Toyota Prius Solar Mounted Roof

By: Andy Hodges
Staff Writer
Published: Aug 26, 2009

Toyota Prius Offers Solar Innovation

One of the nice features that come with the 2010 Toyota Prius Solar Mounted Roof option is cabin temperature. While the 2010 Prius is one of the most affordable hybrid cars on the market, it has a lot of innovative features, and that's one of the things that separates this vehicle from others. The solar mounted panels on the roof actually absorb the sun's energy to power the electric fan that cools the cabin.

The electric fan is part of the Toyota Prius Solar Powered Ventilation System. If the hybrid is in direct sunlight, it will cool itself by running on energy that is stored in the solar panels. How this system works might be simple, but it's a feature that can protect the interior from hot temperatures.

You can also enter the car without it being oven-hot during the summer months, unless you live where the temperature is always hot. The Toyota ventilation system will automatically turn on when the cabin temperature reaches 86 degrees. When it comes on, it will ventilate the vehicle using the outside air.

This also brings up another point to bring up about this solar technology. Toyota might be working on new innovative ways to use this technology to power other accessories for the Toyota Prius. The automaker has a test car already built with solar panels through its exterior, the same model that helped developed the current mounted solar roof. I wouldn't be surprised if they were already developing ways to power interior lights, radio, power windows, and other accessories in future cars.

While there isn't a way to fully power an electric hybrid car using solar technology, some automakers are already powering their factories and plants with this free energy. How it works exactly, I don't quite know, but that is a major step that might be in the works for automobiles. One possible way is using a chemical that can react to the sun and produce energy.

Hybrid batteries are already using similar chemicals that can react with nickel and produce the same energy. This idea, or design, might be developed soon as car manufacturer's race to compete with alternative energy vehicles. If solar panels can already power an electric fan for the 2010 Prius, the development process is halfway there.

My driveway and sidewalk areas are actually lit by solar panel lights. They have miniature solar panels that collect sun rays during the day and use it to power the lights at night. Perhaps this could be used in future hybrid cars to store energy during the day and power headlights at night. This could reduce the load on using a gas engine that normally has to generate more power for the headlamps.

This is definitely food for thought, and who knows, maybe a new hybrid car will come out soon that can offer energy efficient alternatives to power vehicle accessories. It would be a wise decision that could eventually lead to smaller gas engines to charge the hybrid battery. The 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid could be the perfect candidate for such development.