GoKawiilSolar car roofs face fundamental power limits, report finds
A technical review explains why solar panels mounted on EV roofs cannot meaningfully power a vehicle's drive system, since the available surface area captures far less energy than an EV motor requires. Adding more panels worsens the problem by increasing weight and drag, which forces the motor to draw even more electricity. Automakers are experimenting with deployable solar panels and ultralight EV designs to work around these constraints.