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710 km of autonomy for the solar and electric sedan!

This Dutch start-up called Lightyear has developed an electric and solar sedan capable of 710 km of autonomy!

What if you never charge your electric car? This is what the Lightyear One promises, a electric and solar sedan developed by the start-up of the same name in the Netherlands. The idea is simple: a 60 kWh battery (barely larger than that of a Renault Zoe), a very efficient design, and solar panels on the roof. After four years of development, Lightyear led the first tests of his sedan on the track, with good news on arrival: 710 km of autonomy in one charge!

Efficiency at the heart of the concept

The figure is impressive when we know that the Renault Zoe, with its 52 kWh battery, is officially capable of 395 km of autonomy according to the WLTP cycle. It is more than 300 km less than for the Lightyear One, which in addition is a large sedan ! So obviously, under this large number are hidden a few small lines. The most important is that these 710 km were covered at speed stabilized at 85 km / h, which is ideal for the efficiency of electric motors. We are therefore far from WLTP certification.

Nevertheless, the electricity consumption figure is impressive: 8.5 kWh/100 km, against about 15 kWh / 100 km for a Zoe according to Labo Auto Plus measurements

72 km per day thanks to solar panels

In contrast, Lightyear is getting closer to its initial promise of practically no never have to recharge your electric car. Thanks to the photovoltaic panels placed on the body, the Lightyear One can recharge around 72 km of autonomy in one day if the weather is good.

In practice, the majority of home-work trips could therefore be made without going through a terminal, or without having to have a private car park with a charging point. Convenient for those who live in the city, therefore. It remains to be seen how this figure of 72 km gained in one day evolves when the sky is overcast, in winter, and the car is parked in the shade.

Only 946 copies of the Lightyear One will be sold in 2022. And if the start-up does not announce a price, it has previously forecast a price around 149 000 € during the presentation of the car in 2019. But the company then aims to touch a plus general public from 2023.

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