INFINITE RANGE ELECTRIC CAR - DIY Build
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- čas přidán 10. 09. 2024
- Ever wondered why we can't make an electric car that's fully powered by solar panels to provide an unlimited range? This video is a lighthearted take on building an infinite range electric car that uses solar panels to provide unlimited energy. The car has dual 3000W ebike motors to reach a maximum speed of 45 km/h, a 48v 4000w/h LifePO4 battery, 1575w of total solar production.
Watch the first video where I build the car here: • Making a SOLAR POWERED...
My Instagram: / drewbuildsstuff
Merch: www.bunkerbran...
Plans (FREE): www.drewbuilds...
Materials:
2x 20" Fat Tire Bikes: geni.us/3QcmxaL
3x 175w Flexible Solar Panels: geni.us/xxkU
60A Solar Charge Controller: geni.us/Mjyi5o
2x 48V 1500W eBike Wheels (use the tires and tubes off the unused wheels from the two bikes): amzn.to/3PNsrjM
2x 24v 100AH Lithium Batteries: geni.us/vpkQBj
3-way Solar Brach Connectors: geni.us/HNUD
10 Gauge Silicone Wire: geni.us/6kJ3
2 Gauge Wire: geni.us/o1I6bO
10 Gauge Ring Terminals: geni.us/yfoAVa
Bus Bars: geni.us/QMlm
2x 30A ANL Fuses: geni.us/h0Wuo
2x 40A ANL Fuses: geni.us/LOT2
48v Inverter (Optional): geni.us/l5FTOe
Crimper: geni.us/svVvD
Wire Clamps: geni.us/kATu1P8
Racing Seat: www.princessau...
Brake Levers: geni.us/AvkSICx
Brake Cable Housings: geni.us/4b1E
Front Brake Cables: geni.us/lq0g9R
Rear Brakes Cables (5M): www.aliexpress...
My Camera: geni.us/yGEpj
Timelapse Camera: geni.us/9oZa
Drone: geni.us/k22kTH
Tripod: geni.us/6hjvBgE
As a CZcams university graduate and city keyboard scribe, please let me tell you how you should improve your project.
Haha best comment! Pinned 👍
Comments are CZcamss bread and butter. Any engagement is good. Even this in bad taste criticism of the engaged audience that surely will have some albeit minimal effect on people making suggestions which is harmless.
I'm sitting here waiting for the expertise in the comments lol
@@bobscat-wj4ub *could HAVE
@@DrewBuildsStuff You kno how they make lights for bicycles that can be powered by a little wheel that set on the bike wheel basically making it motion powered. Can you attach something like that to all four wheels to make a difference? & would it work at all in any way to make & or keep power?
Has anyone told you about the World Solar Challenge held biennially in Australia for the last 20+ years? You have to drive a solar car from Darwin to Adelaide (~3000 km).
I compete in this for the WSU Solar car team!
3000km is crazy!
@@Tyler_18_ 3022km in 5 days against 34 competitors with a car you built from scratch Is a true adventure. There's a CZcams oringal series on this called light speed by seeker i recommend it !
Race the Sun movie
I was going to recommend this challenge as well as a source of inspiration.
There must be papers available with techniques they use to improve performance and reduce drag to extend the range.
You could drop a heck of a lot of weight by building the trailer out of aluminium, only the vehicle itself needs to be somewhat structurally safe, other than cost it doesn’t really matter if the trailer is hit and destroyed. On the subject of the panels it would be good to make some aero out of thin plastic to direct airflow under them for cooling, you’ll get significantly better efficiency the cooler they are.
I can't weld aluminum... czcams.com/video/NNmnkDev9VQ/video.htmlsi=BP-jNJIyqO3SAec4&t=1537
@@DrewBuildsStuff Two word: Carbon Fiber
@@DrewBuildsStuff get a lot of L channel aluminum, if you use the right hardware you could just cut, drill and bolt it all together
@@DrewBuildsStuff Ebay has Tig welders that are pretty decent for around $400...then you could weld aluminum.
There are also Brazing Rods, 3M Urethane Epoxy, or just bolt the aluminum together.
@@DrewBuildsStuff What about wood?
As an electric skateboarder I try to get as much range as possible. With nobby off-road tyres, I get 42 kilometres. With Road tyres I get 63 kilometre distance,
They are called off-road tyres for a reason. I’m in Melbourne Australia and I can hear your rumbling tyres from here ; )
I'm thinking Schwalbe Super Moto.
This, you can literally hear the inefficiency
i dont need more yhan 40 kil at age 52 on skateboard after 20 km i had enough so 250 km is an over kill job well done
Hi, that sounds really cool what skateboard do you have btw I live in Bendigo so ur location surprised me a lot
ur probably from werribee, imma send the cops to fine u. thanks
Dude, I've been welding almost 20 years now. I'm not just saying this, 90% of your welds are GOOD WELDS. Honestly. You're too hard on yourself about that stuff. 95% of those welds would pass inspection and are structurally sound. I hope this helps reassure you to just weld it up and ignore the Karen's. Most of the people who would bash welds like those almost assuredly just like insulting people because they're unhappy with their own lives. And I would bet a large percentage of that group is not even qualified to comment on welds in the first place. You did awesome man. Loved the welds, loved the build, loved the video. Keep up the awesome work brotha! :)
Not a welder, so won't comment on weld quality, though welding in a t-shirt does look like a sure way for x-ray skin burns or worse - depending on exposure dose.
Yes I'm sure Logan is up in the mystique mountains as professor Xavier is magnetising the ionosphere to cause a global rising of cake in the oven
Tears welled up in my eyes.
Yes agree. The first couple looked a bit untidy but the later welds were great. Not an easy skill so good effort. As was mentioned the difference between a bad weld and a good weld is a minute with a grinder.
@@vaakdemandante8772 no xrays in welding, only uv. And from a uv blocking standpoint, a t-shirt is more than enough..
As a solar design engineer, I love the effort you put into this, but I believe you can fundamentally change some items for far greater success:
1. manufactured solar panels are not just heavier. They have greater power density. You can get a 420W panel that weighs about 50-70lbs. The use of aluminum railing and glass also increases heat transfer. Solar panels heat up and their efficiency drops considerably. Using the wood backing and the flexible panels, their efficiency due to heat is lower. The manufactured panels will stay cool especially on a moving vehicle.
2. The steel frame is heavy. Consider using solar railing for the frame. Something like the Ironridge XR100 has great rigidity for the weight and has built in attachment points. You can use end clamps and mid clamps to secure the panels to the rail for easy removal. You'd shave a lot of weight and reduce the footprint of the vehicle.
3. I didn't see the initial video, so I don't fully understand your electrical setup, but you may benefit from a different power supply configuration. The excess solar production needs to go somewhere. Use a configuration where the power supply can be powered by the panels, and excess solar charges the battery. As solar power goes down, the battery takes over.
I was JUST thinking about #3. That excess power is wasted otherwise, and you lose extra time. I believe powerwalls and solar powering houses have the ability to do just this.
@@karanoelle4819 There is no excess power, all the power in a setup like this goes to power the vehicle and the rest charges the battery. And if you have excess power due to the battery being full you are out of luck, either get more batteries, larger / more motors that use all the energy and give you more speed or except the loss.
@@karanoelle4819 they do.
It would be interesting to see a performance comparison of the actual configuration and the one you suggested...
I admire your efforts! Applaud the the time and money you exerted into the vehicle/ trailer and video. Forgive me if you did mention in video, but what was your average speed and top speed and rough weight of vehicle +/- trailer?
Hey Drew, if you ever decide to revisit this project, consider:
Switching over to rigid panels. The flexible panel produce 1/2 of the rigid panels power at peak. You can possibly integrated the panel as structural parts as well. Many of them designed to handle snow loads.
Use higher voltage but in parallel. Many panels have poor performance in shaded conditions, and can affect the performance of the whole string.
Having the panels directly facing the sun makes a big difference.
Could’ve also used 450w rigid panels and not really need the trailer.
And make the trailer and frame lighter (aluminum), and use lower rolling resistance tires, and find all the other ways to improve your efficiency rather than just upping your capacity. If you continue to use flexible panels, mount them to rigid styro insulation rather than cedar. Solar panels and battery tech improve monumentally each year, but it's important to nail down the fundamentals. Think "Aptera" rather than "Hummer EV".
There's alot of factors involved. yes ridgid can produce more, but they are also significantly heavier. You also need more structure in your base to suport said extra weight adding even more mass for your motor to haul around requiring more power. So its not as simple as just saying use ridgid pannels and cut the number needed in half.
@@tyrelirwin You mean dream Aptera, as thats all it is
The horse owner was the winner. Transportation that comes with a soul 😍
18:46 Seeing the horse buggy go by followed by your solar "buggy" was VERY satisfying.
The Amish couldn't build a solar powered car . . . but they could borrow yours!
@@rrnabors1 The Amish wouldn't want a solar powered car...Ever. Their horses are far more reliable. Horses also work on cloudy days, or at night. What an incredible achievement. Hopefully, one day, we'll go beyond what the Amish have and find a mode of transportation that doesn't require horses at all! Who knows? We may not even need the sun to be shining. We'll get there soon. I can feel it in my bones.
The Amish are using a solar powered carriage. The horse eats hay, which grows from photosynthesis, which is sunlight powered.
They are Way ahead of you Lou
@@STho205 By that same ridiculous logic, humans are solar powered, because we breathe in the oxygen produced by plants and trees.
The horse is also solar powered.
As a cyclist I know if you put slick tires on those wheels you will get better efficiency and a smoother/quieter ride. I wouldn't put narrower tires on though, some fat tire slicks would be perfect. Would be cool to be able to tilt the trailer panels, like in the sun setting end if you could stand those panels up a bit then you could have gotten home. Maybe triangle shaped frame in front and rear with panels sitting on a center pipe that can lock flat or tilt and lock one way or the other.
I would use track tyres. Thin as thin gets. You don't need fat tyres on this at all.
ya indeed , slick tire would be much better
That's what I was just going to write. Some 100psi bmx tires would do alot of Justice. And slanting a panel up would create a great spoilers to keep it down at speed
Air pressure is an easy fix. Costs nothing and can possibly get more gain with zero additional dollars
@@KC9UDX If you look at where road bike tires have gone over the last couple decades, they're getting fatter. They found that fatter tires run at a lower pressure have lower rolling resistance (and are more comfortable) than skinny tires at the necessary higher pressure. All the vibration you feel with really skinny tires is wasted energy. Yes there are aerodynamic considerations but not really a factor on this pretty draggy vehicle.
Use narrower tires, reduce roll resistance. You could mount solar panels overhead, use it as sunshades and weather protection and get rid of the trailer. that is also reducing roll resistance.
I wonder what the trade off would be with drag would be.
@@robloggia I built a battery-less solar bike 10 years ago.. very similar structure, except I made a 4ft tail off the back. V4 - was going to try and elongate the front 4 ft aswell..
Not to mention the added weight of the trailer and extra panels. All that extra weight affects the range negatively
@@robloggia
Aerodynamic drag could be significantly improved very cheaply.
Just take the solar panels off, and wrap the space frame chassis with industrial pallet wrapping.
Then re-attach the panels.
Use aluminum instead of steel.
Dude, the vehicle is amazing. You have demonstrated so many skills just with this one build: electrical/mechanical/materials engineering, solar tech, bike tech, painter, etc. It's very, very impressive. I really enjoyed the Amish wagon juxtaposition. The stunt double is hilarious. I think the design is fantastic, as are the finishing aesthetics. Thank you for following through on your scientific experiment. It was a huge success!
Oh, I forgot environmental engineering. Also, what beautiful county. Where is this being filmed?
It’s worth pausing to appreciate that 10-20 years ago this would be a multi-million dollar project by a team of phds.
Now it’s a (very impressive!) but still fairly achievable build for a CZcams video with off the shelf parts and without any crazy aero bubbles etc
The *next* 10-20 years of progress will be fun to observe.
Great build and awesome video!
Not really. You’re compressing time a bit. Solar Cars have been a university club sport since the 80s
@@FuncleChuck The aerial video shots would have been the most expensive part a few years ago ;)
@@FuncleChuck OK.. PhD candidates and major auto manufacturers 😅
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Solar_Challenge_1987
I honestly and hopefully believe that in 20 years' time, humanity will have started using fusion reactors.
@@FallLineJPyou're still wrong, 20 years ago was 2004, this project was possible on a budget in 2004.
Awesome dude. I put an e-bike build together that comes home every day after work and plugs into an outlet on my 400W solar shed which has accumulated enough charge throughout the day to get me to work and back the next day.
I´d just have it charging a second swappable battery, but that´s because I´m just that cool
你是上夜班吗或者用月光发电😂
@@xinxiao2394 Clearly you cant read. The system has a battery bank. If you had your eyes open you'd see the word 'accumulated'.
Thats great, afterall there is always night
That is what it's all about right there. Well done!
the "opposing similarities"(not sure if that how you would say it) of the horse drawn buggy and a self sustaining electric vehicle was amazing.
both are solar powered!
@@vinny9152yep and both will still be around in 300, 500, 1,000 years when the other systems are kaput
The word you are looking for is juxtaposition.
As I see it, the greatest difference is that horses can 'build' more little copies of themselves. Here's an idea or two to ruminate on... 1) A 'fresnel' layer, composed of many for each panel, or, 2) a layer of hemispherical bubbles in an overlay to focus light from a less than overhead sun onto the layer below, or 3) A tubular photocell as an on/off switch to a tilting mechanism for more direct interaction, as it cannot be noon all the time. Just an old fart noodling around with a subject I'm just coming to grips with.
@@whophd No, that's a false assumption.
It takes very refinded processes to build solar cells.
If shtf, the technology to build solar cells won't survive and cannot be rebuilt in an aftermath MadMax scenario.
You can refine crude oil with primitive technology like in Mad Max and fire up surviving internal combustion engines, but you cannot produce silicium wafers.
So - horse and buggy are the safer bet.
Доброй,белой завистью,завидую
творцам,имеющим ресурсы для творчества!!!😂❤😂
См.,,ОПЫТЫ,ПЕСНИ ИВАНА КОПЕЦА" Здоровья,вдохновения,успехов,коллега!!!❤❤❤
I have a local friend who built a similar setup .. pulling a trailer .. the main vehicle is made to look like a miniature Model T pickup .. John Deer green & yellow. He picks up extra energy by using a braking mechanism that engages an alternator and the resistance creates a braking effect while also helping to charge the batteries. Really cool. I wish YT would allow photos for comments like this.
Regenerative braking. My CRV hybrid has that. As soon as you release the gas, regenerative braking kicks in. Kinda annoying. I wish it would NOT kick in unless you engage the paddle shifter.
@@DecrepitBiden .. yes .. my friend said that he only uses it when going downhill as a brake since the drag slows him down .. unless the battery is fully charged .. then he has to rely on the brakes.
@@DecrepitBiden Or even touched the brake, ya it is annoying AF.
@@anjhindul, so this means you have to continually keep your "gas" engaged with the pedal?
I like to rest mine off the pedal at times while coasting.
You don't know what you're talking about. All EVs have regenerative braking. It's not "a braking mechanism that engages an alternator." You're really dumb for thinking that.
18:45 I'm sure the Amish lady appreciates you blurring her face in your video on building a devil machine
oh shit I lol
When I saw the buggy I thought of a possible business idea. Some Amish churches accept solar panels and wind turbines as a way of having energy. So something like this that could transport then like 200 miles in a day (something a horse can't do) could be a good way of transport for them.
@@Juangontiz It's a pretty uncommon view in among the Amish. They mainly believe technology is a result of man's gluteny and therefore is sinful. I've really only seen the Amish use technology when it helps their personal businesses. Like for using digital purchasing as there's a large portion of people who refuse to use cash today, they need digital purchasing to keep business.
Amish by us use everything battery powered. They also sell all brands of battery powered hand tools . I saw one kid flying a drone a couple days ago. Go Amish -Trump2024
I think it would be better if you adjust the angle of your front solar panel, aerodynamics are important.
A 450 watt solar panel weighs just under 52 lbs. The efficiency of the rigid panel is much higher as is the longevity; so the weight savings are not nearly as important as it seems. An aluminum trailer and bike would have almost completely offset the additional weight IMO. Having said that, your builds are brilliant and I thoroughly enjoy watching your videos 😊.
The panels have structural integrity themselves as most are designed to be mounted on the sides only in the middle, and sustain 80mph winds. So he could have saved additional weight by using a lighter gauge steel and letting the panel frames provide additional integrity. Biracial panels are also an option
Don't even need a trailer if you design the base vehicle with 450w panels.
@@normalguy556 "Biracial" gave me a good laugh
@@KuddleKittens yeah autocorrect is a hoe sometimes
ok but he would need to redesign the whole thing more power, more weight, needs bigger brakes, probably can go faster so better aero. At his scale and price what he did is excellent
Loved the video. Did not read all the comments, but you find a way to angle your solar panels to get the maximum absorption of light. And add some comfort with a canopy using solar panels also. Again, great video.
Maxxis Holy Roller 20x2.2 hybrid tires. Great tire, MUCH less rolling resistance. Just an idea. Love the project!!
Less rolling resistance of a good road tyre as opposed to knobblys...
@@geoffmerritt He's driving on gravel roads though.
@@filonin2 looks like they're mostly paved? the gravel sections are hard packed too. Would have zero hesitation riding those with slick bicycle tyres on a bicycle. I imagine a 4 wheeled vehicle means even more grip?
It’s always a good day when Drew builds more stuff
:DD
Aerodynamics will help a lot for sure. For a few pounds you could put a shell on this that might save you 20% on air resistance alone. Someone else said knobby tires and that tracks, too. Noise = loss!
But this is super awesome. Thanks for building and sharing!
If a solar plane can fly around the world, this car could drive all day
If he gets to a cd of 0.2, he would save like 50N tops on drag because he can only go 40km/h, that spread over 300km saves 15MJ of power right? Wich would save 4.1kWh, wich is a damn lot haha, but the problem is getting to that 0.2 without adding weight enough to blunder too much that 50N drag.
Aerodynamics were my concern as well. Since he's using flexible panels he may even be able to move them all to one chassis and form a cockpit. Then just box in the floor with hard foam or something light and easy to shape.
Alternators on inside of wheel hubs,voltage multipliers/power converters, blocking diodes to keep power from leaking back out towards the panels and weight reduction was a great suggestion as well from the previous comment.
Freakin sweet.
Nice work!
You need such a trailer for your Humvee immediately :)
Sup
Hey look the commie showed up.
Should find some quieter tires. Probably will extend your range as well.
I would suggest the same but he did seem to take it on dirt paths a few times. And smooth fat tires are slightly harder to find
For the short term, the bicycle tires ok, but I would change to motorcycle tires for a long term solution.
@@nedlyest if range is the desire, road bicycle tires make way more sense.
@@tyrelirwin I'm just looking at the overall longevity. The bearings as well as the tires are only good for 1000ish miles, where motorcycle tires are into the 10s of thousands. Brand dependant.
@@sgas I had cross tyres for my mountain bike for 70/30 , smoother grip center tyre for less rolling resistance and a knobbl youter for grip on dirt tracks or softer ground must be a tyre out there that would have less rolling resistance it is a four wheeler.
Amazing. As a kid I built an infinite range solar car, out of LEGO. It was about 1ft long. No battery, really struggled in the shade, but the concept was there.
I built one of those as well, used 3 of the lego solar panels. It was very slow, but it worked.
I think it is a matter of scale. Small motors don't use nearly the amount of watts and have good power to weight efficiency. Plus, the model you made didn't have the extra weight of a human inside it.
3 large panels could probably spin his motors but they wouldn't have a lot of power.
@@OneOfDisease Higher voltage motors could also improve his efficiency a ton. Electric unicycles have some mean motors reaching 150+ volts, with peak power of 8kW each.
Doesn't Aptera already have a solar powered car ? You tube it ..
This is awesome. And regarding your comment at 23:43, I think it absolutely does have real world practical purpose. This is a starting point, if nothing else. I would love to see what it would take to do what you did, with a 180 pound driver and 50 pounds of cargo. And then 100 pounds, and then 500 pounds, etc. Very cool man. I watched til the end.
0:10 not to brag or anything, but i thought of this when i was 6😎 (my parents were very unsuportive)
@@travismiller5548 damn dawg thats totally tubular
This idea sucks anyway unless you want to drive solar panel bus
@@lnteI their is some validity here, but you'd need an extremely light (and emtpy) bus inorder for the energy to exceed the weight it has to propell if that makes sense
It's kind of how everyone has the "freezerwave" idea when they're 5 to compliment the microwave. Then as adults realize it's a pretty common idea (not to rain on your parade lol)
You parents sniffed farts for a living
Very cool! Of course, if I tried driving something like that around where I live, I'd get run over by a giant pickup truck going 80 mph or something. And if I managed to avoid that, then the police would give me a ticket for driving something that isn't properly registered and inspected.
Ayo it's the ibookguy!
Yep, something with four wheels like this could draw attention from local law enforcement for those reasons. You might be able to get around that by using 3 wheels instead, either delta or tadpole design.
Hey 8bitguy same around here but very cool idea
@@jayw900 😃
@@nicholas4839 😄
I remember when you built the car and thought so much more can be achieved. You came back and did more it's people like you who dare to do this stuff that helps inspire others to do more.
Thanks for your drive and sharing what you've done.
Hey Drew love the channel. Just a small tip for your welding. If you push the weld it should help a lot. This makes sure the gas your welder uses is being pushed onto your weld and helps cool it down making for a better weld (especially with thinner metal). I find it also helps me see where I am going and what I am doing. Hope this helps you!
So glad to see this project continuing!
Next step is to make an aerodynamic chassis and reduce the rolling resistance. You can get away with fewer watts with three wheels, better tires and some aero faring while still reaching 45 km/h
Not to mention 3 wheels gives it a prayer of being road legal
Exactly - you could increase range and decrease burn when using less wide, waay smoother tracked tires.
For some tips he should search for "Outback solar race" on youtube. There has been an 1800mile (2900km) EV desert crossing race in Australia since the 1980's. The vehicles are extremely refined, covered in solar panels that are moulded to the aerodynamic shape of the body design. 3 wheels, very thin wheels. Enclosed cockpits. They can average speeds of 70mph from sunrise to sunset running only on solar.
@@fisharmor Certainly not without a license plate and insurance.
@Mike-oz4cv That doesn't sound like much of an issue, really. Registration and insurance of a three-wheeled motorcycle is usually pretty cheap. A lot of places in the US don't even require motorcycle licenses for an enclosed autocycle either.
It's crazy that most of us had this idea crossed our mind at least once, yet hardly anyone tried it.
There's a lot of room of improvement here. Please add donation under the video or something so we can contribute for next project on this idea. We want to see most efficient build of this. Prove the world wrong.
Its a lot of work to build something like this, only to not be allowed to drive it on public roads.
You bet. CZcams allows me to have the time and finances to build something like this. It would be pretty hard to justify the build without CZcams.
Theres actually an annual competition to make an entirely solar powered car. Its just impossible at least with today’s technology to make a practical, commercially viable car that is entirely solar powered
@@SamuelMM_Mitosis I don't think it is impossible, but it would take a lot of cooperation with industry people who can make more money by building vehicles that aren't solar cars.
Its like how you can make more money making videos that sell videogames than making videos that teach calculus, but it doesn't cost $100,000,000 to make calculus videos, so a few people do it anyway.
@@SamuelMM_Mitosis I imagine there are a lot of people that will do anything to stop a commercially viable solar powered car?
Sure. Lots of ways I'd improve a v2.0. But you're out there actually building this stuff and doing so in a way that entertains. Thank you, Drew!
Add heat lamps (Or high intensity light bars) for night time driving and add a dedicated battery for the lamps. have the lamps battery be charging during the day time so you can use the heat lamps or high intensity light bars as a limp home mode. it will be slow but will still get you home depending on the size of the battery you use for the trailer and the distance to your home/workshop/base. this was very entertaining to watch. liked and subbed.
It's all fun and games until the clouds come out 😂
Seriously, though, I'm in my thirties and I want to be like you when I grow up. Great project!
when you grow up?
@@olsc-n1t the only thing turning 30 taught me is that I'm just closer to turning 40 than I am to feeling like an adult.
Ask any millennial, they'll probably tell you the same thing.
If you dropped the weight of the frame down, you could possibly exchange that weight for an additional battery.
I love this project. The shot of the horse and buggy is priceless. Your builds are always fun, but the effort you put into the presentation is so very appreciated!!!❤
Why take offense of the people giving suggestions? Take it as a compliment to the content creator, guys, he got people excited about the idea and trying to help improve it, as he requested. I see no sense in dismissing people calling them armchair engineers and such when many are likely to be actual experts in the technology and skill set involved.
Some people are more butthurt about "backseat-drivers" than others. I suffer from a similar sensitivity. I admit, it is a setback, as it makes it harder for me to sincerely consider what might be very valid suggestions. It takes time to tame that knee-jerk reaction to critique, but it's an ongoing process.
@@larjasoul I think it's easy to understand it from the first person, it's not easy to take criticism even when it's gentle and constructive, it takes maturity. But I find it so much stranger to take offense as a third person over the possibly offended feelings of the one receiving the critique who actually asked for in the video xD
Agree 100%
Video is awesome, but I'm just sad afterwards when I scroll and see that pinned comment/response :c
@@Leongon DONT YOU DARE TELL ME HOW TO UNDERSTAND IT. jklol.
yeah it is a very weird mindset to take offense on OP's behalf. terminally online behavior.
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czcams.com/video/or7-UF5XU44/video.html
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What an outstanding accomplishment! You could travel all day...rest at night and resume your trip the next morning! Real world practicality friend!
As a fellow graduate of the School of Hard Knocks with a degree at CZcams University, my logic tells me that constructing your trailer frame from a lightweight aluminum chassis would cut the weight way down and take less energy to pull. I gotta say I am thoroughly impressed with your design. The wiring and PV equipment was very clean. I appreciate the video!
That's how Elon built the frame for the cyber truck 😲
bunch of know-it-all yappersvilles in the comments who never built anything close to this.
@@kylecrane5751 LOL. Point taken
@@marsettenmohn And you know this how??
i build this concept 3 years ago ,go to youtube Brunson solar power car
Hi. The rigid solar panels weigh a lot more, because they are a little larger, and they produce MUCH more power.
Rigid panels can produce 450w per panel, 230w/m2. Flexible panels produce about 175w per panel, 165w/m2.
4 rigid panels will give you more power than 9 flexible panels - you might not not even need a trailer - saving much more weight.
That's a good point.
Rigid panels may have durability issues in a high-vibration environment like a road vehicle.
@@teardowndan5364
It's quite common to use rigid panels on motorhomes and campervans - at over 100kmh/60mph.
The simple solution for vibration is rubber. Just like any suspension bush or engine mount.
@@c6q3a24 No vibrations when you mount them ridigly with hard mounts in every corner and in the middle on a 1m x 1,6m like on my van that go 100km/h usually on long trips (uses less fuel at that speed then when going slower, most likely because when going slower you drive in 5th gear but at that higher speed you can use 6th gear). I would think that rubber mounts actually increases that chance of the panels vibrating?
@@a64738 Your van has suspension ... this vehicle is transmitting every vibration.
9:34 „To save weight“, builds whole trailer out of steel… lol my dude, you funny af 😂
I was thinking the exact same thing!
Aluminum is not easy to weld. But yes much lighter
@@derekgamble7090 Wood doesn't need welding 🙃
@@niikon Wood warps sideways if you don't want it thick or add lots of supports.
I agree, sure aluminium costs more but would be 60% lighter. Unless you don't know how to or want to weld aluminum.
18:47 I love the juxtaposition of a futuristic, solar powered vehicle passing an Amish lady in her horse drawn buggy.
A horse and buggy are just another kind of solar powered vehicle. I loved watching your build and drive. Very relaxing.
hehe fun way to look at it, but I'm also thinking by that definition Oil is also solar energy
All power is solar power. Wind, Water, even wood from photosynthesis. Edit: The only exception would be nuclear. But one could say all power is nuclear.
And the horse has heating for the nordic people such as me
@hazratmuhazmat8831geo thermal?
Also first trials for fusion have been showing net energy gain.
Not being used yet, but still you said all.
@@WhyName Without the sun, the earth would become an ice ball.
An idea for the trailer: Raising the solar panels, extend over/on top of the wheels, and rotate 90°.
place the panels more like this: /⁻⁻\.
Put the 3 panels front to back in series instead of left to right.
You would need 3 more panels and have 1 more set in series.
When the sun is high, all 3 series on the trailer generate power.
Is the sun lower, then depending on the angle, 1 side and the top have sun.
Is the sun about to set, then 1 side still generates some power.
Raising the panels also creates space for storage, foldable chair, tent, batteries or other stuff so you can go camping for example.
And if you don't want to buy more panels you could shorten the trailer and have the trailer move less like a seesaw on bumps and holes in the road.
I think it has 100% usefullness, especially for here in Australia. The Wright brothers didn't fly around the world with their first plane. ☺ Carbon fibre body, solarplex canopy to reduce wind resistance. 🥰🥰 Well done and a step in the right direction.
Look up the Aptera, it's a near-production ready vehicle as you describe.
This is the electric car that I want to see. None of this large cell batteries that can/will do in the long run. This car is the most environmentally friendly car in my eyes.
For a prototype, this is badass! Real nice simple design and looks like fun to make. As some others here suggest, changing the material of the frame would help. As a retired engineer, I am geeking out, lol.
Hi there! Nice project! I really liked it. One way to improve it a bit is to raise the rear panels to a sunny side. For example, if you are driving east and the sun is to the right - the panels should be lifted from the left and angled towards the sun.
This should improve the efficiency of the solar panels a little.
The idea here is to get the panel surface as close to 90 degrees to the sun as possible.
I think I have described the idea correctly. Thank you very much!
Yeah I thought the exact same thing for long journeys in one direction. It makes a noticeable difference to efficiency having them angled towards the sun..
It looked like maybe he was doing a big loop of local roads, in which case you would need to change the height more frequently. I thought having the panel mounting struts on actuators that could raise and lower each panel corner separately. That way you could angle them back if the sun was behind you, forward if it's in front, or either side, while you're driving.
Getting some "The Martian" vibes from this build.
Good job!
I was thinking the exact same Thing ❤
You could double the panels on the trailer by mounting two banks in a V and possibly add additional battery(ies) to capture and store the power. But ultimately when the sun doesn’t shine or it gets dark it will stop and you’ve more or less got a vehicle that can drive all day already.
Concept is great.
Excellent test. The reason we don't see solar panels on cars is because it makes more sense to put them somewhere stationary, charge a battery then come and charge the car there, because the car will often be in a non-ideal location for solar panels whereas stationary ones can always be at the ideal angle/location. The reason we can't have 'infinite range' on are normal vehicles is an area problem as you found out.
Actually, on a vehicle using enough power, like a Tesla, the solar just isn't enough to matter much. That's why the tesla doesn't use solar, while Aptera has them because it uses little enough power to make a difference.
@@adastraedu Electric cars have a problem similar to the famous 'tyranny of the rocket equation'. Essentially, as you add more batteries to add more range, you are also adding more weight which requires more power. So a solar powered car that could drive at night would need more batteries and to fill those batteries would need more panels and to pull all that extra weight would need even more batteries and panels and it quickly gets ridiculous. Nevertheless solar cells on the surface of any electric car would make an appreciable difference to daytime range, but even in the case of the Aptera, the extra cost means that it still makes more sense to have stationary panels and to to recharge when necessary. For the Aptera it is a sales gimmick not a good sense option.
@@TimothyWhiteheadzm you clearly haven't looked into Aptera enough. The average Californian would never need to plug in their Aptera. The projected efficiency is around 100wh/mile. 400w of solar panels. 10 hours of sun nets 40 miles a day. More than the average person needs. Quite a bit more than "just a sales gimmick"...
@@tyrelirwinProjected efficiency, not proven real world average efficiency.
And, 40mi a day wouldn’t get a lot of people to work and back let alone trying to run some errands or take a trip somewhere.
As interesting and neat as they are it just isn’t a valid solution for many people. A plug in hybrid makes so much more sense and would benefit far more people.
Counterpoint.... Trains
"A grinder and paint make me the welder I ain't". One of my favorite sayings!
Along similar lines, sometimes people say, "Do your best and caulk the rest."
18:00 is starting ;)
Thanks :)
Grat job!, 10 years ago nobody would've believed that you can create a self sufficient vehicle with solar, even like this. you proved all of them wrong!
You should start driving it on 1% battery at 10AM and see if it can continuously charge as you go. That'd be the real infinite-range test.
yeah because that's practical lol
@@rausmusic4396 why not?
Great idea
@@rausmusic4396 nothing about this video or this vehicle is practical. No one watching this is wondering about practical use-cases. The point is to demonstrate that the principle is possible with current technology. The way to do that is as I outlined, start with almost no battery and see if it can charge as fast as it consumes energy.
my thoughts exactly
So many people seemed to not have seen a solar car or boat before.
Its' great to have fun building your own stuff.
THANK YOU for making this video. It hit home with me. Years ago I took a toy Ford Bronco which ran on two AA batteries. I removed the batteries and built a trailer eerily similar to yours and mounted twelve 2 watt Radio Shack solar cells on it. I wired it in series - parallel and connected the wires to the positive and negative battery terminals. (I did not replace the batteries. The power is supplied solely from the cells). When in the sunlight the Bronco would barrel down the sidewalk. With no remote controls the only way to stop it was to run and catch it and take it out of the sun. (It would actually move slowly in the shade). What fun this was. I built two of them, the other being a different vehicle, not a Bronco. Loved this video so much I subscribed
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Man! So many peoples thought about
what you have done but no guts to
attempt to do like you have done.
Congrats Drew.
First thing I thought when I started watching was "...sounds like a TIE fighter..." So cool!!!!!
that's because of the knobby tires. Get a regular bicycle with knobbies or a fatbike and it'll sound the same. Pitch changing with speed. Enjoy.
It turns out a TIE Fighter sounds suspiciously like a knobby-tired electric-powered cart..
Most Lucasfilm spaceship noises are from the studio's sound designers recording vehicles passing by on the interstate. So it's not too surprising.
It's cool, but that's the sound of wasted energy
@@PropaneWP not rly
23:47 “no value” the year is 2050 and you’re cruising the wasteland highways in this because gasoline is almost impossible to find
by then a majority of cars will likely be electric
@@Gl_3tch did you just compare electric cars to this purpose built lightweight solar rechargeable vehicle?
Or ride a camel
We have exponentially more oil than just a 25 year supply. Current reserves alone gives us a 50 year supply not counting what's still in the ground. Man y'all really do live in a fantasy world.
@@Gl_3tchmajority? All cars will only be electric , in my country it is already banned to use gasoline or hybrid cars, only 100% electric cars are allowed. So we have electric cars, trucks, busses etc.....
When he passes the horse drawn carriage, it looks like it was done intentionally to showcase the differences in technology, but it's important to remember both "vehicles" are solar powered.
The horse has a bigger battery though. It can go on all night.
Everything on earth is solar powered. Even uranium was made in a star.
@@Klipik12 ha ha.. true! we the life as it exists today - is solar powered in some stage of its existance!
@@Klipik12 That is true, but a solar panel and a horse are a lot further up the chain than the elements formed in our star.
@@JamshadAhmad and a lot of raw horsepower.
Great Job! I thought of doing something like that before. I had an RV covered in solar panels and that was pretty cool literally because I could run refrigerated air most of the time. It would have been able to run a swamp cooler easily nonstop.
My favorite thing about Drew’s filmmaking style is that every single shot always has at least a touch of motion to it. Makes the whole project breathe - smart stuff
These shots have literally the vibe of post-apocalyptic tv series where main hero travels on his solar mobile and collects abandoned things on the road, then takes rest at night.
They made the post apocalypse eco friendly 😭
"Lets clean this up with angle grinder, that's what it is for anyway" is brilliant line.
Grinder and paint make me the welder I ain't!
I can see 18 wheelers have this kind of device on top of the truck and it help keep the truck going without having to stop. Very Cool
Finally!!! Someone tried it!!! I have been mulling this over for ages. Keep going! Think bigger!!! Length of a semi that folds up to car size when stationary
That would be cool. If the video gets enough attention I will push this idea into something bigger
A million views in 24 hours is good right😊😊😊 lets gooooo@@DrewBuildsStuff
@@DrewBuildsStuff How much is "enough attention"? This video has been out for 2 days and already has well over 1.1 million views.
Check out the World Solar Challenge that happens in Australia every year. They do 3000km races in pure solar vehicles.
check out solar challenge (australia) - been going on for years... similar idea to this guy but usually far better equipment thanks to lots of sponsorship in the competition (not knocking this guy, he did well for a 1 man home build).
Give the trailer bed the ability to tilt left to right, possibly in a motorized fashion, controllable from the driver seat . You could further maximize available light as you change direction in relation to the sun. Love the project !! Keep Going !!
My thinking exactly. you can actually do left/right and up/down with a total of 2 linear actuators and a ball joint. Hook that up to a cluster of light sensors and a processor that automatically adusts the angle based on that data and you could be looking at easily a 30% increase in efficiency in morning and afternoon.
I love your intent, and so admire using your resources to pursue this cool project. I think you might be missing an opportunity with the solar panels, however. Maxeon 7 has a 445W panel, as an example. Your nine panels totaled 1575W and even without the trailer weigh almost 90 kg including the wood frames. Only four of the Maxeons would be 1780W for a 13% increase in charge capacity, weigh less than 84 kg, and if you made a "roof" on your car with one of the panels it would not only shield you from the heat, you wouldn't even need the entire trailer system. So MUCH less weight, and less drag, which means much more power efficiency. Just a thought!
Yep there is a solar bike race in France and the self build designs there are converging on a single, tilting roof over the length of the vehicle.
Fun project! Increase the aero (even just by mounting the batteries in front of one another longwise), decrease weight, decrease rolling resistance with lighter high pressure slick tires, like 20x1.75 bmx slicks. What if the trailer was built with PVC tubes and glue? It would be interesting if you could tip the pannels on the trailer to the left or right to pick up more setting sun if it was to your side.
SO much room for massive improvement. Lighter frame. Better panels. Low resistance tyres.
Money money money. It's a prototype.
@@ex-engineer6657 i think the 2 and a half million views of the last video more than could have paid for an aluminum frame and street tires
He won't use it anyway. 🤗
how many solar cars have you built?
Agree if money isn’t an issue. Although switching out to lower resistance wheels and tires wouldn’t be too much money comparatively speaking. I wonder what the weight difference between aluminum frame and solid panels would be?
Bridgestone solar challenge is always great to watch to get inspired.
If you switched to rigid bifacial solar panels you could reduce the amount of panels you need. And if you built everything out of aluminum to reduce the weight.
Love the build.
@Brigestone
Bridgestone World Solar Challenge-the world's premier solar car event relying on solar energy as its power source to travel 3,000 km across the Australian continent over the course of approximately 5 days.
APTERA
@@rchender ??
@@rodh2168 Aptera!
@@rodh2168 vaporware
@@rodh2168when someone writes something you don't understand/know, look it up.
I love this build. On the next version I would recommend improving aerodynamics, increasing battery capacity, and perhaps making the trailer foldable.
few tips to reduce friction:
try using skinny slick tires pumped up to maximum capacity
check your wheel alignment
this should give significant mileage boost considering the long distance.
Also the flexible panels are less efficient than solid from what I've heard. You could use an aluminium frame for the trailer and use the rigidity from solid panels as part of the structure so maybe look into that factor as well.
Great vid, I've always dreamed about doing this kind of build.
Can’t wait for this build man hope your shoulder is doing better!
now it's your turn to make one of those solar cars get to work man😂😂
Not sure it’s getting better or I’m just getting use to it
i love that shot of you passing the horse drawn carriage😂the future is now
As a CZcams university graduate and bla bla bla XD... This unironically gives me optimism, maybe in a few years we might see similar vehicles replacing a small but appreciateable percentage of cars and that would be really good, utopia is unreachable, but we can inch closer with creativity and creativity only... Keep it up man, you're great
Stumbled on this by chance but watched in admiration!
Well done & fair play to you sir, fair play!👍👏👏👏♥️
Some times building something, you build and build. Once you built it, it doesn’t necessarily need any other building. But you build anyway, and then what you built is great but needs a bit more building. Hope the building never stops 👍
What a beautifully built machine and masterfully produced video! That shot of the horse drawn carriage, passing the solar bike.
A horse powered by grass, powered by the sun and a bike and trailer doing the same.
Very nice build. Here's a what if. You shape the panels to look more like an Airplane's wing. The solar panels would collect more sunlight at different angles. If you added a flat underside you might get some lift.
Having watched the World Solar Challenge as a kid in the 80s and 90s, when these things cost upwards of a million dollars to build, it's simply mindblowing to see the price of all the components having plummeted to this point. What's your budget so far?
Solar is SO cheap now, that you can use steel framing and fat tires, instead of lighter and more efficient components, and just make up for it with MORE CHEAP PANELS. That's just awesome.
I used to look forward to reading about the race and all the vehicles in that challenge. I strictly remember one called the solar racer that smashed the record and beat everyone else by over two days. The thing was shaped like a rain drop. Super aerodynamic
Fun times
they only cost millions if you try to calculate the hours of labor. most of the materials are donated by defense contractors. ask how i know.
I live down in Norfolk county not too far from this guy. I really hope I run into him sometime.
I cant wait for the next build video for this project. There's been awesome comments and I cant imagine all the ways he's going to improve this rig.
Please don't run into him, that would be awful to be hit while driving that thing. 😣
Sorry, I saw an opportunity for a dad joke and had to take it. 😂
Awesome that you made this with standard hardware. Unlike the Australian Solar car event, your machine doesn’t cost millions. Maybe version three you make the buggy longer, three more panels, more aerodynamic, shaded driver, lighter chasis. Same power system, same tyres, better flexible frame design for absorbing the bumps, and clear windscreen for rider comfort.
He should get a sponsor.
HEY! You can add short glass walls on the sides of the panels that are line Fresnel lenses to take sideways light and angle it down towards the panel in lowlight dawn/dusk conditions.
The Armish person riding the horse cart was poetic as you came to frame
Been binge watching your videos and i have to say I love them you have done a very good job and I love the long form content. Now you just gotta make it fast :)
Your sense of humor is great and quite rare.
I love it, its magnific!!!
My outsider opinions for upgrades: brakes on the trailer, lighter trailer frame, mudguards in all wheels, better lights in front and back, storage capacity in the trailer.
Also a purchase link would be nice xD
I hope you make more videos about it, a camping trip or something ♥
Truly appreciate the work you put into your videos Drew. Production value is amazing!
Thank you, appreciate the support for the channel! Thanks for watching 😊
MAGNIFICENT! This video will help people understand SO much about solar. My only suggestion would be adding circuitry for regenerative braking using the motor.
Favorite moment is at 18:46 with the solar electric rig going the complete opposite direction as the Amish buggy while the roadhouse guitar is playing 😅 love it.
The moment with the buggy was poetic.
This project gives me serious The Martian vibes, where Matt Damon had to get creative with limited resources to survive. You're doing something similar but with renewable energy-pushing the limits to make infinite range a reality. It's impressive to see how you're using solar power in such an innovative way. Can't wait to see where this goes next!
Impressive build indeed. Thought of this idea years ago, but other things take priority at the moment. Here are a few upgrade ideas to consider:
1. Most people will not drive this range without purpose, so if this were to be optimized to fit even a tiny electric car, a few flexible solar panels would be interesting to test.
2. Consider adding an air flow piping tube on the sides and use it as a calibrated wind tunnel to propel motors to form a high wind flow wind generator onto 2 motors. This will not produce much drag, if any, while supplementing the charging current while little/no sun is available. 3. The weight can be reduced, thus increasing range if you choose different building materials, like aluminum frame and using a lithium battery set rather than AGM/Lead batteries.
Thanks again and great job!
Drew, thanks for posting this. I work for an automotive company as a trainer. This gives me a link to send someone over to watch whenever they incessantly ask why our brand doesn't just run our electric van on solar panels.
Haha perfect! Thanks for watching!!
i just remember that for a rough estimate the sun can only supply 1000 watts/ square meter of the earth. the panels that are available to us are about 20% efficient at converting light to electricity. even a little tesla uses ~10kw to drive on flat ground @70mph, so you would need ~50 square meters of panels operating at peak output just to sustain a small car at highway speed on flat ground.
@@agentjwa 1300+ Watts/sq meter is global average for solar iridescence. Not what you actually get in a day where you live.
@@darthsirrius we're talking about explaining to the average person why putting solar panels on your van doesn't generate enough electricity to drive. If they don't understand that they are not going to understand the difference between instantaneous and power use over time. Also doing simple math on 1 is a lot easier than doing math on 1.3
i build this concept 3 years ago ,go to youtube Brunson solar power car
I would 100% recommend putting some tall flags or something on the trailer. Its flat profile might make it hard to see to inattentive drivers.
Good thinking but... If today's drivers can literally run into big trucks with flashing lights and oversized flags and banners, it honestly won't make much difference... ;)
Mad Max has nothing on you Drew! The road warrior is back in the saddle again!!! Good job… oh and almost forgot, “KEEP ON TRUCK’N IN THE FREE WORLD! 🌍 🎶
For sure this beats the mad max vehicles. The premise of mad max movies is so ridiculous. In a post apocalyptic scenario, fossil fuel production and distribution would be among the first systems to fail, and storages would run out or be destroyed quickly. Then all combustion engines are useless, unless you can power them with vegetable oil or alcohol. Which requires it's own production and distribution to be viable. Not to mention all the roads blocked by abandoned cars. The "real" mad max would be riding a bicycle, and eventually just walking. I haven't seen/played either franchise, but I get the impression "The Last of Us" gets it. Lots of walking.
😂 LMFO… to true! They really need to release the hounds and come up with a more supportive way to end fossil fuel consumption for transportation. If only there was more scientific support provided to devise a way to implement the use of magnetic sound propulsion instead… hahaha! Sky is the limit!!! 🛸
Theoretically you could make a trailer for a kayak or small boat with this on top. Obviously adding weight/reducing range - but as a hybrid system it could make for a fun alternative to ORVs for outdoor recreation.