Here’s how – and why – EVs and solar are connected
EV owners are more likely to add solar panels to their homes, according to a new US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) study – here’s why.
And conversely, owning photovoltaic panels also has a bearing on whether a homeowner buys an electric vehicle, but not as strongly.
Researchers from NREL, University of California Santa Barbara, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory examined a survey of 869 households in the San Francisco Bay Area in the NREL’s 2018 WholeTraveler Transportation Behavior Study, and the newly released 2022 Residential Energy Consumption survey, the latter of which confirmed the older survey’s findings.
NREL’s Shivam Sharda, lead author of the paper, said, “Both EVs and PVs have a complementary nature, which might play a pivotal role in energy systems resiliency, addressing concerns regarding grid stability and power management strategies.”
But the researchers assert in the abstract that electric vehicles and PV are deployed “disjointedly” due to a “lack of understanding of the behavioral interdependence in consumer preferences toward these technologies.”
More of the 2018 survey participants owned or previously owned solar panels than an EV – 9.1% vs. 6.5%. (The researchers acknowledge that solar has been around longer than EVs, and the cost of having residential solar is less than most EVs.)
They found that 25% of EV owners also owned solar, while only 8% of the non-EV owners owned solar, and Sharda said that EV owners are likely to be more incentivized to adopt solar because it’s an inexpensive, clean source of energy to charge their cars at home.
The 2018 survey also highlighted two reasons that might have prompted someone to adopt one or both technologies: being aware of EVs and solar, and being social enough to ask about them.
Sharda explained, “If you have a friend or a family member who owns a rooftop solar or an EV, you become more educated about the technology, so you know the pros and cons by talking to them. That has a significant influence on your owning EVs or PVs.”
So the study recommends that the government considers offering joint incentives for consumers to adopt both EVs and solar. Because EV owners are inclined to use solar anyway, bundled incentives might provide a push for EV owners to adopt solar sooner.
“The Electric Vehicles-Solar Photovoltaics Nexus: Driving Cross-Sectoral Adoption of Sustainable Technologies,” is published in the journal Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews.
Read more: This modular off-grid solar EV charger can be installed in just four hours
Photo: Tesla
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Tesla has wiped off the 26,000 miles on the odometer of a Cybertruck in service, scratched the vehicle, and then returned it to the owner like nothing happened.
A Tesla Cybertruck owner in Oregon was quite surprised when he went to pick up his Cybertruck, which was in service to install a new lightbar, fix some panel gaps, and figure out an ABS alert that wouldn’t go away.
According to a thread on the Cybertruck Owners Club, Tesla had wiped the odometer clean on the Foundation Series ‘Cyberbeast’, which had over 26,000 miles on it.
The owner shared a video of the Cybertruck’s odometer going from 0 to 1 mile for the second time:
The odometer on the vehicle was wiped and both the app and service many also showed the same mileage.
The owner shared a screenshot of the app after 15 miles:
He went to the online forum for advice:
Anyone else have their odometer Thanos-snapped after a controller swap? Can Tesla unsnap it or am I forever “True Mileage Unknown”?
Interestingly, Tesla is currently being sued for allegedly messing with the odometers of its vehicles. However, the lawsuit is for accelerating the mileage, not reducing it, like in this case.
It was not the only surprise from this service visit for this Cybertruck owner.
The owner was not satisfied with the lightbar installation, which he claims has a half-inch gap on the passenger side while it is flush on the driver side. He wrote:
It’s basically smiling sideways at everyone.
It’s also unclear why Tesla was messing with the vehicle’s tailgate, but it ended up having a bolt moving around it, causing scratches and Tesla left a bolt unbolted:
At this point, the truck was returned with more problems than it had when it entered service.
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Nissan is on the brink of collapsing. After the Honda deal fell through, it looks like another Japanese automaker is tossing it a lifeline. As Nissan struggles to stay afloat, Toyota is emerging as a potential “backer” in a new tie-up.
Are Toyota and Nissan partnering?
“If we don’t take action now, the situation will only get worse,” Nissan’s President, Ivan Espinosa, said during a press conference on May 13.
Facing falling sales, ballooning debt, and slumping profits, Nissan introduced a new recovery plan last week, “Re:Nissan.” The struggling automaker aims to cut costs by 250 billion yen to return to profitability by FY 2026.
As part of its efforts to turn the business around, Nissan will cut 20,000 jobs by FY2027. It’s also abandoning plans to build a new EV battery facility in Japan. Seven other plants will be closed, including one in Thailand and two in Japan.
After its planned EV merger with Honda fell through in February, rumours surfaced that Nissan was scrambling to find another partner.
According to a new report from Japan’s MainiChi, a Toyota executive recently reached out to Nissan about a potential partnership. The tie-up could involve Toyota acting as Nissan’s “backer” to support it while it restructures.
Nissan and Toyota both unveiled a wave of new electric vehicles set to roll out over the next few years. The upgraded Nissan LEAF EV will arrive in the US and Canada later this year with more range, an NACS port, and a new crossover style. It will be one of ten new Nissan or Infiniti models to arrive by 2027.
In Europe, Nissan will launch the next-gen LEAF later this year, followed by the new Micra EV and Qashqai electric crossover. In 2026, the new Nissan Juke EV will join the lineup.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s upgraded bZ electric SUV (formerly the “bZ4X”) will arrive at US dealerships in the second half of 2025.
In 2026, the smaller C-HR electric SUV and rugged bZ Woodland EV will follow. By the end of the year, Europe will see three new Toyota electric SUVs: the C-HR+, Urban Cruiser, and upgraded bZ4X.
Electrek’s Take
Toyota already has a stake in several Japanese automakers, including Subaru (20%), Mazda (5.1%), Suzuki (4.6%), and Isuzu (5.9%), so backing Nissan wouldn’t come as a shock.
Espinosa said Nissan was open to new partnerships. Nissan’s chief said the company will continue collaborating with others, including Mitsubishi, which will use the upcoming LEAF as the basis for its new EV for North America.
Japanese carmakers have been notoriously slow in shifting to all-electric vehicles, which is now costing them in key overseas markets like Southeast Asia, Central and South America, and others.
Chinese EV leaders, like BYD, are quickly expanding overseas to drive growth this year. Next year, it will launch its first kei car (see the first spy shots), or mini EV, which is already being called “a huge threat” to Japan.
Pooling resources and teaming up may be the best (or only) option at this point. Can Toyota help Nissan turn things around? Or will it be too little, too late? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Check back soon for details. This is a developing story. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.
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