Opinion: not really Sarcasm/humor: none In February, I shared some analysis about Aptera's solar-powered car. My...
Comment box
Scope: information, personal perspective
Tone: neutral, curious
Opinion: not really
Sarcasm/humor: none
In February, I shared some analysis about Aptera's solar-powered car. My impression was skeptical but positive. This latest article includes a video demonstrating progress since then: successful test drives of a "production-intent vehicle," i.e. the car that will be tested for final production. If it tests well, I think they can start mass-producing it.
The idea behind this futuristic-looking car is to offer a fully electric two-seat vehicle meant for daily driving, covered in lightweight solar panels to provide a bit of extra range. The car supposedly has a 400-mile range, 40 miles of which is solar-powered. 93% of daily car trips are under 30 miles, so this would actually cover quite a lot of trips. The solar range by itself is similar to a PHEV's electric range, but the difference is that the entire car is electric. The solar could somewhat reduce the need to rely on charging stations and therefore cost. I guess it is a cool gadget too. The starting model looks to be around $30k.
The reason the solar panels can offer this much range is because the car is super lightweight. You'll notice its unique shape. I would consider it a bit of a novelty, but it is a real vehicle. Lots of people drive trikes in my city. I'm not sure exactly what kind of solar panels they're using, but recent advances in perovskite cells make it more feasible than ever to utilize ultra-light solar power.
I'm not a car person. I don't know that much about the way cars are certified for safety and so forth. I think this still has a considerable way to go in development. However, the car is driving. You can read more from Aptera's press release. The release date isn't clear to me, but investor presentations suggest as early as 2025. An interesting design to watch out for I suppose.
I'm interested to see if they can get this to work. If so, it paves the way for more efficient solar-powered cars as solar cell technology continues to improve in energy-efficiency and space/weight efficiency.
This is going to be fully armchair engineering, so if anything is wrong, please correct me. I think the stats are misleading, and possibly purposely so. 40 of 400 mile range is solar. That is not...
This is going to be fully armchair engineering, so if anything is wrong, please correct me.
I think the stats are misleading, and possibly purposely so. 40 of 400 mile range is solar. That is not to say that the first 40 miles of any trip is powered by solar. That means that 10% of any journey is powered by solar. Compared to plug in hybrids, where the first X distance can be fully (or almost fully) electric, with further distances covered by gas. You mention that the majority of trips are under 30 miles, so solar covers this range well. But it does not. For a 30 mile trip, solar covers 3 miles only, because it can only generate while driving (assuming covered parking). So they imply that your driving will be 100% solar, the truth is that it will only ever be 10% solar.
If these are lightweight enough, and don’t increase cost much, I guess there isn’t much of a reason not to include these on cars. But it’s a small benefit over battery electric vehicles, and I don’t know if it makes sense for most people. Maybe if you live in a very sunny area and park your car outdoors.
We must come from different areas then. I can say for sure that almost nobody in the Bay Area would be caught dead parking an expensive car outside of a garage. Even if they would park it outside,...
We must come from different areas then. I can say for sure that almost nobody in the Bay Area would be caught dead parking an expensive car outside of a garage. Even if they would park it outside, they likely have a 1.5 to 2 story house that blocks the sun for much of the day. Most businesses are installing or planning to install solar covered parking. And every one I know always looks for a shady spot to park so their car isn’t hot when they get back.
Yeah. I've lived in the Midwest most of my life and even when I had a garage, I frequently parked outside just because it was more convinient. It seems weird to me that some areas only use covered...
Yeah. I've lived in the Midwest most of my life and even when I had a garage, I frequently parked outside just because it was more convinient. It seems weird to me that some areas only use covered parking.
You mean the garage is supposed to hold cars and not just mountains of hobby projects? The main reason I park my car in the garage at all is weather protection. Perpetual sun is actually not great...
You mean the garage is supposed to hold cars and not just mountains of crap hobby projects?
The main reason I park my car in the garage at all is weather protection. Perpetual sun is actually not great for a ton of parts, namely the ones that help keep water out of the car.
I believe that that figure is supposed to be more like how much energy can be captured in a day. So if you drive less than 280 miles in a week, you could ideally charge entirely under solar power...
I believe that that figure is supposed to be more like how much energy can be captured in a day. So if you drive less than 280 miles in a week, you could ideally charge entirely under solar power and never need to apply external power.
The thing that makes Aptera’s design unique is that it’s ultra-efficient. That 400 mile range isn’t because it has a ton of batteries onboard, it’s because it’s using them much more efficiently than other EVs. This is why they are able to get such range out of onboard solar. That means if you charge it with external power, it is able to get more miles faster as well. But it’s something of a double-edged sword because air conditioning and heating is going to eat up those miles quickly.
Three wheels and lightweight probably means minimal safety, meaning it'll probably be classed as some sort of weird electric motorcycle rather than a car.
Three wheels and lightweight probably means minimal safety, meaning it'll probably be classed as some sort of weird electric motorcycle rather than a car.
I would still class this as a novelty vehicle. This'll work in areas closer to the equator that has enough sun. You'd also need to have a parking space that's facing south, or you'll only get a...
I would still class this as a novelty vehicle. This'll work in areas closer to the equator that has enough sun. You'd also need to have a parking space that's facing south, or you'll only get a fraction of the benefits. In my country 94% of energy was produced with renewables last year, just by plugging my car into the wall I'm already 94% green.
Ultimately, the market for this car is going to be quite small.
For anyone that's new to Aptera... they've been right about to launch repeatedly for the last 5 or 6 years, and taking pre-orders the whole time. I was following them with interest for much of that time, but after a couple rounds of "hype release, take pre-orders, go silent", I stopped following as closely.
They could very well be about to launch this time for real, but also the company has been around in various incarnations since 2005 and hasn't released anything so far. For more info see Wikipedia, which could be read as a 20 year lesson in just how far you can go in raising funds without delivering.
I'll be exicted if it happens, but I don't recommend sending them any money just yet.
...carver managed about thirty years before finally fizzling-out, corbin's still kicking around as myers, and peraves i think remain an active company, best as i can tell...
Comment box
In February, I shared some analysis about Aptera's solar-powered car. My impression was skeptical but positive. This latest article includes a video demonstrating progress since then: successful test drives of a "production-intent vehicle," i.e. the car that will be tested for final production. If it tests well, I think they can start mass-producing it.
The idea behind this futuristic-looking car is to offer a fully electric two-seat vehicle meant for daily driving, covered in lightweight solar panels to provide a bit of extra range. The car supposedly has a 400-mile range, 40 miles of which is solar-powered. 93% of daily car trips are under 30 miles, so this would actually cover quite a lot of trips. The solar range by itself is similar to a PHEV's electric range, but the difference is that the entire car is electric. The solar could somewhat reduce the need to rely on charging stations and therefore cost. I guess it is a cool gadget too. The starting model looks to be around $30k.
The reason the solar panels can offer this much range is because the car is super lightweight. You'll notice its unique shape. I would consider it a bit of a novelty, but it is a real vehicle. Lots of people drive trikes in my city. I'm not sure exactly what kind of solar panels they're using, but recent advances in perovskite cells make it more feasible than ever to utilize ultra-light solar power.
I'm not a car person. I don't know that much about the way cars are certified for safety and so forth. I think this still has a considerable way to go in development. However, the car is driving. You can read more from Aptera's press release. The release date isn't clear to me, but investor presentations suggest as early as 2025. An interesting design to watch out for I suppose.
I'm interested to see if they can get this to work. If so, it paves the way for more efficient solar-powered cars as solar cell technology continues to improve in energy-efficiency and space/weight efficiency.
This is going to be fully armchair engineering, so if anything is wrong, please correct me.
I think the stats are misleading, and possibly purposely so. 40 of 400 mile range is solar. That is not to say that the first 40 miles of any trip is powered by solar. That means that 10% of any journey is powered by solar. Compared to plug in hybrids, where the first X distance can be fully (or almost fully) electric, with further distances covered by gas. You mention that the majority of trips are under 30 miles, so solar covers this range well. But it does not. For a 30 mile trip, solar covers 3 miles only, because it can only generate while driving (assuming covered parking). So they imply that your driving will be 100% solar, the truth is that it will only ever be 10% solar.
If these are lightweight enough, and don’t increase cost much, I guess there isn’t much of a reason not to include these on cars. But it’s a small benefit over battery electric vehicles, and I don’t know if it makes sense for most people. Maybe if you live in a very sunny area and park your car outdoors.
Let me counter-assume anyone getting this intends on leaving it parked under the sky.
We must come from different areas then. I can say for sure that almost nobody in the Bay Area would be caught dead parking an expensive car outside of a garage. Even if they would park it outside, they likely have a 1.5 to 2 story house that blocks the sun for much of the day. Most businesses are installing or planning to install solar covered parking. And every one I know always looks for a shady spot to park so their car isn’t hot when they get back.
In the Midwest it's extremely common to park one's car uncovered, in my experience. Sometimes a driveway will be shaded, but not even close to always.
Yeah. I've lived in the Midwest most of my life and even when I had a garage, I frequently parked outside just because it was more convinient. It seems weird to me that some areas only use covered parking.
You mean the garage is supposed to hold cars and not just mountains of
craphobby projects?The main reason I park my car in the garage at all is weather protection. Perpetual sun is actually not great for a ton of parts, namely the ones that help keep water out of the car.
I believe that that figure is supposed to be more like how much energy can be captured in a day. So if you drive less than 280 miles in a week, you could ideally charge entirely under solar power and never need to apply external power.
The thing that makes Aptera’s design unique is that it’s ultra-efficient. That 400 mile range isn’t because it has a ton of batteries onboard, it’s because it’s using them much more efficiently than other EVs. This is why they are able to get such range out of onboard solar. That means if you charge it with external power, it is able to get more miles faster as well. But it’s something of a double-edged sword because air conditioning and heating is going to eat up those miles quickly.
Three wheels and lightweight probably means minimal safety, meaning it'll probably be classed as some sort of weird electric motorcycle rather than a car.
I would still class this as a novelty vehicle. This'll work in areas closer to the equator that has enough sun. You'd also need to have a parking space that's facing south, or you'll only get a fraction of the benefits. In my country 94% of energy was produced with renewables last year, just by plugging my car into the wall I'm already 94% green.
Ultimately, the market for this car is going to be quite small.