Students of the Eindhoven University of Technology have created the world's first solar-powered family car, 'Stella.'
This four-seater compact vehicle is long but has a low roof. It has efficient solar panels installed on its roof. The car, also referred to as 'energy positive' vehicle, claims to produce more power than what an average car uses. The excess power can be diverted to the power grid.
The car is made of lightweight materials like carbon and aluminium, and features a trunk to store luggage, an LED strip, a button less, touchscreen dashboard and intuitive steering wheel that expands or contracts when you are driving too fast or too slowly.
The car's capacity of travelling up to 600 kilometers will be tested in Australia's World Solar Challenge, a 3,000 kilometer race from Darwin to Adelaide slated to be held from October 6 to 13,. The Solar Team Eindhoven (STE) team, who have worked on the car for over a year, will be competing in the Challenge for the first time.
Stella will be racing under the new Cruiser Class category. Unlike the other categories, where speed is the main criteria, the Cruiser Class is based on comfort and usability.
"The design of the car of the future has to meet the needs of modern consumers. The car must be capable of transporting a family from the Netherlands to France in one day, it needs to be suitable for the daily commute to work, and it needs to achieve all this in comfort. Since Solar Team Eindhoven wants to contribute to the development of a car of the future, the design demands more than just a focus on speed. Comfort, ease of use, and feasibility are all key terms," said Solar Team Eindhoven.
