√Solar car dream getting closer to reality in the USA

A car powered by the sun and priced from $US25,900 is closing in on production thanks to US start-up Aptera Motors in California.

A tiny suburban runabout powered by onboard solar panels is another step closer to production at the Aptera Motors technology start-up in the USA.

It has just revealed the latest prototype of its three-wheeled electric car, and says production of its first customer cars is expected to begin next year.

The ‘gamma’ prototype comes as Aptera promises 64 kilometres of driving range a day from its solar panels, with 1600 kilometres of running on a single plug-in charge, and a lively 0-100km/h time of 3.5 seconds.

There have been rumours that the tiny three-wheeled two-seater could come to Australia, but that appears unlikely given the requirements for Australian Design Rule (ADR) compliance for local sales.

Aptera Motors claims to have more than 32,000 customer reservations and is finalising details of its production facility in Carlsbad, a coastal city south of Los Angeles.

Its car is all-wheel drive, has a claimed drag co-efficient of just 0.13 – compared with 0.20 for a Tesla Model S – and a lightweight composite body.

It is also selling shares in the company – with a minimum $US1000 commitment at a $US10.50 share price – by calling for investors through its website.

Earlier this year an Aptera prototype out-sprinted a Tesla Model 3 in a short drag race in California on an official Aptera video covering its test work on the car – though that may not come as a surprise, as the Model 3 variant chosen for the test carries a slower 0-100km/h claimed time than the Aptera.

The work by Aptera Motors comes after Lightyear One, a Dutch solar car company, unveiled a production-ready prototype for its first car earlier this year – claiming a 725-kilometre range – in a preview previously reported by Drive.

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