Soleva – Solar electric van

Bring sustainable travel to today's reality

We all like travelling. At the same time, travelling is responsible for 8% of the greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale. Like ourselves, you might have tried to reduce your footprint, but truly sustainable alternatives while keeping comfort and freedom are often lacking.

At SOLEVA, our team of 9 young and passionate engineers and professionals has set for a unique project: we will show that it is possible to have a camper van that runs 100% on renewable energy produced on-board, and hence travel independent of any infrastructure and without any emission and noise pollution.

On top of that, we’ll demonstrate that sustainable transition is about adapting and reusing the vehicles that we already have.

To do so, we are going to convert an old Peugeot J9 from 1987, by removing the petrol engine and tank and replacing them with an electric motor and a pack of refurbished batteries.

On its roof, we’re going to install an innovative and deployable solar system of 5.8kWp, which provides 120km of range in 5 hours of sun, including the power for living.

In that way, the same old van is set for another couple of decades of adventures. This does not only reduce your ecological footprint by more than 80% compared to a new diesel vehicle but also allows you to save a lot of money : charging is free, everywhere!

Spread awareness and inspire society

Apart from introducing a first of its kind, sustainable home-on-wheels, to really be successful as a social venture we want to spread the word and get everyone involved.

Our goal is to inspire the current market and society to accelerate the transition to a sustainable future in both mobility and energy. To do so, we will take our project on the road and make a tour of Switzerland, showcasing the possibilities of solar energy in schools, at events, and to government officials. We will demonstrate how solar can provide an unlimited, clean, and cost-effective energy source, as well as the advantages of a vehicle retrofit.

We are also involving students in the actual development, in order to foster sustainability competencies of future engineers, which are desperately needed to tackle the challenges of climate change.

That's where you come in

Over the past two years, our team has already spent countless nights, weekends (and money) designing and calculating. We are now ready to get our hands dirty and build the demonstrator, but we need your support to make it happen.

• With CHF 20’000, we can get our key electric components, such as the motor and the batteries.

• With CHF 35’000, our prototype is completed, tested and officially certified electric home on wheels.

• With CHF 65’000, we can get our van to run on 100% self-produced solar energy thanks to our collaborations with external partners.

It is an ambitious goal, but we know we have to act today, in order to achieve CO2 free mobility tomorrow. We are 100% committed to making this happen. Get onboard this unique project and help us to demonstrate the potential of renewable energies, offering a real solution to protect the future of our planet.

Tobia, Sévane, Matthieu, Sara, Curdin, Quentin, Max, Roman & Andreas