We’ve been watching how solar power is slowly making its way in a variety of industries. The automotive industry has been working extensively with solar in recent years, with Tesla assuming a leading role. Most people, when talking about using solar energy to power cars, refer to sourcing electricity from solar panels. But a Dutch company has a different idea. Lightyear One is the creation of five Eindhoven alumni who have already built two solar cars, Stella and Stella Lux, for the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge Cruiser Class. (Both projects are prototypes of four-seater solar cars.) The startup Lightyear announced their plans to combine onboard solar cells with an efficient battery pack and an optimized design to deliver a road-legal, four-seat electric car that can charge itself directly from sunlight. A car that can go the distance “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,” said Lex Hoefsloot, CEO of Lightyear, in a prepared statement. “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.” The Lightyear One concept was unveiled in early July, touting a battery that can constantly replenish its power using the sun. In addition, the car can travel a range of up to 500 miles when fully charged. But most interestingly, the company claims that in the right sunny environment, such as Hawaii, the luxury sedan could potentially drive for months at a time between charges. This revolutionary feature solves for the notion that electric cars could be restricted to regions with reliable charging networks. The...

Sports cars are beginning a new historical chapter with amazing Porsche focused on delivering their first 100 percent electrically powered car by the end of the decade. Many insist that the all-electric sedan is out for Tesla blood, and what’s clear is that the future of the sports car looks electrifying. It’s a big thing, the Mission E project; in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen alone more that 1,000 new jobs are being created and the company announced it will be investing around 700 million euros in its main site there. Over the next few years, the company will build a new paint shop and a new assembly plant. The existing engine factory will also be expanded for the production of electric motors and the existing body shop is being enlarged. Porsche originally revealed the Mission E as a concept car at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt last September. At the time, the company revealed that it would have a range of 300 miles and include a number of innovative technologies. The high-tech features that will be included in the production model have not yet been revealed, but the Mission E concept that was presented last year kind of gives us an idea of what to expect in the final product. The four-door car with four individual seats has a system power of over 600 horsepower (440kW), which enables the vehicle to achieve acceleration of 0 to 62 miles per hour in just 3.5 seconds, behind Tesla’s Model S which can go from zero to 60 in 2.8 seconds with a Ludicrous Mode upgrade—the name represents an upgraded battery pack, from 85 to 90 kWh, which Tesla says is good for an extra 15 miles of range. Mission E is completely powered by advanced lithium-ion battery technology....