A vehicle that is fueled entirely by solar power has arrived in Paris, France, as part of its test run on the way to Tarifa in Spain.
Stella Vita, the van created by a group of Dutch students, started its road trip by being carried on a trailer from Eindhoven to Brussels, and then to Paris.
The plan was for the vehicle to begin its trip on Sept. 19, but some technical problems delayed its departure.
“We want to just make kilometers to make sure that these small troubles are not going to come up again when we are just three miles on the road again. So we just want to test that,” said Laura Van Houtum, 22, a project manager on the trip.
The van has a bed and cooking facilities inside, and can travel 730 kilometers —the equivalent of 454 miles — on a sunny day with a maximum speed of 75 mph, according to the creative team.
Solar panels on the van’s roof generate enough energy to drive and live off the grid, and its 60 kilowatt hours battery enables 373 miles of driving at night. The team plans to travel 1,864 miles.
“We want to make sure that you can also really drive on the road because otherwise it’s road legal, but we didn’t drive. So that’s something I hope to see this couple of months,” Van Houtum said.
Once parked, Stella Vita’s unfolded roof showcases 188 square-feet of solar panels, which is about as much as an average home’s roof. The Dutch team said their creation home is part of their plan to address climate change through harnessing renewable energy sources.
The hope is to begin their road trip right after Stella passes some final tests.