Aptera takes first steps towards radical solar-powered EV

Solar-powered EV manufacturer Aptera has started construction of its vehicle production line at its base in Carlsbad, Southern California.

The newly-added production line will allow Aptera to eventually shift from prototype builds to low-volume manufacturing of its self-titled, solar-powered EV. For now, the setup will be used to build pre-production test vehicles.

Powering the front-wheel drive Aptera is a permanent-magnet synchronous e-motor, paired with a 44kWh battery pack capable of returning 400 miles of range.

The two-seat, three-wheeled Aptera adopts a Body in Carbon (BinC) and fibreglass construction with integrated solar panels.

The company claims these can provide up to 40 miles of additional drive range per day. According to Aptera, this translates into potentially more than 10,000 miles of annual charge by harnessing the power of the sun.

While no launch date for the vehicle has been confirmed, Aptera Co-CEO, Chris Anthony described the production line as an “important moment in Aptera’s journey”.

“For the first time, our technicians will be assembling vehicles along a defined sequence of stations, using processes developed hand-in-hand with the engineers who designed them,” he said.

The new production line’s large-scale assembly fixture allows the BinC to be built as accurately as possible, enhancing throughput and establishing a technical baseline for Aptera’s future production plans.

Already, BinC components and chassis assemblies have started arriving to the Carlsbad site. Aptera will begin building test versions of its solar-powered EV on the newly-installed setup.

This will allow Aptera to optimise its production method and iron out any issues before its solar-powered EV goes to production.

“Seeing this line come to life signals the next phase for Aptera,” added co-CEO Steve Fambro. “It’s the bridge between our prototype builds and the preproduction and series production systems that we aim to one day use to deliver solar mobility at scale.”

To initiate low-volume construction of its solar-powered EV, Aptera estimates that it required an additional $65m worth of investment.