6 ms·
Another thing this would be great for is pre-cooling or heating the car before you drive it. At a CoP of 3 which is conservative for modern AC heat pumps, the 8
by tjmc 7y ago
Another thing this would be great for is pre-cooling or heating the car before you drive it. At a CoP of 3 which is conservative for modern AC heat pumps, the 860W of solar gives you over 2.5kW of cooling.
Even if it just tempered the air whilst parked with fan ventilation through the cabin, it would massively lower the cabin temp which can reach over 90C in sunny locations.
- fnord77 7y agoThe prius already has this with the solar panel sunroof option
- ianai 7y agoI’d love to see panels on car parking roofs - like you see at apartments or over some parking spots. Just the shade cuts a lot of heat, too.
- theshrike79 7y agoThis has been an option for at least a decade. (My 2008 Prius has this, for example) The first version was just a panel that ran a fan, which ran if the inside temp > outside temp. The next generation had an actual separate battery for the solar panel, which engaged the car's AC when needed.