The solar powered Prius
By Ryan Block 
posted August 17th 2005 11:15AM
posted August 17th 2005 11:15AM
As if a rollover while driving wasn't devastating enough—let alone the bird poop up top and random kung fu masters
driving motorcycles over your car—now you've got to worry about keeping the solar panels on the roof of your car clean
too? Still, we've to to take our hats off to Steve Lapp's solar-modded Prius, which runs now 10% more efficiently than
it did before on mere regenerative juice.
[Via Treehugger]
I teach in the Philadelphia School District, and make a relatively good living out of it. Obviously, it's nothing like JOHN makes, but I do just fine. Did you go to a school at one point, John. Yes? Ok. You wouldn't be where you are if not for the hard work of your "poor" teachers. In fact, your status is dependent on millions of "poor" Americans supporting you. Einstein said , "A hundred times a day I remind myself that my inner and outer lives are are based on the labors of other people." Show a little love, you ingrate.
Shiny!
This hack has potential. It has a similar effect as a battery heavy plug-in hybrid, but without so many batteries. It could provide power for gadgets if one is camping (assuming a Prius can take poor roads, if not the Ford Escape could)
It can be improved by using thinfilm solar panels applied directly to the roof, to reduce weight and drag. As they are (or will be) cheap, they should be applyable and removable by a mechanic...in case some fool throws a brick at your car.
Other Prius/hybrid hacks should be to replace the electric motor with Motor-in-wheel type of motors to save space for more batteries/increase trunk space/improve performance.
Official advancements of the Prius should include the above, as well as more headroom for rear passengers, I am 5'9" and my head almost touches the ceiling when in one of these. Bad times. Improved rear viewing for the driver too.
#104
I may be ignorant but at least I didn't start a war under false pretenses (much like the Gulf of Tonkin) or do you still believe in the White House lies.
Since you work for a company that bombs terrorists, why aren't your bombs striking the real terrorists. The Iraqis didn't spread the hatred that resulted in the bombings in London, Madrid, Bali and Turkey.
My my my. Look at all the people who think they know everything about the universe.
It's a car people, not the biggest question of ethics and machoism of the century.
P.S. Nobody cares about your car. It does not make you any more manly or attractive. It's a quick-depreciating asset (unless it's a scrapheap hotrod built up from a metal frame or a oldschool pristine vehicle).
What a sad little man Jonathan has shown himself to be! So happy to talk about what he owns, but so very poor in the riches of wisdom and humility - so eager to show us all how far he has come.
Maybe you'll have some epiphany and renounce it all. I mean, you can't take it with you when you go, right guy?
On to more earthly matters, visiting your blackplanet.com page reveals you are truly a dork!
I'll look for you in NYC, Graceful Cobra, I'm sure you'll be the one in the idling Escalade watching anim?n your flatscreens... Maybe down by Canal street I'm guessing?
See you around buddy, keep your grind on, you gonna need it to fuel and repair that thing...
great mod on that little prius, i admire the work.
gasoline prices are really outrageous, since we robbed iraq for oils this long, how our gas prices went up and not down, is beyond my understanding.
we all living on this planet, nature resources will run out with our society's pace, electricity powered automobile is definitely a good alternative, i truly hope to see major transportation revolution in next couple decades, so we won't consume ourselves like today.
PS. you guys elected this dumbass to the office, so you deserve all that consequences, please stop whining !
hafa: In the preceding paragraph you make the statement ..."we're all living on the same planet...", and then go on to say "...you guys elected this dumbass to the office, so you deserve all that consequences, please stop whining !"
You won't escape the consequences, whether you deserve it or not. Just like the majority of Americans (I'm Canadian BTW). That's the point people like you miss. You see, in case you hadn't heard, Bush won the last two elections on technicalities and jury-rigging. The majority didn't choose Bush in either vote. America is being hijacked right now by opportunistic, powergrabbing neoconservatives. They neither care how they do it nor what consequences result from their efforts, they only want control of Western society (and, by extension, the world) by whatever means may be neccessary.
Wow.
Jonathon N... you're a frigging tool.
I work in Manhattan. I'm 24, and have a VERY nice home. Two of my friends live in this house and have just started their consulting business, which I am paying for. I own a Dodge Ram, 2 Kawi Ninja's, and a Yamaha FZ6. I've recently sold both of my E300's. Does that mean I like paying $2.50/gallon? No. How do you think I have what I have?
PS: I'm a libertarian. A true fiscal conservative, exactly what the GOP claims to be but is nowhere near being. And I do complain about the fools in office who drive Escalades and talk about how we need to be more fuel efficent.
You aren't special, you think you are, but you're not.
Now, to keep this on point with the article.... wheres the biodiesel at? Renewable energy source that gets you the power of gas... hmmm... wonder what that could be? Considering modern day TDI/CDI/HDI's get the same fuel efficiency as hybrids... well, I'd say a diesel would be a much better choice than the Prius. Also because that bad boy is fugly.
Must of been a slow day at Lockheed Martin.
For anyone who's interested, I put together a spreadsheet which shows things like payback period, gasoline saved, etc.
http://www.cogo.com/ab/solar_prius.xls
Variables are in yellow.
Preset values for the variables come from the following sources:
* location, efficiency, and array size come from Mr. Lapp - the person who modded the car
* insolation data comes from NASA's EOSWEB server
* miles/kWh comes from a Calcar advocate's estimate
* MPG for a 2001 Prius - from the EPA
* miles/yr is a standard 15,000 miles
* gas price is the US national average for regular unleaded as of today
* cost of a m^2 panel is an estimate of consumer retail price based on a sampling of a few retailers etc
The second worksheet shows fuel savings between a base MPG and a target MPG, given the vehicle miles traveled. You can use that number to compare with the fuel savings of this "Solar Prius".
John,
I do not approve of people like you.
It is not right to waste so much fuel when transporting your lard ass to walmart.
Don't tell me you won't fit in a prius because i guaranteed you've never tried.
Don't tell me you're successful/smart, because it's quite evident that you're not.
Don't tell me the prius is for poor people because we all know who drives priuses in real life.
Don't tell me you think 20mpg highway is impressive because it's not.
Don't tell me you think gm's implementation of vvt is great, because the shittiest hyundais have had that for decades.
Don't tell me the escalade is a safe vehicle, because it most certainly isn't, and definitely not more than a prius.
And finally, tell me you don't mind wasting very limited resources and at the same time polluting the environment because that just makes me sad to people with such a mindset. It makes life worse for everyone when this happens. Did you know that the difference between now and an ice age is only 2-4 degrees fahrenheit?
The bike riders of china have the right idea. Don't criticize them. Maybe you should try it out sometime and perhaps lose some weight.
jonathan, somehow i think you're just as bad as the terrorists. i hope you realize someday....
Cmon guys, give him a break. It's not Jonny boy's fault that he's narrow-minded such that he can't see the point of energy & fuel innovation for what it is - planetary and environmental conservation.
6'7 Jon with his special job developing secret military weapons and his superior income (capable of supporting expensive fuel!) is obviously overcompensating for something.
Jon, I for one applaud you on the size of your e-penis. You would be a worthy challenger to any teen AOLer.
I don't understand... Why you people discuss about chinese cars?
For your information, both Ford and GM build 100% electric vehicles (EVs).
I test drove the Prius and thought it was really nice. Very quiet and seemed to have pretty good power.
Johnathon the Republican,
You a a perfect example of a so-called conservative republican.
Why don't you quit wasting Lockheed's resources by trolling on this topic and get your lazy ass to work blowing up some terrorists. You can start with your own resource wasting self because, you are the real terrorist.
People who insist on driving utility vehicles (sports or otherwise) when they don't need to miss the point altogether. Trucks and other utility vehicles were made for those instances where your lifestyle or your environment REQUIRES that much horsepower and capacity (i.e. almost anyone in Alaska or upstate New York, plumbers, carpenters, furniture delivery men, etc), not for those middle to upperclass business people who make a 15 minute commute by themselves every morning to their cubicle or office.
It is the western mentality that bigger is better and that the more stated your supposed wealth is the more people will admire you (coming from that natural human desire to be admired). But with more of the average population starting to realize just how WASTEFUL these kinds of people are, the flautuantly wealthy are just seen more and more as lazy and the perfect example of what NOT to be in life (that is becoming their only remaining value though).
I am not at or below the so-called poverty line, and I've worked hard and been very lucky to have the job that I have. That said, I will NOT disrespect the long road I took to get here by suddenly turning around and buying a flashy and impractical vehicle just to assuage my ego.
People who use utility vehicles as their personal vehicles when their is no cause except their own pride for it are forgetting the most important fact in all this:
Rich or poor, when there is no more fuel for your car, we ALL will walk.
you all are funny, make great points, etc., Prius and other cars that are hybrid, make a great launch for other models of hybrid cars. Its not going to look like a turtle car for long. I do see them in corporating these panels in the body of the car, i.e a moon sun roof, that is totally solar energy..
To comment on those that can afford the gas hike, can you afford it when it no longer is available? You'll be converting what you have to what you didn't want, but now need, spending more in the future, because you failed to think in the long run scenario. Meanwhile, i'll save my money,bypass prius, because it still uses gas and wait for alternative cars...i.e. all solar electric cars, hydrogen cars, or water fueled..meanwhile, ill use my two feet/ trainto get to work, gas free
Who cares how much gas is. I just bought a H2 and I commute 150 miles a day, and my other car is an old gross Polluter and on weekends I drive that around your neighborhood. Have a gas filled day..
dbrooks001@hotmail.com
Who cares how much gas is. I just bought a H2 and I commute 150 miles a day, and my other car is an old gross Polluter and on weekends I drive that around your neighborhood. Have a gas filled day..
dbrooks001@hotmail.com
Ok, i'm sick of the earlier comments. Currently sitting on my driveway is a Toyota Prius, which gets 50 mpg, and a Toyota Tacoma truck, which gets about 17.5 mpg. (which compared to the hummer h2's 9.5 mpg is amazing and a product of great design) I love this country, and for the part about "american jobs" my truck was built in the USA by Californian's, but yes the prius was built in japan. but the reality is... cars like this put pressure on the american carmakers to perform. the only thing that is keeping ford and gm alive are the SUV/Truck market so they need to find a new market fast or they will die. Toyota is winning beacuse they are listening to americans. Toyota took ford title as the 2nd largest carmaker in the world and US on '04 and tht will have GM's number 1 seat by '07 if they dont do something big now.
My God! All the vitriol. The truth is that most American car nuts would not recognize a piece of good engineering if flew past them at 140 mph on the highway thru downtown Indianapolis (actually happened to me once).
The Prius is as revolutionary a road vehicle as the Model T, and Mini were. Any professional engineer who has studied automotive history (and does not work for a car company or supplier) will tell you that. GM could have easily done the Prius. The first Hybrid I ever saw was sponsored by GM, it could smoked tires like a dragster (with a 2 cylinder motorcyle engine prime-mover), and that was in 1978! Toyota just kept at it. It is GM's fault and GM's fault alone that they did not. And its the American way that GM loose buisness.
Think about what GM did to the Hummer! They took out all that great off-road independant suspension high-ground clearance tehnology, and turned it into a pickup truck with a fancy body!!!!! "EXTERIOR DESIGNERS" as Bucknister Fuller would say!
When the key technologies of NiMH batteries (American Invention), cheap computers (American Invention), advanced power transistors (American Invention) and Brushless permanent magnet-rotor motors (American Invention)happened, Toyota (Japanese Company) was first, and they did it with synergy (another Buckminster Fuller word) by getting the functions of the starter, alternator, transmission (CVT) and hybrid drive motor into two motors (which work backwards as generators too) and a single gear set from the traditional automatic transmission! And it only needs a 1.5 liter engine to match 2.0 liter acceleration! This is what makes the Prius revolutionary versus just another tacked-on electric motor/generator.
Just because a car is tuned for a different mission does not make it a bad car. The original Mini, and the 2005 VW Jetta are both built to the Mini concept, but they are hardly the same car! Yet without the Mini, the Jetta (and 2/3's of the cars on the roads today) would not be. Eventually, there will be Prius like cars for all personal automotive uses. I have no doubt the next time I am driving through Indianapolis at midnite and get passed at 140 MPH, it will be by a car using a Hybrid Synergy Drive.
The last Japanese automotive revolution was led by an American, and they give a prize in his name - The "Demming" Prize. I think Toyota has clearly started a new automotive revolution. And it would not suprise me that they name the prize for Prius style inovation after another American - "Buckminster Fuller" !
..please folks GM is waaaaay head of this...
http://www.gmeurope.com/marathon/index.htm
your comments that Japanese cars assembled in the USA are american are dead wrong. They are not nor will they ever be. American companies, Ford and GM helped us beat imperial japan, the country that butchered american and allied servicemen. So, bite me, they are foreign. All of your little precious japanese hybrids are made in japan. As far as the hybrid race goes, do you really think the race is over? Or has it just started? Toyota's hybrid drive is good but it is not as good as the GM paradiGM drive, simple as that. GM has three partners, toyota 1 and Nissan is really not behind it....too expensive. The GM paradigm drive is light years ahead of the competition, you wait, you will see a 100 MPG GM vehicle for sale in the next few years.
anyone who drives escalades or suburbans are assholes. no one needs that much space or 14 seats and i especially love single people with no kids who purchase those monsterous vehicles that are hideous, hard to park, and the worst piece of garbage architecture and engineering i have seen since the 1980's. this isnt just an issue about global warming or mpg but the fact that many people buy suv's just to be obnoxious or because they like the high up feeling, but the truth is they have high roll over rates, wasted space, and no style. there isnt really one suv that you would look at and say wow that looks expensive and nice. and hummers are the most hideous of them all. the reason why many people wont support american auto companies is because they will not change, and it has taken them until 2005 when ford and gm rang up billions in losses to finally figure out that their old strategies of relying on SUV's and fuel inefficient vehicles wont work now or in the future ever again. the world is changing. soon within the next 10-12 years we wont really be using gasoline in our vehicles anymore. i would also like to say that SUVs are way too big, dont fit in parking spaces and are eye sores, but im not going to personally attack anyone because that wont solve anything as you can see by the constant bickering on this site.