Posted on 03/11/2022 12:41:44 PM PST by Red Badger
it’s been tried
Top 10 Electric Cars Using Solar Panels to Keep the Batteries Charged
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al1T-vil36I
“I have no idea if a Tesla could be driven that hard and if the battery pack would last through it.”
One of my friends drove a 2014 Tesla S until trading it in last year. Daily driver, a minimum of 60 miles. He was still getting 80% charge on that battery. He traded it in for a 2021 Model S in order to get upgrades that aren’t possible on a 2014.
Yup. But most people don’t drive 9–10 hour in a day. You are an outlier. And once you’ve driven 50 or so miles your batteries are just dead weight you’re hauling. So a hybrid is probably worse for those long trips over pure ICE.
Besides, adding 200 miles range to a Tesla can be done in 15 minutes. So 620 miles could be done with one or maybe two 15 minute breaks. So pretty close. And teslas can self drive really well on those long trips.
Elon Musk has often stated that a solar panel wouldn't contribute enough charge to make it worthwhile to install on a car. But he said the Cybertruck has enough roof area to make it feasible, and may offer it as an option (partly because of the camping aspects of the vehicle). Solar panels have been available for cars for decades. I had one on an SUV van in the early 1990's that provided a trickle charge to the battery, and powered a fan to keep the interior cool on hot days while parked.
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