Trekking around India sounds like a great way to have an adventure. Trekking accross India in three solar powered Reva vehicles is an incredible way to have an adventure while raising awareness for climate change. That was the goal of the Indian Youth Climate Network as they took three electric Reva vehicles and plowed through 3,500 kilometers of Indian landscape to show the world that the solution to global warming can be found even in the most remote of places.
The Indian Youth Climate Network is the brainchild of Anna da Costa and Caroline Howe. The team drove through 15 major Indian cities in a caravan composed of three solar powered Revas, a plant-oil powered truck, a van that runs on vegetable oil, and a van with solar panels on the roof that was used to power the team’s equipment.
The team found solar powered kitchens, biogas powered villages, and even some of the work that Mumbai is doing to control their waste management strategies. They even took their message of change beyond these villages and cities – during their trek they were able to meet both RK Pachauri (chairman of the IPCC) and India’s President Pratibha Patil.
The group’s modified Revas are powered by lithium ion batteries that allow them to travel around 90 miles on a single charge. The vehicles have solar panels on the roof which provide around 10 percent of the total battery capacity. Overall, the Reva performed well and made it through the entire trip without a hitch.
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Why not put thin film panels on the rest of the other outer surfaces of the car? That would boost the charge. 10% of the power my not sound like a lot but over the lifetime of a car that is significant energy savings and less emmisions. If the car can go 90 miles per charge I could use it to go to work and charge during the day (9 mile commute). I would only have to top off the 10% at night for the 9 mile return trip.
It helps to live in sunny CA. Great post!
This is great news, I am planning o buy a Reva