14 DAY TRIAL // Just yesterday, American multinational automaker Ford Motor Company announced that its brand-new C-MAX Solar Energi concept car was to be unveiled at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES, for short) in Las Vegas, US.
By the looks of it, the concept car will only be on display for four days, i.e. between January 7-10, so folks who wish to see it would do well to clear their schedules.
In a press release, Ford details that its C-MAZ Solar Energi concept vehicle sports solar panels on its rooftop. This means that, unlike other plug-in hybrids, it does not need to be connected to the grid every time its battery runs out of power.
“Instead of powering its battery from an electrical outlet, Ford C-MAX Solar Energi Concept harnesses the power of the sun by using a special concentrator that acts like a magnifying glass, directing intense rays to solar panels on the vehicle roof,” the multinational automaker writes on its website.
“The result is a concept vehicle that takes a day’s worth of sunlight to deliver the same performance as the conventional C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid, which draws its power from the electric grid,” it further details.
The vehicle is also fitted with a charge port, which means that those who do not wish to put the solar panels on the car's rooftop to work can power their car in a more conventional manner, i.e. by connecting it to the grid.
When fully charged, the C-Max Solar Energy boosts a total driving range of up to 620 miles (nearly 998 kilometers), just like the run-off-the-mill C-MAX Energi does. Of these, 21 miles (almost 34 kilometers) can be electric only.
“Ford C-MAX Energi gets a combined best miles per gallon equivalent in its class, with EPA-estimated 108 MPGe city and 92 MPGe highway, for a combined 100 MPGe,” Ford details.
Thanks to its harvesting sun energy instead of relying on the grid to charge its battery, the C-MAX Solar Energi is estimated to help its owner cut down on their yearly greenhouse gas emissions by about four metric tons.
Check out the video below to learn more about this concept car, and get a better idea of what it looks like.
