“This Car NEVER Needs Charging or Filling”
I have driven quite a few EVs in the past few years. Everything from supercars like the Tesla Model S Plaid and Lucid Air Dream Edition, to affordable runabouts like the surprisingly great VW ID4 and Volvo XC40 Recharge. But there’s one elusive EV that has tugged at my heart strings since it was unveiled. What if I told you there was an EV that could go up to 1000 miles per charge, is 3x as efficient as today’s most efficient EV, Oh and did I mention you could never even have to charge it. Yes free driving? Oh, and what if it cost as little $26,000 or under $18,000 after tax credits? This is Aptera, and I finally got the meet the team responsible for this visionary project, and even ride in it. So grab your beverage of choice, put your feet up, and let’s do a deep dive on the Aptera EV today on Two Bit da Vinci.
The idea of a car that runs on pure solar energy is nothing new. In fact, the concept dates all the way back to the 1950s when General Motors unveiled their experimental Sunmobile. We’ve actually covered quite a bit of the history behind solar vehicles in some of our previous videos [link to EV1 and Solar Panels on Future Tesla Cars]. But for the majority of automotive history, the concept has never really come to fruition, either due to a lack of efficient solar panels and battery technology, or just a general lack of interest, and therefore a lack of funding.
But that all may soon change with Aptera’s new EV.
Now — if the name Aptera sounds familiar, it may be because the company originally announced its concept for a solar-powered EV all the way back in 2005. But solar efficiency and costs weren’t what they are today, and lithium ion battery tech, production and cost, wasn’t even close. These visionaries were too early, and liquidated the company 6 years later in 2011. Ok that’s it for us this week, thank you and see you next week. I’m kidding, the Aptera story doesn’t end here, the original co-founders Chris Anthony and Steve Fambro re-started their beloved Aptera in 2019. As a guy who’s started two companies, and is a bit of a dreamer, I can imagine these guys had some sleepless nights dreaming of making their vision for the future a reality. And now, it’s actually happening, and in my backyard here in San Diego, CA to boot!
After a decade of roadblocks, the company is now finally ready to unveil their latest evolution — the world’s first solar-powered electric vehicle — an innovation that the company boldly calls a “Never Charge” Ev. (Markus, 2021)
After spending the day with the car, I’ve decided to make a reservation and buy one. To understand why, lets break it up into a few categories.
First lets talk about the solar panels. [insert clips from interview]
Base models will come with solar panels on the roof and dashboard, with the option to add solar also the front hood, and rear hatch. Spec it all the way for $900 extra, and daily solar recharging goes from 16 to 40 miles a day. I’d go all the way here, and at $900, it’s kind of a no brainer. Of course you do lose rear visibility out the rear window, but they do have a cool camera and digital rearview mirror system.
Fully speced, the Aptera is equipped with 700w of solar, which is impressive, considering it would take 2 350w solar panels to match that. But do keep in mind, you’ll never get all 700w of energy, because the cells match the curved body, and different cells will experience different levels of direct sunshine throughout the day.
But the solar panels aren’t the whole story here, in fact if my benchmark Tesla Model 3 had the same solar performance, I’d only be looking at about 12 miles of range a day. So how is the Aptera delivering nearly 40?
That gets to the real heart of this car, and this incredible body and shape. The Aptera was so striking when it was first unveiled, that it was seen on the set of a Star Trek film in 2009.
This certainly ain’t your old family station wagon. This is all to achieve the lightest weight and lowest drag coefficient possible. Its wind-cheating teardrop shape and fully faired-in wheels reduce its drag down to 0.13. (Markus, 2021)
To put this in perspective, an SUV like a Cadillac Escalade has a drag coefficient of 0.37, a family sedan like the Toyota Camry 0.27 and Tesla Model S Plaid at .208
The equation for air resistance is ½ the air density x the frontal area x the drag coefficient x the velocity2 . If you kneel down at look right at the front of a car, that’s the frontal area, or how much area you have to push through the air, and therefore increases the air drag. The drag coefficient then, is how clever the design is to reduce this impact. Here are some drag coefficients for some various shapes. [link]
The vehicle is also incredibly light — coming in with a curb weight between 1,800 and 2,200 lbs or between 800 and 1,000 kg — roughly half the weight of the average consumer vehicle. (Nealon & Kempken, 2021) This reduces effect number two, the rolling resistance, which is much easier to understand. Its the rolling resistance coefficient, stuff like how sticky and wide the tires are, and weight. So a 2000lb car, would have ½ the rolling resistance of a 4000lb car like a Tesla Model 3.
Combined, the vehicle’s weight and slick, aerodynamic design make it incredibly efficient, up to four times more efficient than typical electric sedans, earning about 10 miles per kWh. According to the company, the EV can cover up to 1,000 miles on a single charge — a record-breaker for the industry. We’ll dive into those numbers in a bit. (Cormack et al., 2021) (Markus, 2021)
Of course, the vehicle promises a major win for the environment as well. Obviously, moving farther away from fossil fuel is always a great move. But even helping EV owners become less reliant on grid energy could be a potential win for the company, the consumer, and the environment. [insert clip” https://youtu.be/rYldJY3t9zk]
Now this is a big one, as many EV detractors dont’ believe our aging energy grids could possibly cope with millions of EVs fast charging. If you’d like me to dive deeper into this, leave me a comment, but clearly a car that charges it self almost entirely, is hard to argue with.
But what about customers who live outside Sunny San Diego? Are they just going to be left in the dark? Aptera says no. While ideally, the company would hope that no consumer would ever need to charge their vehicle, Sol will be available with battery packs good for 25, 40, 60, and 100 kWh. But interestingly, because it can go 10 miles per kWh, even a standard 110v wall outlet you use to plug in your tv’s and laptops, could add around 15 miles an hour. So plug in at midnight, and by 8am, you’d have 120 miles! Now you can still pay an electrician to install a 240v level two charger, and completely fill it up over night, but you might not even need to.
Going further per kWh solves so many problems,
But let’s talk practicality. The Sol is far less of a family station wagon and, really, much more of an enclosed motorcycle. How will this car benefit consumers?
While it’s true that Sol is on the “compact” side of the vehicle spectrum, it does offer a surprising degree of versatility. Certainly more of a roadster, the cabin offers plenty of room to seat two passengers comfortably, while the boot offers ample space to store cargo — including a surfboard according to the company’s promo video. Definitely a win here in So Cal.
The truth is that this vehicle will not suit the average consumer looking for a practical vehicle that will fit every need. But, as a concept, it still seems relatively practical for a fun, sporty cruiser. But if the concept can prove viable, it may only be a matter of time before we see the technology be adapted to other products for a broader audience.
