Aptera upgrades its unique solar-charging EV

Aptera’s three-wheeler enclosed electric car has already made its mark as a unique new offering on the EV scene. The solar-charging EV never needs to be plugged in, all while competing with mid-level Teslas for range when charged as a traditional EV. Now, Aptera says it has completed some major upgrades to make the cars even more competitive. Here’s what’s new with Aptera’s revolutionary EVs.

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Aptera’s solar-charging EV already has the longest range of any production vehicle with 1,000 miles per charge and the ability to travel up to 40 miles a day on free power from its integrated solar panels. Now, the solar panels have been future-proofed, designed to be switched out for updates as solar technology improves. The solar cells integrated into the car’s roof panels have also been hail tested and undergone other testing to maximize efficiency.

People walking on either side of a white Aptera car.

The car’s body is created with 3D-printed components that have six key structural parts. They have been integrated with a new suspension designed for even better aerodynamics, which makes them use less energy than any other electric and hybrid vehicles on the road today. Is one of the key differences the light weight from only three wheels and very little cargo space? Yes, but it’s more than that.

The new Beta models have improved structural stability to reduce shake and increased efficiency by improving the airflow over the lowered vehicle stance. The company slightly increased the front-row headroom and hip room for more driving comfort. Aptera has looked at both sleek shape and light weight and combined that with self-charging tech that can charge while you drive to improve range. Turning radius, stability and maneuverability have all improved. The mobility startup will use these changes in the Beta to model their first production cars, coming soon.

Over 13,000 people have already reserved an Aptera. The vehicles are expected to use only 100 Wh per mile, making them the most efficient vehicles in production. Each Aptera features 2.4 square meters of solar panels that produce enough energy for 40 miles of driving off-grid per day.

“We’ll start by producing our first few hundred vehicles, our Paradigm Editions,” said Pablo Ucar, Aptera’s Vice President of Production and Procurement. “As our supply chain becomes more established, we’ll ramp to 250 per month, and eventually reach our target of producing 40 vehicles per day. To support this demand, we’re predicting growth of our manufacturing and engineering staff by 3-5x over the next three years.”

+ Aptera

Via Medium

Images via Aptera

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Aptera upgrades its unique solar-charging EV is written by Laura Cowan for inhabitat.com