Solar Electric Powered Car Kit a Two Weekend Job

[ April 11th, 2008 @ 8:57 pm ] ... [ C. S. Magor ] ... [ 3,445 views]

Solar Electric Powered Car Kit a Two Weekend Job

SUNN Neighborhood Electric Vehicle
If you have a bit of time off coming up and are looking for a worthy project, how about building your own solar powered car? The SUNN Solar Electric Car Kit can be pieced together over the space of about 4 or 5 days. The kit will give you everything that you need except the batteries and solar panels which can be locally sourced to save you a bundle on shipping. Solar panels and batteries are heavy and thus expensive to ship.

The top speed of the SUNN is a very sober 25mph, which is fast enough in some locales. If you are using it sans solar panels and just charging it from an outlet, you should be able to manage 20 miles. That range is extended quite significantly if you go solar. A panel on the hood will give you an additional 3 miles on a sunny day and one on the roof will give you 14 miles. Add that all together and you have a 37-mile range which should get most people to and from work.

Great, but is it legal? Actually it is, in the United States at least. It has all of the necessary equipment which includes: windshield wiper, disc brakes, seat belts, turn signals and lights. Due to its low speed, use is restricted to roads with a speed limit of less than 35MPH; no highways. To take care of registration, the manufacturer supplies you with the Manufacturers Certificates of Origin for all of the major components. This is necessary if you want to register the SUNN as a Specially Constructed Vehicle.

While the look is something out of the early 30s, it is not without its appeal. It has a sort of retro Model T thing going on. It can be put together in a range of configurations, the pickup truck version looks like a lot of fun. Components that the kit comes with are the following:

Chassis, welded square tubing
Front suspension with two shocks.
Rack and pinion steering with steering wheel
Rear suspension with two shocks.
Four wheels, 26″ diameter Kevlar belt tires.
Drive system- 48 DC motor and control with regenitive braking and reverse.
Inner frame, welded
Door assembly with latch and handle.
Frame welded square tubing
Body parts, floor, pans and outside panels made of fiberglass reinforced plastic.
Floor, seats and dash board.
Hydraulic disc brakes on all four wheels.
Speed control with pedal, PWM control, relays and all cables.
Headlights, taillights, turn signals, switches and wiring harnesses.
Solar charge controller with ammeter.Solar panel(s) not included.
Built in 110 Volt charger.
Safety glass windshield and polycarbonate side and rear windows.
Windshield wiper, seat belts, review mirrors, horn and parking brake.
Detailed assembly manual
Wiring diagrams
Certificates of Origin for all major components

Beyond that you can customize to your heart’s content. I would pick one of these up in a heartbeat if they were available in Japan.

Price: $4,500

Source: SUNN Neighborhood Electric Vehicle via Inventor Spot

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