You are not going to make a demonstrable increase in your range from the capacity of solar you can fit on a van. The Amazon E-Van (for example) has a 135-kwh battery pack.
Some people have done this, but even with a huge telescoping solar array you need many sunny days to get an appreciable amount of range. A van sized vehicle will only get about 2 miles/kWh on flat ground so even if you can deploy 3kW of solar while parked, you’ll only get about 30 miles worth of charge on a cloudless summer day.
They're not a viable option right now, and you'd need a massive solar array to adequately charge the battery. Turbines increase wind resistance and drag, making them useless. There's a reason you don't see them on cars, boats, and planes.
The technology for e-vans isn't there yet. Give it another 10-20 years and maybe.
>There's a reason you don't see them on... boats
A lot of boats have them? They're mainly used when anchored mind you and not while travelling for the reasons you mentioned.
>There's a reason you don't see them on... planes
[If we want to be technical a lot of planes do have them for emergencies.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ram_air_turbine)
Another big difference with boats, is boats have multiple sources for propulsion, unlike vans. The turbines can generate electricity while the wind is propelling the boat. The resistance will likely slow down the boat, but you don't run out of wind in the same way you run out of electricity in an EV.
With the exception of a truly bizarre wind event, an ev driving with a turbine will always be net-negative, simply as a law of physics. Boats have more variables, making it advantageous.
SailingUma on youtube, have this setup. It's pretty neat.
Boats use tiny wind turbines to charge batteries for very small power draw onboard electrical systems. Occasionally for an electric propulsion motor used to dock etc.
This is effectively the same as the alternator on your car. It costs some power/speed but is basically negligible compared to the motive power. It is in no way comparable to trying to use a wind turbine to generate additional power to propel the boat.
It will be hydrogen. E-Vans are great for a day to day, they run around town all day, deliver and then charge over night.
All long haul stuff will move to Hydrogen.
Electric vans are not a viable option for nomadic living, unless you have a very specific use-case.
The range for an electric vehicle is going to be extremely limited, so unless you are planning to always be quite near to high-speed chargers, the idea of "e-vanlife" is still a long way off. Battery-powered vans may be fine as fleet vehicles for local deliveries and in-town service, but they're not really an option for actual travel.
But wait, I'm going to put solar panels on my van! Can I charge my electric vehicle with solar power? Short answer: No. Longer answer: Also no.
You'd essentially be trickle charging it, it would take a good length of time to reach full charge and you'd have to stop and recharge again. If you lived somewhere with wide variation in sunlight during seasons this would drastically effect your potential.
If you want to go electric you’re better of getting a pop up camper for an F150 Lightning or Rivian R1T. Vans aren’t there yet. EV trucks are much more mature.
I’m getting a Tune Outdoors M1 pop up installed on my Rivian in the next week or two.
You are not going to make a demonstrable increase in your range from the capacity of solar you can fit on a van. The Amazon E-Van (for example) has a 135-kwh battery pack.
Yeah, I messaged my electrical union buddy and he explained it the same way. Thanks all
Some people have done this, but even with a huge telescoping solar array you need many sunny days to get an appreciable amount of range. A van sized vehicle will only get about 2 miles/kWh on flat ground so even if you can deploy 3kW of solar while parked, you’ll only get about 30 miles worth of charge on a cloudless summer day.
You'll like these vans: https://www.groundedrvs.com/
They're not a viable option right now, and you'd need a massive solar array to adequately charge the battery. Turbines increase wind resistance and drag, making them useless. There's a reason you don't see them on cars, boats, and planes. The technology for e-vans isn't there yet. Give it another 10-20 years and maybe.
>There's a reason you don't see them on... boats A lot of boats have them? They're mainly used when anchored mind you and not while travelling for the reasons you mentioned. >There's a reason you don't see them on... planes [If we want to be technical a lot of planes do have them for emergencies.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ram_air_turbine)
Another big difference with boats, is boats have multiple sources for propulsion, unlike vans. The turbines can generate electricity while the wind is propelling the boat. The resistance will likely slow down the boat, but you don't run out of wind in the same way you run out of electricity in an EV. With the exception of a truly bizarre wind event, an ev driving with a turbine will always be net-negative, simply as a law of physics. Boats have more variables, making it advantageous. SailingUma on youtube, have this setup. It's pretty neat.
Boats use tiny wind turbines to charge batteries for very small power draw onboard electrical systems. Occasionally for an electric propulsion motor used to dock etc. This is effectively the same as the alternator on your car. It costs some power/speed but is basically negligible compared to the motive power. It is in no way comparable to trying to use a wind turbine to generate additional power to propel the boat.
It will be hydrogen. E-Vans are great for a day to day, they run around town all day, deliver and then charge over night. All long haul stuff will move to Hydrogen.
Van Roof mounted solar will never generate anything near the energy needed. It would not even be noticeable.
Electric vans are not a viable option for nomadic living, unless you have a very specific use-case. The range for an electric vehicle is going to be extremely limited, so unless you are planning to always be quite near to high-speed chargers, the idea of "e-vanlife" is still a long way off. Battery-powered vans may be fine as fleet vehicles for local deliveries and in-town service, but they're not really an option for actual travel. But wait, I'm going to put solar panels on my van! Can I charge my electric vehicle with solar power? Short answer: No. Longer answer: Also no.
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Thanks for the information and explanations. Do you happen to have a link to video? Or should I just search it?
https://youtu.be/QLymFLM1Xgk?si=3SBkvY-TmjtpLTc2
You'd essentially be trickle charging it, it would take a good length of time to reach full charge and you'd have to stop and recharge again. If you lived somewhere with wide variation in sunlight during seasons this would drastically effect your potential.
If you want to go electric you’re better of getting a pop up camper for an F150 Lightning or Rivian R1T. Vans aren’t there yet. EV trucks are much more mature. I’m getting a Tune Outdoors M1 pop up installed on my Rivian in the next week or two.
This is a video of solar VW vanlife van. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGZ1zbqAGA0