Hi,

I'm new to this, so I hope you can bear with me. I'm interested in buying a Hybrid Electric vehicles.. and also intrigued by the concept of a plug-in hybrid electric conversion.

My problem is this: I live in an apartment complex with no garage -- just an outdoor parking lot.

So I was wondering, has anyone heard of a "plug-in hybrid" that can use a solar panel to recharge its battery?

I was thinking that -- in theory -- one of those roll-up solar panels could be placed on the car's dashboard to help top-off the battery when the hybrid is parked... And that such a system might plug-in through the car's cigarette lighter.

Does such a thing exist? And if so, what companies make them? Any suggestions are welcome.

there are supplemental solar panels that are sold that can be roof mounted on a Prius, but those are simply to supplement the existing battery. They don't provide anywhere near the amount of energy that it would take to charge a plug-in hybrid battery. Here's an article on the technology and the company involved:

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005...le_roofto.html

Furthermore, any of these kits, be they the solar panels or the full PHEV kits with added battery (that cost over $10k), violate the existing warranty of your vehicle's battery.

-Tim

2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid AWD
Black with Pebble interior
Premium Package with Nav & Moonroof



Current ODO: 26,152
Typical Drive: 20 min crosstown in heavy traffic (3.5mi there and back twice a day)


532 Gallons of gas saved
That's 10,642 lbs less CO2 emitted