Improved Solatec Photovoltaic Kit (Solar Panels)

Well here is some basic math on averages...

Say you drive 12,000 miles per year @ 50mpg. You will burn 240 gallons of gas @ 3.5. Total Amount is $840.

Now that same 12,000 miles per year @ 52mpg. You will burn 230.769 gallons of gas @ 3.5. Total is $807.69.

Total Savings = 32.30 (1 Tank of gas a year)

It will take 62 years to recoup.
Isn't it about saving the environment!!!!


I have a feeling that the trained tech is due to the wiring into the electrical.

 

sounds about right to me. this is more of a "because we can" sort of thing, than a real benefit. even if you said its worth every penny to achieve 2 extra mpg, what about the energy and waste that went into producing and installing them?

its all about tradeoffs and opportunity costs. if i blow 2 grand to save $30 a year at an environmental cost of half a year of gas in an SUV, im probably doing more damage than good

 

4% mileage improvement from only 24 watts of PV cells?
huh?
that doesn't make sense to me.

 

24 watts isn't that much relative to the size of the battery.

From here -> Toyota Prius Hybrid Car Technical Information
It says the battery has a capacity of 6.5 Ah at 201.6 volts = 6.5*201.6 = 1310.4 watts of total capacity.

So with 24 watts of PV cells it would take over 2 days to charge the battery assuming 24 hours a day of sunlight.

 

For 2mpg inflate the tires and block the grill. Total cost is under $10.

 

I'm sorta missing the point.

30 watts of PV to keep the 12vdc battery charged. Some where on this site is a calc about the mpg with the headlights on vs off, and the difference is so small to be not calculable.

30 watts into the hv battery (even if you were to do it) would be just about enough to maintain float charge, given the charge efficiencies. $3000 for that? I don't think so. I think you would be hard pressed to get any better fuel mileage even so.

Solar panels run ~$5 per watt, flexible ones (which don't have a very good track record for a variety of reasons) perhaps twice that, say $10 per watt. 30 watts would be ~$300.

As I said, I'm sorta missing the point,

Icarus

 

As soon as the ad copy says "24 Watts of Charge current" - you know we're in trouble. When did current start getting measured in watts?

There is simply no hope of increasing gas mileage in any measurable way with a device like this.

It does strike me as curious that this new updated version provides lower wattage AND lower gas mileage gains than did V1. Great progression!

 

There is no way that this mod will give 2mpg. The payback is probobly more like 200 years.

A car is a bad place for a solar panel. Put the $2000 into solar hot water and the payback is less then 10 years.

 

I could see a benefit if it powered an air circulation system, so you wouldn't need the A/C on full blast when you get in (or a heater for winter). As is, you should be able to recharge your electronics (iPod, GPS, cell phone, whatever) without turning on your car. But that's not $2000 worth to me. (I have a hand-cranked flashlight that can also recharge my cell phone, it only cost me $20).

I'm sure the factory-trained technicians are there because you need to attach cables to the 12V battery - can't trust any old yahoo to do it themselves, first off you know probably 10% of the people won't get the positive and negative terminals right.

But it's got a cool gee-whiz factor. Hopefully in a year or two there will be cheap knock-offs for the DIYer. I wonder how much it disturbs the aerodynamics.

 

Who knew that you could make snake oil out of Silicon?

 

1/5th of the year? I'd say at least 1/3rd of the year. When I lived in Texas was the only time I got cabin fever. Staying in an air-conditioned apartment or an air-conditioned car or an air-conditioned office got a bit old after 4 months of 90+ temps. Afraid to put on my seatbelt because I might burn my hand if I wasn't careful. Now I'm back north where we have four seasons and you can enjoy outdoor activities in all four.

 

If the MPG improvement is 2MPG then the payoff for me is 371,000 ADDITIONAL miles.
I get 42 MPG now and calculated using $4 a gallon for gas.

 

Think of all the onlookers that will be inspired by your solar panels. What about all the kids that look at their parents and say "That's Cool !" It will be planting seeds and reminding people about solar technology. Maybe someone will be reminded and inspired about putting solar panels on their house.

 

We used a solar panel to top off the coach batteries on our fifth wheel some 10 years ago. I've lost all the technical data, but I have to assume panel technlogy has improved since then. Can anyone point me to information about more efficient panels that might be placed on a Prius and actually support charging the NimH? My (probably fantasy) goal is to drive a car with minimal fuel cost, and I figure sunlight is about as cheap that there is.

 

Humff. So much BS, so little time! How about this, for $50 I'll have some stick-on solar panel look alike labels you can put on your car roof. Guaranteed to look cool. Will improve your perceived mileage. Will not measurably increase vehicle weight nor require technical assistance to apply. Will protect the vehicle roof paint from solar damage.