2y ago

World’s first off-road solar car ‘Stella Terra’ succeeds in cruising from Morocco to the Sahara

www.designboom.com

world’s first off-road solar car ‘stella terra’ succeeds in cruising from morocco to the sahara

9 comments

The tech sounds cool, but that design style is absolutely tragic.
- Prettier than the cybertruck to be honest.
Does it elevate somehow? It doesn't look like it has the ground clearance for actual off roading.
- "Off road" but the car only stayed on undeveloped roads rather than actually going off the fucking road.
  
  undeveloped roads rather than actually going off the fucking road.
  I've driven on some "undeveloped" roads that were worse than actual off-roading.
Rough Google Maps estimate is at 2070mi.
While the vehicle looks slimmed down it's nice to know that the solar roof design, such as on the Prius, isn't a farfetched strategy for quelling range anxiety.
- It's not that it's far-fetched. It's just impractical. Solar panels don't really generate that much power per square foot. Charging a car with just the roof can take days.
  One model of solar roofed electric car on the market recharges ~20 miles per day with the roof.
  Charging stations are a way better idea for road trips in electric cars, as is plugging the car in overnight. This is great for a remote hermit, but more interesting for the hack value than a practical option.
  
  It protects the car, it's a way for the greater battery drain an electric car probably has to be offset. It's like carrying around an extra tank of fuel. It could genuinely save lives whilst electric cars develop. Soo many reasons yes vs weight gain.
  Edit: even weight gain is going to be negligible if the panel is implemented like a sunroof and see through. That would be lighter than metal and only the solar charge controller is added weight. Considering there are controllers for charging anyway this maybe less than I imagine.

9 comments