My two hobbies are electric bicycle projects and DIY solar projects. In fact, I have written a book on these two topics. Therefore, seeing these two areas combined in a weird but great product, this is totally my week. I just hope you are as excited as I am to plunge into this weird electric bike/car device, which has many functions, from two-seaters to huge solar panel arrays that provide almost unlimited range!
This is just one of many weird, awesome and interesting electric cars I found while shopping in the window of Alibaba, the world’s most eclectic digital thrift store. Now it is fortunate enough to officially become this week’s Alibaba this week’s strangest electric car!
We have seen solar-powered electric bicycles before, but their design usually has some strict pedal requirements. Even the low power of the large panel means that the rider usually still needs to provide some important leg assistance.
But this huge electric bicycle — uh, tricycle — has a huge canopy with five 120-watt solar panels with a total power of 600 watts. It solves the panel size problem by wearing them as hats instead of dragging them behind the bicycle.
Keep in mind that under ideal conditions, you might only get a maximum of 400W or 450W of actual power, but considering the size of the motor, this is still sufficient.
They only equip the bike with a small 250W rear motor, so even sporadic sunlight should provide you with as much power as the battery consumes. This means that as long as the sun is out, you basically have an infinite range.
Even if the sun goes down, this solar-powered electric bicycle can provide you with sufficient 60V and 20Ah batteries with a capacity of 1,200 Wh. The batteries seem to be mounted on two rear rails, so we might look at a pair of 60V10Ah battery packs at the same time.
If you assume a constant 250W consumption, you will be riding for nearly five hours after the sun goes down. By properly planning your sleep mode and bathroom rest time, you can almost ride off-road for weeks without plugging in and charging. A pair of pedals on the driver’s side means that if you run out of juice after a particularly long cloudy day, you can theoretically operate it yourself. Or you can carry a generator with you for fast charging! Or, you can buy a second 60V20Ah electric bicycle battery cheaply. The possibilities are as endless as the sun! (Like about 5 billion years of them.)
The solar-panel canopy also provides adequate shading, and even provides a stand for the high-lift headlights for good visibility.
Hanging under the tree canopy is not one but two recumbent chairs. They will definitely be much more comfortable than bicycle saddles during off-road trips. It remains to be seen how long you can stand side by side with your rider while cruising at a frustratingly low speed of 30 km/h (18 mph).
It is unclear how the steering works, as the rear wheels appear to be fixed, while the front wheels do not have axles or articulated steering. Perhaps these details plus the brake calipers not connected to the handbrake lever may be a clue to an unfinished rendering. Or you maneuver it like a canoe and apply the brakes like Fred Flintstone.
One of my favorite parts of this solar-powered electric bike is the price-only $1,550! Many of my favorite non-solar electric bicycles are more expensive than this, and they are only suitable for one rider!
Just for fun and giggles, I started walking down that road and got an offer for shipping to the United States for about $36,000. So, for a hundred units of $191,000, I might just start my own solar racing league and let the sponsor pay the bill.