Sunswift campaign raises $30k in 10 days to get solar EV on road

Just 10 days after launching a crowd-funding campaign to get their solar electric car registered for use on Australian roads, the University of New south Wales’ Sunswift solar car racing team have beat their target of $30,000.

Having recently smashed a 26-year-old world record for the fastest EV over 500km, team Sunswift – which is staffed entirely by UNSW undergraduate engineering students – launched its Pozible campaign on December 1 to raise money to convert their eVe car to Australian roadworthy standards.

“Full registration is no humble feat with essentially the whole car needing to be deconstructed and rebuilt,” said Sunswift project director Hayden Smith at the campaign’s launch.

“The car requires front, rear and side impact protection, headlights, windscreen wipers, new raised suspension and new wheels in addition to updated electrical components.

“The interior will also be redesigned to meet safety regulations and offer a level of comfort that would be expected from a commercial car.”

But just 10 days later (at the time of publication) the car had received pledges of $31,946 – a result that has shocked the team, in a good way.

“The $30,000 raised through Pozible is enough to make all of the compulsory and necessary changes we need to bring our car to the streets of Australia,” Smith said. “It’s really lifted the spirits of the team,” he added.

“Every dollar we raise above this target lets us invest even further in cutting-edge technology such as carbon fibre suspension, more efficient motors, and an increased number of solar panels for the car.”

The team believes they could have the car on Australian roads as early as March 2015. Their long-term goal is to bring solar-electric cars within reach of the average driver.

“When we’re closer to getting the car road-legal it’s going to really hit home just how commercially viable these cars can be,” Sunswift business officer Rob Ireland said.

“Road registration is really going to have an impact on people’s perceptions of solar-electric cars.”

The Pozible campaign closes on December 22.