In view of soaring gas prices and the environmental damage caused by oil drilling and emissions, for years we’ve been looking for forms of alternative energy to power our vehicles. Natural gas and electricity have both been explored, but ultimately they have their problems and aren’t completely green solutions either. This is the reason why many have turned their attention to that limitless, free and ecologically sound source of energy, the sun.
The Tokai Challenger speeds down Australia’s Stuart Highway. Photo: Kohei Sagawa, Hideki Kimura.
General Motors’ William G. Cobb introduced the first solar-powered vehicle as far back as 1955. Unfortunately, the “Sunmobile” was only 15 inches long, but since then, solar-powered vehicles have come so far that they now compete in racing challenges across the globe. The teams are made up of universities and car manufacturers who compete to build better solar-powered automobiles. Let’s take a look at some of the incredible vehicles they have come up with so far.
12. Tokai Challenger
The Tokai Challenger in 2009. Photo: Hideki Kimura/ Kouhei Sagawa.
Solar racing cars stand out thanks to their smooth form and futuristic-looking appearance, and the Tokai Challenger exemplifies this brilliantly. Built in Japan by Tokai University students who collaborated with various Japanese automotive companies, the car won back-to-back victories at the biennial Australian WSC [World Solar Challenge] in 2009 and 2011. The Tokai Challenger uses a 20-foot (6-meter) arrangement of silicon cells, and the solar energy harnessed powers a 46.2-pound (21-kilogram) 5 kWh lithium-ion battery. In 2011, the car won the 1,877-mile (3,021-kilometre) race through the Australian Outback with an average speed of 56.88 mph (91.54 kph). And while it might not be speedy compared to conventional race cars, it still shows that a vehicle can run well on nothing but sunshine.
11. SunStang
The SunStang competes in the 2007 WSC. Photo: SunStang Solar Car Project.
The SunStang was created at the University of Western Ontario. It was first raced in 1993, and its design has been modified several times since then (with the car pictured above being the 2007 version). All set to compete in the 2013 WSC and the 2014 American Solar Challenge (ASC), the latest model is said to be 11 times more aerodynamic than your average car. The body is made of a Kevlar-fiberglass composite, and the team behind the car also claim that its motor is just under 98 percent efficient. So far, SunStang’s greatest race performance was at the 1996 WSC, where the car came twelfth out of a worldwide field of 46.
10. Xenith
The Xenith takes in plenty of sunshine at the 2011 WSC. Photo: Nathan Golshan.
The Xenith was Stanford University’s entry at the 2011 WSC, where it placed twelfth overall. As with the SunStang, the Xenith’s motor is as much as 98 percent efficient. The Xenith is the first solar-powered car to encapsulate its solar panels with flexible glass. The vehicle also has the advantage of being able to utilize specially designed software that predicts where shadows and sunlight will appear along the track - and helps the team to prepare its race strategies.
9. Umicar Imagine
The Umicar Imagine as seen from above at the 2011 WSC. Photo: eccentrico.eu.
Created at the Group T International University College in Leuven, Belgium, the Umicar Imagine replaced the silicon cells of the earlier Umicar models with germanium versions. The aim was to help the vehicle convert solar energy more efficiently. At the 2011 WSC, the Umicar Imagine was driven by veteran race driver Vanina Ickx, and it even had the blessing of astronaut and Umicar Solar Team “godfather” Frank De Winne. Despite this, however, the car ended up just missing out on a top 10 finish, coming in at number 11.
8. Sky Ace Tiga
The Sky Ace Tiga at the start of the 2011 WSC race in Darwin. Photo: eccentrico.eu.
This speedy red racer was entered in the 2011 WSC by Japan’s Ashiya University. In the end, the Sky Ace Tiga came in fourth place and was one of only seven solar cars to reach the finish line in Adelaide within the allotted time. The clearly visible solar cells lining the top of the car are made of satellite-grade gallium arsenide instead of the more common silicon. The Ashiya University car can reach speeds of up to 94 mph (152 kph) but cruises at around 62 mph (100 kph).
7. Nuna 5
The Nuna 5 flashes past during testing ahead of the 2009 WSC. Photo: Nuon Solar Team.
Developed at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, the Nuna series of solar cars have proven the most successful in WSC history. From 2001 to 2007 - using the Nuna 1, 2, 3 and 4 models, respectively - the team won the competition four times in a row. Then in 2009 and 2011 the Nuna 5 and Nuna 6 cars each finished second to Tokai University’s Challenger. The motor used in the Nuna series - actually a modified version of the motor developed by the Swiss for their 1993 Spirit of Biel III solar car - is enclosed inside the rear wheel.
6. 21Connect
The 21Connect powers through the desert. Photo: Gijs Versteeg.
Solar Team Twente is made up of students from Saxion University and the University of Twente in the Netherlands, and it’s they that developed the fiery-looking 21Connect solar car. The distinctive outer body is designed to be as aerodynamic as possible, while the tires used are specially developed for solar racers in conjunction with Michelin. Perhaps both of these factors contributed to the 21Connect coming in fifth place at the 2011 WSC - losing out on fourth to the Sky Ace Tiga by a margin of just seven minutes.
5. Midnight Sun X
Waterloo University’s world record-holding Midnight Sun X pictured in 2011. Photo: Jon.
Developed by the Midnight Sun Solar Race Team at Waterloo University in Ontario, the Midnight Sun VII, an earlier version of the Midnight Sun X, holds the Guinness World Record for the longest journey by a solar electric vehicle. The Midnight Sun VII won this honour by driving 9,360 miles (15,070 kilometres) across North America. By comparison, the 1,877-mile (3,021-kilometre) 2011 World Solar Challenge must have felt like a short jaunt for the team. Unfortunately, after suffering a few technical problems with its brakes and battery, the Midnight Sun X came in 30th place.
4. SolarWorld No. 1
The stylish yellow design of the SolarWorld No. 1. Photo: Benton Greene.
This striking looking car, the SolarWorld No. 1, was developed at the Bochum University of Applied Sciences in Germany. The car was photographed while it was competing in the 2008 North American Solar Challenge (NASC). It finished third at the event and was honoured for “excellent technology in the field of mechanical and electrical engineering.” The SolarWorld No. 1 also competed in the WSC the year before, when it came in fourth place and grabbed an award for “Best Design.”
3. Eolian 2
The Eolian 2 shows just how close these cars are to the ground. Photo: Efim.
In 2011, a team of students from the University of Chile entered their solar car, the Eolian 2, in the WSC and went on to claim 21st place. With increased manoeuvrability and a lighter carbon fibre composite chassis, the car was an improvement on the university’s 2007 solar car, the Eolian. Interestingly, the Eolian 2 was shipped to Australia in three pieces and was then reassembled before the race. A week earlier, an identical car the team had put together competed in the Atacama Desert Solar Race in Chile, where it managed to place second; home turf advantage, perhaps?
2. Solar Miner VI
The Solar Miner VI at the 2008 North American Solar Challenge. Photo: Bentum Greene.
Built by a team of students from the Missouri University of Science and Technology, the Solar Miner VI was completed just in time to enter the 2008 NASC race - which covers 2,400 miles from Dallas, Texas to Calgary, Canada. That year, the Solar Miner VI came in seventh place out of a field of 13 (two entrants having failed to qualify for the race). The solar cells on the car are made out of gallium arsenide.
1. Chopper del Sol
The Chopper del Sol is a streak of white at the 2011 WSC. Photo: eccentrico.eu.
The Chopper del Sol was designed and created by students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to compete in the 2011 WSC. Its predecessor, the Eleanor, managed fifth place in the 2009 event. Unfortunately, four months before the 2011 competition, during the road-testing phase, the Chopper del Sol crashed, and the team had to spend the summer rebuilding the car. Then once the team arrived in Darwin for the competition, they realized that their lithium ion battery hadn’t made the trip. At the last minute, with help from the University of Michigan’s Solar Car Team, the Massachusetts team built a substitute battery and entered the competition. Impressively, the Chopper del Sol still finished in 15th place.
The Tokai Challenger zooming by, with Cape Town’s Table Mountain in the background; the car went
on to win the 2010 South African Solar Challenge (SASC). Photo: Hideki Kimura / Kohei Sagawa.
These cool-looking, fuel-saving race cars are both environmentally friendly and stylish, and it’s a shame that solar-powered vehicles haven’t yet made it off the racetrack in a big way. Still, with so many great minds from so many esteemed institutions working on them, maybe one day in the not-too-distant future we’ll all be driving on sunshine.
The Xenith car taking part in the 2011 World Solar Challenge (WSC). Photo: Nathan Golshan.
Article Sources:
1. William Cobb demonstrates first solar-powered car
2. Sunmobile
3. Solar car
4. Team Tokai wins 2011 World Solar Challenge
5. World Solar Challenge Roll of Honour
6. SunStang Solar Car Project - 2013 Solar Car
7. SunStang Solar Car Project - The Project
8. Event Report. Brain Sport: The 1996 World Solar Challenge Solar Car Race Across Australia
9. Xenith
10. Stanford Solar Car Project - Vehicles
11. Nuna
12. Bochum University of Applied Sciences - The Project
13. Day 11: A Day at the Racetrack
14. Chilean engineering students create Eolian II solar car
15. University of Michigan Wins the North American Solar Challenge
16. Missouri University of Science and Technology - Past Cars
17. ASHIYA Sky Ace TIGA
18. About the Car - Chopper del Sol
19. Just seven solar cars reach Adelaide alive
20. Groep T
21. 21Connect
1. William Cobb demonstrates first solar-powered car
2. Sunmobile
3. Solar car
4. Team Tokai wins 2011 World Solar Challenge
5. World Solar Challenge Roll of Honour
6. SunStang Solar Car Project - 2013 Solar Car
7. SunStang Solar Car Project - The Project
8. Event Report. Brain Sport: The 1996 World Solar Challenge Solar Car Race Across Australia
9. Xenith
10. Stanford Solar Car Project - Vehicles
11. Nuna
12. Bochum University of Applied Sciences - The Project
13. Day 11: A Day at the Racetrack
14. Chilean engineering students create Eolian II solar car
15. University of Michigan Wins the North American Solar Challenge
16. Missouri University of Science and Technology - Past Cars
17. ASHIYA Sky Ace TIGA
18. About the Car - Chopper del Sol
19. Just seven solar cars reach Adelaide alive
20. Groep T
21. 21Connect
Solar cars is a future and we have to take some good note on it. Above shown all the solar cars looking awesome but the design of this car is quite a same.
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