Martijn Lammers — Co-Founder
We have joined the finalists on stage at the Postcode Lottery Green Challenge. The four other finalists came from all over the world to pitch their companies in front of an international jury (http://www.greenchallenge.info/info/juries). Lightyear will use the 100,000 euro cash prize to accelerate the development of their first car, the Lightyear One. Several preliminary rounds preceded the finals. Out of a total of over 500 companies the five finalists remained.
“All the problems we have had with zero emissions vehicles, those belong to the past now.” – Lex Hoefsloot, CEO of Lightyear during his pitch at the Green Challenge finals.
On June 29, 2017 the Dutch startup Lightyear officially announced their plans to bring a commercial solar car to the market in 2019. The first vehicle, the Lightyear One, is an electric four-wheel drive car that can handle rough terrain and has a battery range of 800 kilometers, charged by the sun. Production of the car, together with industry partners, will start from 2019 onwards. Of this first version, a limited number of models will be produced. Pricing starts at 119,000 euro excluding tax; reservations have already started.
“You can think of the Lightyear One as being as an electric car redesigned from the ground up to combine the best of solar cars and electric cars.”, says Lex Hoefsloot. “It’s a revolutionary step forward in electric mobility, because we are able to combine a great look with extreme efficiency. This first model makes science fiction become reality: cars powered using just the sun”. At night or on a cloudy day the Lightyear One can drive up to 800 kilometers on a fully charged battery, depending on your battery configuration.
In sunny climates, Lightyear One is able to drive for months without charging.
The integrated solar cells on the roof of the car will generate enough power to recharge the battery during the day and will render charging virtually unnecessary. In sunny climates, like most parts of the US and southern Europe, the car can drive for months without charging. For very long trips an overnight-charge using an ordinary power socket will suffice – no need for special charging infrastructure.
Reservations
A limited number of reservations are available via www.lightyear.one . The final design and details of the Lightyear One will be unveiled early 2018 and first deliveries are expected throughout 2019 in the US and EU.
All the finalists on stage after the pitches
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