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Anyone Familiar with "Go Sun"? It's a portable solar charger for cars. (www.youtube.com)
submitted 3 months ago by to c/electricvehicles@slrpnk.net
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https://gosun.co/

Basically its a roof rack solar panel with a battery inside (includes AC outlet), extra fold out panels that cover the length of the car, and a charge cable for the car. They're about $5000 USD and are shipping the first ones out in Q3 this year.

As someone who lives in an appt and commutes, this would make an electric vehicle much more viable as there is no charging stations in my building or at my work. I saw this and immediately began researching what vehicle models would be coming to Canada in 2028.

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[–] [S] 9 points 3 months ago* (12 children)

I had similar thoughts when I saw this but he addresses them in the video.

For me, my car sits all day once I'm done commuting. So while it might not be faster, or viable for everyone, I do think there's a type of driver that this suits well.

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  • [–] 17 points 3 months ago (10 children)

    "up to" is doing A LOT of heavy lifting.

    There is a mountain of difference in solar power that can be collected on June 21 vs December 21. We all know that, there are many more hours in the day. but what many people don't know is that even limited to the same productive hours, let's say 9a-4p, summer light has a lot more power.

    Because it's their own marketing, you can count on "Up to 20 miles per day" meaning 20 miles (in an extremely efficient EV), in the ideal circumstances, on the best day of the year. The rest of the year will be worse, probably much worse.

    But don't take my word for it, and certainly don't take theirs. Wait for independent reviews, and check them. See what people can actually expect from such a system. As much as I would love for this to be a real solution for most people, it's very unlikely.

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago (8 children)

    Oh Definitely. I don't even have an electric car yet. The reason this appeals to me is because without something like this an electric car is simply not viable for my situation.

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  • [–] 8 points 3 months ago (7 children)

    Then an EV isn't viable. You could consider doing something similar with an e-bike.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (6 children)

    Ya. My commute puts me Just outside the range that the #'s this guy is alleging make it viable. There actually is 1 charger at work, but I'd only get an hour at best before I'd have to give it up to boss man.

    e-bike.

    I wish. Problem is that the 80kph shorter route I normally drive is a rat trail and the safer routes are all 4x longer. Would mean like 14-15 hour days and that's just not sustainable for me.

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  • [–] 4 points 3 months ago (2 children)

    Any chance of using level 1 charging? That would just require a standard wall outlet. Over 8 hours, it would probably give you about 25 miles of range, depending on the details.

    Also, I assume that charger is a level 2. You could probably get 20 miles of range in an hour.

    If you're within spitting distance, you could make up the difference with public charging. Many grocery stores now have DC fast charging, so you could top off on a regular weekly trip.

    TBH, I think you're a much better candidate for a hybrid, or possibly a plug-in hybrid.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 3 months ago* (1 child)

    So I'll admit I am very ignorant on charging levels etc. I've don't little research.

    I just commented earlier but I definitely have access to something better than level 1.

    I reeeeally want to upgrade to electric (driving econo gas on loan) but our options are kinda shit in Canada, and I feel like unless I'm going for something with a lot of utility like a Ford econovan or a 4x4 truck, I'm better off waiting for the better commuter cars hitting our market over the next couple years. (cuz kias burn out at 100kkms)

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  • [–] 3 points 3 months ago

    They are asking if you have a normal wall outlet that you can reach where you park. Depending on your commute that is often actually enough, luckily the math is pretty easy to figure out.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 months ago (2 children)

    I doubt your boss would be charging the entire day every day. You could talk to him about it and see.

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago (1 child)

    You're probably right. But even depending on the car 1h might be decent cuz it's not just a household plugin, they upgraded the connection for him (our monthly power bill is more than my annual salary).

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