5 square meter solar cells: Electric car Lightyear 0 goes on sale

• The Dutch start-up Lightyear unveils the first production vehicle.
• The electric car equipped with solar cells is called Lightyear 0 (formerly: Lightyear One). It can be ordered now.
• The car has a five square meter solar cell area.

Solar cars with electric drives are currently attracting a lot of attention. Hardly surprising – under good conditions you almost never have to reload them, is the promise. Many solar cars look highly futuristic, like the three-wheeler model from Aptera or the strange car from Squad Mobility.

Now Lightyear is shaking up the scene with the Lightyear 0. Given the built-in technology, the car looks almost spectacularly unspectacular. The inconspicuous look of the debut work, which is more reminiscent of a Tesla than a futuristic escape machine, is likely to be well received by customers.

In the past six years there have always been bits of information about prototypes. The car has now been officially presented at an online event. The key data read promising. Above all, the seamless integration of the solar cells did not exist in this form before.

Thanks to solar power: 70 free kilometers per day

The multiple curved panels blend seamlessly with the body of the vehicle, covering it to a large extent. They are five square meters in total. According to the manufacturer, the solar cells can produce electricity for an additional range of up to 70 kilometers per day.

The built-in batteries with a capacity of 60 kilowatt hours certify the Lightyear 0 a WLTP range of 625 kilometers – adding the 70 solar kilometers results in a range of around 700 kilometers. If you consider that many working people do not drive more than 50 kilometers a day on average, you no longer need to worry about rising energy prices when driving.

price and availability

The Lightyear 0 will certainly not be able to solve current traffic problems. On the one hand, the car is too expensive for this. The starting price is 250,000 euros. On the other hand, production is limited to 946 units. Interested parties can order the electric car now. Production in Finland is starting and the first units are expected to be delivered in autumn 2022.

Work is already underway on a second model. The “Lightyear Two” is scheduled to go into series production by the end of 2024 or early 2025 at the latest, will also have solar cells and will only cost around 30,000 euros. Also interesting: This trailer with an e-car connection produces green hydrogen to charge batteries.