Most solar race cars are single-seat arrows built for one thing: speed. Solar Team Eindhoven asked a different question: can a normal family travel by sunlight? Their answer is Stella Vie, the first solar-powered family car with five seats.
Built by a team of 21 students from Eindhoven University of Technology, Stella Vie is 5 metres long but weighs only 375 kg, roughly a quarter of a normal car. Its 5 m² solar roof lets it produce more energy than it consumes on a sunny day. The surplus can be fed back to the grid or used to power a house.
In October 2017 the team drove it 3,022 km from Darwin to Adelaide in six days at the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, carrying five people for more than half the distance. The jury gave maximum points for practicality, and Stella Vie scored an efficiency rating more than twice that of the runner-up. It won the Cruiser Class, the team’s third world title in a row after Stella (2013) and Stella Lux (2015).
The Stella project also had a lasting impact beyond racing: former team members went on to found Lightyear, the company behind the Lightyear 0.
Technical data
| Builder | Solar Team Eindhoven, 21 students, TU Eindhoven (NL) |
|---|---|
| Seats | 5 |
| Length / width | 5.0 m / 1.65 m |
| Weight | 375 kg |
| Solar | 5.0 m² roof, energy-positive on sunny days |
| Top speed | 130 km/h |
| Result | World Solar Challenge 2017 Cruiser Class winner, 3,022 km Darwin → Adelaide |
| Predecessors | Stella (2013, 1.5 kW / 15 kWh), Stella Lux (2015, 5.8 m² / 15 kWh) |
Photo (World Solar Challenge 2017): Staartvin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Sources: Ericsson news · TU/e Cursor · Wikipedia: Solar Team Eindhoven