Nissan Ariya charges via solar panels – 23 km of free range per day, up to 65% fewer charging stops

Depending on where you charge it, an EV is capable of significantly reducing your running costs compared to a combustion-engined car. But let’s face it – everyone wants to drive for free, right?

Well, what if you could harness our harsh sunlight to power your car? No, I’m not talking about solar panels for your home to charge it – I mean, solar panels on your car. That’s the idea behind this unassuming black Nissan Ariya, which you’ll have to get up close to in order to spot what’s different.

Developed by engineers from Nissan’s Advanced Product Planning team in Dubai and Powertrain Planning team in Barcelona, the car features 3.8 m² of custom-made high-efficiency photovoltaic panels on the bonnet, roof and tailgate. These polymer and glass solar panels convert sunlight directly into DC power, which is managed through a central controller to optimise energy use and reduce reliance on external chargers.

Nissan says that in ideal conditions, the system is able to provide up to 23 km of additional range every day. Of course, weather conditions are rarely ideal, but it’s claimed that in cities with high solar exposure such as Barcelona – or, let’s face it, Kuala Lumpur – the car can generate an average of 17.6 km of true emissions-free (and cost-free) range daily.

The Japanese carmaker goes on, touting an average solar-powered range of 10.2 km per day in London, 18.9 km per day in New Delhi and 21.2 km per day in Dubai. Given that some of the panels are mounted on the rear windscreen, you do lose all rear visibility for the privilege, although presumably you can also place these panels on the boot lid of a sedan for a similar effect.

Such is the efficiency of the panels that over a two-hour, 80 km journey, they can produce up to 0.5 kWh of electricity, providing three kilometres of free range. This has the potential of reducing charging frequency by between 35 and 65%, depending on usage.

Nissan has already tested the system on long journeys, including a 1,550 km trip from the Netherlands to Barcelona. It found that with an annual mileage of 6,000 km, these solar panels will be able to cut a commuter’s number of yearly charging stops from 23 to just six.

“The solar‑powered Ariya concept embodies Nissan’s belief that innovation and sustainability must move forward hand‑in‑hand. By exploring how vehicles can generate their own renewable energy, we are opening the door to new opportunities for customers—greater freedom, reduced charging dependency, and a cleaner future. This concept is not just a technical milestone; it’s a vision of how Nissan intends to lead the next phase of electric mobility,” said vice president for powertrains Shunsuke Shigemoto.

The concept was created to celebrate Clean Energy Day, using panels from Dutch solar charging provider Lightyear. As yet, there’s no indication of whether Nissan plans to put such a system into production, but who knows – maybe one day we’ll get to drive around in a solar-powered car of our own.

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