Photo: Tesla Motors
Tesla is like one of those people who doesn't let anything go to waste. The company has just finished promoting its new solar roof shingles, and now we get word that the same technology will go into its future mass-market sedan as well.
You can hardly call this a surprise, though, as fitting solar panels on the roof of an electric car makes tons of sense if it's not too expensive. Having the option to install them and not doing so would be like somebody at the gas station asked you whether you'd like an extra gallon of fuel for your ICE car on the house, and you declined the offer.
Fresh off the solar roof tiles presentation, Musk engaged into one of his trademark Tweetstorms where he confirmed the Model 3 would get a solar roof option. But if mounting solar receptors on top of the car were such an effective solution, everybody would do it. It's not like Tesla is the only company who can install solar cells on the roof of their cars, right?
The problem with solar energy is that you need a very large surface to generate a useful amount of power, and the roof of a car just doesn't provide it. Well, another tweet from Musk made everyone stop and wonder whether he was joking or not. Questioned whether the effort would be worth it for just five kWh a day, the Tesla CEO had a somewhat bewildering answer: "unless we do a deployable solar shield like a retractable hard top."
Is he really thinking about turning the Model 3 into a mobile solar power plant that can significantly extend its capture surface when stationary? He could, but somehow this seems a little too out there even for Tesla. If the car had a flat roof, then maybe it wouldn't have been so impossible to imagine, but given the curvatures of the Model 3, we doubt he was being serious. After all, even Musk is allowed to have some fun now and then.
But anyway, all this shows just how closely intertwined Tesla's plans are, and how Musk really sees the bigger picture whenever he decides to invest in something. Yes, he's controversial, and you can't always agree with his point of view, but he's also quite a unique character in the automotive world. And if his push for electric cars turns out to be successful, then his place in the history books will be guaranteed.
Fresh off the solar roof tiles presentation, Musk engaged into one of his trademark Tweetstorms where he confirmed the Model 3 would get a solar roof option. But if mounting solar receptors on top of the car were such an effective solution, everybody would do it. It's not like Tesla is the only company who can install solar cells on the roof of their cars, right?
The problem with solar energy is that you need a very large surface to generate a useful amount of power, and the roof of a car just doesn't provide it. Well, another tweet from Musk made everyone stop and wonder whether he was joking or not. Questioned whether the effort would be worth it for just five kWh a day, the Tesla CEO had a somewhat bewildering answer: "unless we do a deployable solar shield like a retractable hard top."
Is he really thinking about turning the Model 3 into a mobile solar power plant that can significantly extend its capture surface when stationary? He could, but somehow this seems a little too out there even for Tesla. If the car had a flat roof, then maybe it wouldn't have been so impossible to imagine, but given the curvatures of the Model 3, we doubt he was being serious. After all, even Musk is allowed to have some fun now and then.
But anyway, all this shows just how closely intertwined Tesla's plans are, and how Musk really sees the bigger picture whenever he decides to invest in something. Yes, he's controversial, and you can't always agree with his point of view, but he's also quite a unique character in the automotive world. And if his push for electric cars turns out to be successful, then his place in the history books will be guaranteed.
@_andyoneal @John_Gardi unless we do a deployable solar shield like a retractable hard top
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 4, 2016
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