LIGHTYEAR ONE

This is the Lightyear One, an all-electric luxury car that, according to its creators, can drive almost 500 miles (800 km) on a single charge. If compared with an average electric car that gets around 190 miles (305.8 km) , and even Tesla’s top Model S that manages 370 miles (595.5 km), it’s impressive. So how is 500 miles possible? It’s because the Lightyear One is powered by the sun using 54 square feet of solar panels covering the roof and hood.

While the Lightyear One is first and foremost a plug-in electric vehicle that can fast-charge up to 354 miles worth of energy within an hour, its self-charging capability could find certain owners rarely even needing to plug their car into the ports. Adding to it, the sun can also add up to an additional 7.5 miles each hour to the vehicle’s total range. In ideal conditions, its solar panels can generate over 12,000 miles ( 19,300 km) worth of energy in a year.

Lightyear is taking preorders now for the first 500 cars for a reservation price of about $135,000. When the car finally hits Netherland production lines in 2021, the price is expected to start at about $170,000. Despite the expensive cost, Lex isn’t worried as the price of solar technology continues to drop which should eventually allow Lightyear to launch cheaper models.

MORE ABOUT LIGHTYEAR

The One’s manufacturer, Dutch startup company Lightyear, was founded in 2016 by former members of a team of engineering students whose solar-powered vehicles won the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge race in 2013, 2015, and 2017.

INTERACTION WITH THE CEO

When asked the company’s ambitious CEO, Lex Hoefsloot, a question (Why solar power?), he replied that the Lightyear One’s battery alone is capable of up to 450 miles of driving range. On a sunny day, those solar panels would yield you an additional 35 to 47 miles and even faced with zero sunlight, heavy winds, and below-freezing temperatures, Lightyear still guarantees around 250 miles of range.

While the Lightyear One’s maximum driving range far surpasses that of even Tesla’s top model, the car’s four electric motors definitely won’t keep up with a Tesla Model S. However, Lex says that the car was never built to be a speed demon, trading fast acceleration time for faster road trips.