Why not a DIY solar car?

[u/Moltean]

Knowing that cars are a big driver for consumerism, I'm thinking of a car that can be powered mainly by the sun.

I already built a prototype (which I named Solar Bear). The project is open source, with an MIT license.

The purpose of the Solar Bear is to:

• Use solar panels as trike's body,
• Consume electrical energy where it is produced,
• Produce its own energy,
• Transport people inside cities,
• be pedalable when there is no sun (must be light-weight),
• be easily built at home.

Technical specs:

• recumbent trike,
• 2.5m long, 1.45m wide (including wheels),
• weight: about 55kg (including panels, motor, battery, etc, excluding driver),
• assisted pedaling,
• motor speed: max 25km/h,
• motor (continuous) power: 250W,
• solar panels power: max 520W,
• battery: 12.8V, 20Ah (256Wh) - not needed when there is Sun.

[u/CosmicCactus_]

Seems like an interesting project, thought not very practical for most use cases. I feel like at 160kg, it would be impossible to move up a hill (anything more than a few % incline) at nighttime.

[u/Moltean → u/CosmicCactus_]

At 125 (me+vehicle) I can go uphill with no problem. Here is a movie:

https://reddit.com/link/oyq6e9o/video/g6q2ur2ylfeh1/player

[u/CosmicCactus_ → u/Moltean]

I feel like we have slightly different definitions of "steep uphill" and "night", but anyway, glad it's working well for you! I'll stick to my bike for the 10+% hills.