Here’s A First Glimpse Of Aptera’s Solar EV Assembly Line

• Solar EV startup Aptera is working on several validation builds.
• The pre-production vehicles are being built on what will eventually become the company’s first assembly line.
• Assembly of the solar panels and battery packs has also been relocated under the same roof.

California startup Aptera is edging closer to turning the dream of a solar-powered electric car into reality. After years of delays, the first validation builds of the three-wheeled EV are being built at the company’s facility in Southern California.

The startup, which has relied on several funding campaigns to get to where it is today, gave a glimpse inside the building that will eventually house a proper assembly line for low-volume series production.

The struggling solar EV maker said it will use a traditional assembly process, where the bodies will travel through several stations to have all the necessary components installed. The main piece of equipment is a large-scale assembly jig, where workers put together the various parts needed to make the shell, or as Aptera calls it, the Body in Carbon (BinC). 

What’s more, the startup said it is now assembling the solar panels that will be fitted to the EV’s body under the same roof. Its battery partner, CTNS, is also making modules with LGES cells at the same facility for the first time, which should result in shorter wait times. The company has also ramped up hiring, bringing on board people who are now responsible for the supply chain, the development of embedded systems and other engineering roles.

To be clear, Aptera is still not ready to make road-going solar EVs. It has assembled six bodies that will become validation builds, and it’s still relying on its third production-intent prototype, dubbed “Gemini,” to gather real-world data that has been described as “encouraging.”

The startup still has a lot of work to do to get the first customers their two-seater solar EVs, including regulatory testing, which will be done with the upcoming validation builds. That said, even when the ball starts rolling, don’t expect a full-blown operation that will churn out hundreds of thousands of vehicles per year. 

That’s not necessarily a problem, as long as Aptera fulfills its promises to reservation holders who invested in the company with the hope of one day driving a solar-powered EV. The startup hasn’t provided a concrete timeline for when the first finished vehicles will be delivered to customers, but it’s adamant that the initial models, wearing the Launch Edition badge, will be priced at $40,000.

These first units are advertised as having a driving range of up to 400 miles on a full charge, while the solar panels fitted to the body can allegedly add up to 40 miles of range per day in ideal conditions.