Make My Roof ALL Solar!

OP
OP
Skennada

Skennada

Member
First Name
Samuel
Joined
May 4, 2020
Threads
1
Messages
17
Reaction score
33
Location
Manitoba, Canada
Vehicles
Mercedes Benz
Country flag

dano0726

Well-known member
First Name
Daniel
Joined
Nov 18, 2019
Threads
1
Messages
47
Reaction score
54
Location
Houston
Vehicles
2011 Jeep JK Wrangler
Occupation
Treasury Finance Insurance
Country flag
I would drop from an AWD down to a RWD (dollars saved) in order to acquire the all solar roof that gets 30 miles per day, sitting in the hot Houston sun....or probably just buy a 2nd Cybertruck = better
 

thejohnllama

Well-known member
First Name
John
Joined
Apr 17, 2020
Threads
5
Messages
77
Reaction score
87
Location
Washington
Vehicles
2013 Nissan Leaf, 2007 Toyota Prius
Occupation
Marketing Consultant
Country flag
I'm still hoping for a second Tonneau that slides from over the roof, and stops and any point on the top while driving, can can continue over the windshield when stopped. That should add 30 miles a day.
Cybertruck convertible
 
OP
OP
Skennada

Skennada

Member
First Name
Samuel
Joined
May 4, 2020
Threads
1
Messages
17
Reaction score
33
Location
Manitoba, Canada
Vehicles
Mercedes Benz
Country flag
I would drop from an AWD down to a RWD (dollars saved) in order to acquire the all solar roof that gets 30 miles per day, sitting in the hot Houston sun....or probably just buy a 2nd Cybertruck = better
Certainly, off-roading may not be a need for a lot of CT buyers anyway, hence, away with AWD. I agree, soak up the sun and perpetually power up instead!
 
OP
OP
Skennada

Skennada

Member
First Name
Samuel
Joined
May 4, 2020
Threads
1
Messages
17
Reaction score
33
Location
Manitoba, Canada
Vehicles
Mercedes Benz
Country flag
Well, if the solar roof isn't free you still aren't getting it free. ?

I'm in Florida so as long as the option isn't too overpriced I'll get it. Really boils down to how many kwh it puts out
Yea, that's hypothetically true. The energy source will ever be free though, even if I paid for the tool that harnesses it. I am hoping that the price wouldn't be too steep as well, given recent advancements and how increasingly cheaper photovoltaic cells have become.
 


ajdelange

Well-known member
First Name
A. J.
Joined
Dec 8, 2019
Threads
4
Messages
3,213
Reaction score
3,403
Location
Virginia/Quebec
Vehicles
Tesla X LR+, Lexus SUV, Toyota SR5, Toyota Landcruiser
Occupation
EE (Retired)
Country flag
I'm still hoping for a second Tonneau that slides from over the roof, and stops and any point on the top while driving, can can continue over the windshield when stopped. That should add 30 miles a day.
I'm always amused at what people think they are going to get from solar mounted on a motor vehicle and while it may seem I am picking on this man I just noticed that he is in Manitoba! As noted in an earlier post 15 mi is going to take about 6 kWh and 30 will thus require 12. In Manitoba a 1 kW system delivers about 2.1 kWh/da in December (the worst month) and 4.4 in April. Thus we'd need a 6 kW array in December (about 24 typical roof top panels) but but only about 3 kW ( 11 - 12 panels) in April.
 

drcarric2650

Well-known member
First Name
Don
Joined
Dec 17, 2019
Threads
3
Messages
164
Reaction score
219
Location
Tulsa, OK
Vehicles
98 F150
Country flag
I'm guessing you are thinking that solar on the cybertruck is silly in Canada, but every little bit helps, even if it only takes care of daily trickle energy loss, plus because you live in Canada, doesn't mean you have to stay in Canada, and besides, Cool is cool, no matter where you are at.
 

ajdelange

Well-known member
First Name
A. J.
Joined
Dec 8, 2019
Threads
4
Messages
3,213
Reaction score
3,403
Location
Virginia/Quebec
Vehicles
Tesla X LR+, Lexus SUV, Toyota SR5, Toyota Landcruiser
Occupation
EE (Retired)
Country flag
Right now I am more concerned about being able to get into Canada than out of it. Yes, solar on the CT is silly. Very silly but it is cool to the point that when the time comes I'll probably get it. I just don't want people who have these ridiculous expectations to be disappointed.
 

Newton

Well-known member
First Name
Newton
Joined
Apr 2, 2020
Threads
16
Messages
1,081
Reaction score
1,529
Location
East Bay Area, CA
Vehicles
p̶r̶i̶u̶s̶ c̶,̶ y̶o̶t̶a̶ p̶i̶c̶k̶u̶p, ⼕丫⻏?尺セ尺ㄩ⼕长
Country flag
I would love solar on the CT. But who has done the math for actual possible miles gained per day? Dont wanna buy the option if it's a gimmick
 

drcarric2650

Well-known member
First Name
Don
Joined
Dec 17, 2019
Threads
3
Messages
164
Reaction score
219
Location
Tulsa, OK
Vehicles
98 F150
Country flag
Right now I am more concerned about being able to get into Canada than out of it. Yes, solar on the CT is silly. Very silly but it is cool to the point that when the time comes I'll probably get it. I just don't want people who have these ridiculous expectations to be disappointed.
That is a very good point.
 


ajdelange

Well-known member
First Name
A. J.
Joined
Dec 8, 2019
Threads
4
Messages
3,213
Reaction score
3,403
Location
Virginia/Quebec
Vehicles
Tesla X LR+, Lexus SUV, Toyota SR5, Toyota Landcruiser
Occupation
EE (Retired)
Country flag
I would love solar on the CT. But who has done the math for actual possible miles gained per day? Dont wanna buy the option if it's a gimmick
I have but if you think that means I can give you a meaningful answer I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you as the yield from a solar system depends on many factors such as where you live (lattitude, weather), time of year, orientation of the vehicle. You can go to the NREL data to find average insolation levels for your location and you can be sure someone at Tesla did that in support of Elon's "up to 15 miles per day" figure but as I pointed out you can be sure that number more likely pertains to a lowish lattitude in the summer with no cloud cover rather than a cloudy, northern locale in the winter.

Yes, solar is a clever marketing gimmick but it definitely adds a bit of high tech cool to the vehicle. If you leave it at the airport in a sunny place for a week parked in the proper orientation you might pick up enough miles to get you home even if you live pretty far away. If your daily commute is 5 miles you might cover on average a quarter to half that (noting, that YMMV depending on where you live).
 

TyPope

Well-known member
First Name
Ty
Joined
Mar 31, 2020
Threads
19
Messages
1,641
Reaction score
2,757
Location
Papillion, NE
Vehicles
'18 F150, '23 MY, '24 CT, '23 Maveric hybrid soon
Occupation
Operations Planner
Country flag
I have but if you think that means I can give you a meaningful answer I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you as the yield from a solar system depends on many factors such as where you live (lattitude, weather), time of year, orientation of the vehicle. You can go to the NREL data to find average insolation levels for your location and you can be sure someone at Tesla did that in support of Elon's "up to 15 miles per day" figure but as I pointed out you can be sure that number more likely pertains to a lowish lattitude in the summer with no cloud cover rather than a cloudy, northern locale in the winter.

Yes, solar is a clever marketing gimmick but it definitely adds a bit of high tech cool to the vehicle. If you leave it at the airport in a sunny place for a week parked in the proper orientation you might pick up enough miles to get you home even if you live pretty far away. If your daily commute is 5 miles you might cover on average a quarter to half that (noting, that YMMV depending on where you live).
You know, even if all the solar did was to circulate air and perhaps prevent vampiric loses, it'd be a win if it were cheap enough. But, I'm hoping with all the advancements, there'll soon be panels 2-3 times as efficient as we have now and that charge will be worth the effort. ?➕?=?
 

ajdelange

Well-known member
First Name
A. J.
Joined
Dec 8, 2019
Threads
4
Messages
3,213
Reaction score
3,403
Location
Virginia/Quebec
Vehicles
Tesla X LR+, Lexus SUV, Toyota SR5, Toyota Landcruiser
Occupation
EE (Retired)
Country flag
That won't be soon. There is a physical limit called the Shockley limit and while it is possible to go beyond it the complexity of the cell and hence the cost rises dramatically.

Perhaps people could go to one of the many sites that calculates "how much you can save with solar" to get an idea a what a single panel can produce in your area then try to scale that up by the number of panels that you think can be fit onto the CT.
 

TyPope

Well-known member
First Name
Ty
Joined
Mar 31, 2020
Threads
19
Messages
1,641
Reaction score
2,757
Location
Papillion, NE
Vehicles
'18 F150, '23 MY, '24 CT, '23 Maveric hybrid soon
Occupation
Operations Planner
Country flag
That won't be soon. There is a physical limit called the Shockley limit and while it is possible to go beyond it the complexity of the cell and hence the cost rises dramatically.

Perhaps people could go to one of the many sites that calculates "how much you can save with solar" to get an idea a what a single panel can produce in your area then try to scale that up by the number of panels that you think can be fit onto the CT.
There is still hope out there. What if it were easy to get to 80% efficiency? That 15 miles becomes 82 miles, that's what. No, I won't hold my breath but this carbon nanotube work is encouraging...

Carbon Nanotubes
 
 




Top