Aptera announced a “Never Charge“ solar electric vehicle that will not need to be plugged in for most regular uses, and it sports a 1,000 mile range (1600 KM approx.) on a full charge.
Aptera’s Never Charge technology is based on the power of the sun. The built-in solar array keeps the battery pack topped off and so anywhere you want to go, you just go without worrying about the charge or range anxiety
Aptera says they will achieve this by making the vehicle as efficient as possible, allowing the relatively low amount of energy one can get from solar panels to do a lot more than it could for other electric vehicles.
The biggest thing Aptera does that others don’t is optimize the vehicle for low drag. With an airplane-like design and only three wheels, the car has a drag coefficient of just 0.13.
To put this in perspective, a Tesla Model S has a drag coefficient of 0.24.
With less “wind resistance,” travel at all speeds requires less energy, with the effect of saving more energy compared to normal cars increasing as the car goes faster.
Aptera plans to do this while still having a 100 kWh battery pack, so the car will have great range.
Another way they’re planning to get better efficiency is by saving weight. Instead of using steel for most of the vehicle, they use composites and lighter metals wherever possible.
With just four main pieces, the vehicle will also be relatively easy to manufacture in volume.
Other ways they’re improving range is with efficient electric motors (no specifics were given), and with an onboard computer that helps optimize efficiency and gives the driver feedback to improve range.
A limited number of special edition Paradigm and Paradigm+ vehicles will be first produced in 2021.
Reference- Aptera PR, InsideEVs, Clean Technica, Electrek