Solar car? For many, this keyword evokes at most the thought of a toy construction set or perhaps a memory of the electronics store. But a young company from munich means by solar car a real, roadworthy and affordable personal vehicle.
Written by leonid leiva 5.10.2017
A car with solar panels integrated into the bodywork that partially recharges itself while stationary? yes, that’s exactly what the young founders of the german startup sono motors want to realize. This may sound overly optimistic, but the vision could be a tangible reality on the road as early as 2019.
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PV modules on the move
The SION has 330 integrated solar cells with a total surface area of 7.5 square meters, which are distributed over the roof, sides, rear and engine hood. The photovoltaic cells, with an efficiency of a whopping 24 percent, are supposed to supply the battery with enough energy for 30 kilometers of driving on sunny days. Even on cloudy days, the solar energy captured would be enough for 15 kilometers of driving, according to sono’s data. Overall, sono motors promises the SION a range of 250 kilometers on a single battery charge.
one can question the sense of solar cells on the sides of the car. Due to the oblique angle of incidence, the sunlight yield per area is low there. But the young entrepreneurs don’t seem to have much of a headache about this. "We want to use as much of the SION’s surface area as possible for photovoltaics," says pernsteiner when asked about the project.
Economical thanks to lightweight construction
Energy efficiency is also to be maximized: at 1400 kilograms, the SION is designed as a lightweight car. This is ensured by the aluminum frame and the vehicle housing made of the lightweight plastic polycarbonate, which is familiar from suitcases, for example. the polycarbonate shell also protects the solar cells underneath from wind and weather. The SION’s lightweight construction still has to prove itself in the pending european crash tests, but the sono team is confident. "we use many components from other manufacturers that have already passed crash tests," says navina pernsteiner.
In fact, sono motors does not see itself as a car manufacturer in the traditional sense, but merely as a designer of the innovative vehicle. If the SION goes into series production, they plan to entrust it to a European manufacturer. sono is also breaking new ground when it comes to service. A publicly available workshop manual and online tutorials are designed to enable any garage owner to carry out repairs and maintenance work. It remains to be seen, however, how a replacement will be provided if the SION breaks down on the road.
A car to share
What also makes the SION special is its consistent focus on the modern usage preferences of the younger generation. The "sharing economy" is here program. The energy stored in the battery can be shared with the solar car. thanks to bidirectional charging technology, the charger can charge both its own battery and that of another car or even any electrical appliance. This makes the solar car a mobile charging station that camping enthusiasts, for example, will appreciate. Sharing energy is also part of the business model, as SION owners will be able to sell their battery charge to "electricity refuelers" via an app. And then it’s not just the battery that’s designed to be shared, but the whole car. The SION can be rented out to third parties via a car-sharing app. Carpooling is also available for interested parties.
Mosses as green air filters
Although the solar car makes ecology its top priority, it should not deprive the driver of a minimum of comfort. Heating and air conditioning are included in the equipment package. A literal green note is provided by the filtering system. This is ensured by mosses placed in a strip across the entire width of the dashboard. The living mosses are to filter some of the fine dust from the cabin air and regenerate themselves with the air humidity present inside the car.
The trend towards the affordable e-car
But for all its technical coolness, what makes the SION a sensation in the automotive industry are the astonishingly low development costs. sono motors has reportedly invested only a single-digit million amount in the car so far. With a target purchase price of 20,000 euros including the battery, the solar car follows in the footsteps of europe’s best-selling electric car, the renault zoe, which is available in switzerland from a starting price of 21,900 francs. And the SION is not even alone in the race for the mass market of electric vehicles. In germany, too, the company e, which belongs to the german postal service, is currently working.go to an e-car, which should also be available for about 16’000 euro. The subsidy for e-vehicles in germany would even reduce this price by another 4000 euro. The debate about whether it’s because of range or price that e-cars still find so few buyers could soon be over. The managing director of e.Go has recently expressed his view of the matter clearly in an interview. For him, the still small market presence of e-cars is clearly due to the price.
Interesting to observe in this regard will be the development in china. An e-car is just coming onto the market there, which is expected to cost the equivalent of around 4500 francs. The boujan E100 is smaller than a smart, sparsely equipped and travels at a top speed of 100 kilometers per hour. An export of the car to europe or the USA is not planned. But this chinese brand should also send a strong signal to the established carmakers. Electrically powered mobility could become a mass phenomenon sooner than expected.