**Sono Motors' Solar-Powered Scion: A Game-Changing Electric Vehicle**

The Sono Motors' solar-powered Scion is one of the first electric vehicles to harness the power of the sun to extend its range. This innovative car has been making waves in the automotive industry, and it's clear why - it's a revolutionary concept that could change the way we think about transportation.

**Solar Power: The Unsung Hero**

Unlike Tesla's solar-roofed models, which only provide a small amount of energy, the Scion's solar panels are integral to its design. This means that every part of the car is equipped with solar panels, from the roof to the hood and lateral panels. The polymer used under the panels allows for flexibility and durability, making it perfect for a production vehicle. Additionally, the solar panels are designed to withstand scratches and dents, ensuring they remain intact over time.

**Hybrid Solar Grid: A New Approach**

The Scion's solar panels don't just provide energy for the car; they also create a sort of solar grid hybrid system. This means that the Scion can generate its own electricity from the sun, reducing its reliance on traditional charging methods. The fully charged battery packs store 54 kilowatt-hours of lithium iron phosphate batteries, which are known for their excellent charge cycles and discharge capabilities. This makes them ideal for electric vehicles.

**Range and Blended Solar Driving**

The Scion's fully charged range is estimated to be around 190 miles, but this can be extended by blending solar driving with traditional EV mode. The car's owners can expect to get around 5,400 miles of solar driving per year in sunny areas like Northern California, which translates to approximately 70-150 miles per week or 10-20 miles per day.

**Variable Solar Range: A Reality Check**

While the Scion's solar range is impressive, it's essential to note that this value can vary greatly depending on factors such as time of year, weather conditions, and parking location. Cloudy days, for instance, will significantly reduce the car's solar efficiency, while driving in direct sunlight with a clear view can maximize its potential.

**Charging: Flexibility at Its Best**

The Scion's battery can be charged via standard EV charging methods or DC fast charging, allowing owners to recharge the battery in half an hour or several hours through level 2 charging. This flexibility makes it easier for users to adjust their charging habits based on their daily needs.

**Car Share and Home Battery Backup: Innovative Features**

The Scion's connectivity features allow users to share their car with others, creating a built-in platform for car-sharing services. Additionally, the front port can be used to send power out to external devices, such as homes or workspaces, allowing owners to generate electricity while parked.

**Pricing and Production: A Complex Situation**

The Scion is expected to be priced at $25,000 U.S., not including federal tax credits. While this may seem steep, it's essential to consider that the production costs are initially handled by Valmet in Finland, a Finnish company with expertise in automotive manufacturing.

**Conclusion: The Future of Electric Vehicles**

The Sono Motors' solar-powered Scion represents a significant step forward in the electric vehicle industry. Its innovative design and hybrid solar grid system make it an attractive option for those seeking a greener way to get around. As the automotive industry continues to evolve, we can expect more vehicles like the Scion to hit the market, changing the way we think about transportation and reducing our reliance on fossil fuels.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwant to blow folks Minds at a party one day soon tell them you were in a solar electric car and they'll say wait a minute if that's even possible why aren't they all solar sounds like a great idea right here's one of the first that could be coming to the U.S the Sono Scion let's take a look and find out what these kinds of vehicles can do and can't do first off a solar car is not able to do via the Sun what a Tesla can do if they could Elon Musk would be selling peanuts at ball games instead solar cars create a sort of solar grid hybrid now the Scion doesn't just have a solar panel on the roof or something like a few production cars do that's for like charging your phone or running a fan this thing is serious solar almost everywhere roof hood and most of the lateral panels around the vehicle and they do it like so I mean here's a compound piece of the polymer they use underneath you can see where the solar's been mounted to it so they didn't just take and build a car and then stick some kind of adhesive solar panels to it this is all integral stuff and by the way because it's made of polymer no dents in the parking lot solar panels don't make for the prettiest thing but Sono does say the production models will at least have an even shade of black on this sole model that worked out okay for Ford when they were getting started now all those panels feed a 54 kilowatt hour lithium iron phosphate battery that chemistry is particularly good at having a lot of charge cycles and discharge Cycles it gets into a 163 horsepower powertrain front-wheel drive only and what most people are going to be concerned about is what's the range here's where things get interesting now the fully charged range is 190 miles but blended with that in sort of an either or is some solar range they estimate that you'd get 5400 miles of solar driving per year in an area like Northern California where I am maybe a few hundred more in sunnier places that is about 70 to 150 miles a week or about 10 to 20 miles a day now I'm couching that for a reason because solar range as part of the overall range is highly variable what time of year is it what was the weather like in terms of cloud movement where did you park this thing was it really in the Sun and facing it or kind of down a dark alley one day the bottom line is you can always charge this as a standard EV that 190 miles you can get 80 percent of that in about a half an hour on a DC fast charge or you can charge it in a few hours level two very common step so it's not like you're stuck with solar or any of its variabilities you just have that as another Greener way to get around conditions approving foreign how should someone think about solar in an electric car what role does it play think about a gasoline car I would sell you with five thousand to six thousand miles for free every single year someone puts gasoline in your tank wouldn't that be a great selling gasoline car this is exactly with solar it gives you five to six six thousand miles on range for an average for free from the Sun think about it as a second car for people having their car in a driveway for commuters and for families this is the perfect family car dropping off the kids at school going grocery shopping now the Scion's got a couple other tricks up its sleeve thanks to connectivity and energy going the other way first connectivity when this car launches in Europe first they're going to have this ability to do car share because one of the big Ideas behind electric cars is higher utilization it's one of the best ways to earn back the r d on electrifying vehicles or autonomy for that matter different story is to use cars more instead of having them sit 96 of their lives which is literally the number so they will have a built-in platform for this vehicle where you can do keyless sharing I might only be comfortable sharing it with my family but if you want you can share it with strangers and get a little bit of payment for doing that the other trick it's got is out of that front Port you can also send power out you can set the dashboard screen to how much you're willing to drain the car while doing this preserving some of your driving mileage we just did a story about home batteries you may have seen it and a lot of folks are saying okay those are kind of expensive but what if you got home battery backup built into your car it's kind of free that way especially if you buy one of these it is expected to be priced at twenty five thousand dollars U.S MSRP not including federal tax credit because it may not qualify for one at first because production is initially going to be handled by valmet in Finland and the current U.S regulation is you got to have a U.S built car to get the credit but at 25 Grand does anybody really carewant to blow folks Minds at a party one day soon tell them you were in a solar electric car and they'll say wait a minute if that's even possible why aren't they all solar sounds like a great idea right here's one of the first that could be coming to the U.S the Sono Scion let's take a look and find out what these kinds of vehicles can do and can't do first off a solar car is not able to do via the Sun what a Tesla can do if they could Elon Musk would be selling peanuts at ball games instead solar cars create a sort of solar grid hybrid now the Scion doesn't just have a solar panel on the roof or something like a few production cars do that's for like charging your phone or running a fan this thing is serious solar almost everywhere roof hood and most of the lateral panels around the vehicle and they do it like so I mean here's a compound piece of the polymer they use underneath you can see where the solar's been mounted to it so they didn't just take and build a car and then stick some kind of adhesive solar panels to it this is all integral stuff and by the way because it's made of polymer no dents in the parking lot solar panels don't make for the prettiest thing but Sono does say the production models will at least have an even shade of black on this sole model that worked out okay for Ford when they were getting started now all those panels feed a 54 kilowatt hour lithium iron phosphate battery that chemistry is particularly good at having a lot of charge cycles and discharge Cycles it gets into a 163 horsepower powertrain front-wheel drive only and what most people are going to be concerned about is what's the range here's where things get interesting now the fully charged range is 190 miles but blended with that in sort of an either or is some solar range they estimate that you'd get 5400 miles of solar driving per year in an area like Northern California where I am maybe a few hundred more in sunnier places that is about 70 to 150 miles a week or about 10 to 20 miles a day now I'm couching that for a reason because solar range as part of the overall range is highly variable what time of year is it what was the weather like in terms of cloud movement where did you park this thing was it really in the Sun and facing it or kind of down a dark alley one day the bottom line is you can always charge this as a standard EV that 190 miles you can get 80 percent of that in about a half an hour on a DC fast charge or you can charge it in a few hours level two very common step so it's not like you're stuck with solar or any of its variabilities you just have that as another Greener way to get around conditions approving foreign how should someone think about solar in an electric car what role does it play think about a gasoline car I would sell you with five thousand to six thousand miles for free every single year someone puts gasoline in your tank wouldn't that be a great selling gasoline car this is exactly with solar it gives you five to six six thousand miles on range for an average for free from the Sun think about it as a second car for people having their car in a driveway for commuters and for families this is the perfect family car dropping off the kids at school going grocery shopping now the Scion's got a couple other tricks up its sleeve thanks to connectivity and energy going the other way first connectivity when this car launches in Europe first they're going to have this ability to do car share because one of the big Ideas behind electric cars is higher utilization it's one of the best ways to earn back the r d on electrifying vehicles or autonomy for that matter different story is to use cars more instead of having them sit 96 of their lives which is literally the number so they will have a built-in platform for this vehicle where you can do keyless sharing I might only be comfortable sharing it with my family but if you want you can share it with strangers and get a little bit of payment for doing that the other trick it's got is out of that front Port you can also send power out you can set the dashboard screen to how much you're willing to drain the car while doing this preserving some of your driving mileage we just did a story about home batteries you may have seen it and a lot of folks are saying okay those are kind of expensive but what if you got home battery backup built into your car it's kind of free that way especially if you buy one of these it is expected to be priced at twenty five thousand dollars U.S MSRP not including federal tax credit because it may not qualify for one at first because production is initially going to be handled by valmet in Finland and the current U.S regulation is you got to have a U.S built car to get the credit but at 25 Grand does anybody really care\n"