The EV You Never Have To Charge – Aptera Motors

Imagine never having to charge your electric vehicle again. Well, a Californian startup has you covered. 

Aptera Motors was originally founded in 2006 under the name Accelerated Composites, before being liquidated in 2011. However, in 2012, it was bought by Zhejiang Jonway Group, a Chinese auto manufacturer that set up two companies: Zaptera USA to build electric cars and Aptera USA to build gasoline-powered cars.

Fast-forward to early 2019, when Aptera re-formed under the leadership of Chris Anthony and Steve Fambro, who launched a crowdfunding campaign to restart development and begin producing vehicles.

Following the success of the crowdfunding, Auto Futures spoke to Anthony to find out more about Aptera’s futuristic solar-powered three-wheeler. 

Anthony says that the reason behind focusing on solar-power for its EV was simple: it’s easy to obtain and free. However, as its history shows, it hasn’t been plain sailing.

“We’ve always wanted to use [solar-power] at Aptera, but cell efficiency was just never good enough to be valuable till recently,” he explains. “Now we can take power from the sun, send it right to your battery with little loss in efficiency, and take you up to 44 miles a day for free! We think it really is the best option for powering Aptera around the world.”

Thanks to the development of solar and battery cell technology, Anthony and his team can help propel Aptera and drive the zero-emission charge. 

One of the most important features of the solar vehicle is its ‘Never Charge’ system, which is cleverly integrated into the roof of the Aptera. Anthony explains that it can provide owners with a significant amount of free power each year to complement the impressive battery pack. 

“It pumps the energy produced from the sun straight into your battery pack and gives you over 11,000 miles a year of free juice to drive on,” he says. “This is in addition to your 1,000-mile range battery pack which you can top off any time with a charge cord.”

Another interesting feature of the Aptera includes the option to replace and upgrade the existing solar panels on the vehicle to extend its product life cycle. We have already heard from many people in the industry who are concerned about the longevity of EVs, but this would overcome any skepticism. 

“You can replace or upgrade any of the 4 panels at any time. This makes any maintenance easy and it makes things upgradable in the future are the composite constructed vehicle are capable of lasting 50+ years if cared for,” adds Anthony. 

So, when can we expect to see this product on sale? According to Aptera, pre-orders will begin in the next few months. It will be interesting to see how many Californians will get on board with this, making the most of the LA sun.