I have a dilemma… In a few weeks I will be leaving for a 10-day business trip. I will leaving my 2025 Prius PHEV (with solar roof) vehicle at the airport when I am gone. I have the option to park under a canopy or on the roof. I will have used most of full EV charge on the trip to the airport. I can’t decide whether to try to charge from the sun while I’m gone or protect my solar panel from the possibility of hail by parking under the canopy (ensuring also my car doesn’t get too hot). Having the car charge to full EV capacity seems unlikely and so does hail so I’m thinking of parking in the sun. I’d love to come back and see a solar charge of 15 miles while I was gone. Any thoughts?
i'd park on the roof. sun is more likely than hail i would think. what's the point of a solar roof if not to park in the sun?
That seems like the logical choice (especially since that is one of the reason I bought the specific car in the first place). I guess I also have concerns about the car getting fully charged and then staying in the hot sun at the same time (which I know is bad for the EV battery). I do have used the Dr.Prius app and appropriate dongle (looking at the three internal battery temperatures) and found that, even when it is hot outside, the EV battery stays at a reasonable temperature. I think a lot of that is due to the fact that the EV battery is now located under the car (not in the back seat any more). I think having my previous Prius battery in the back seat when my car got hot was one of the main downfalls of my previous EV battery (I got only 8 to 10 miles per charge when the car was 13 years old).
it's a new car, so you almost certainly have comprehensive coverage. Get the free charge and let your insurer take care of hail if it happens.
I have a $500 deductible so hail damage would cost me $500. Still, though, that could happen if i parked at home too.
you will be gone 10 days. if it was sunny every day, how many days until it is 100% charged? keep in mind, there is a built in buffer at the top.
There is the big unknown of how sunny it will be during those 10 days. In Minnesota, we are often cloud covered (this knocks the solar energy gathered way down) . I expect to charge fully at home before heading to the airport. It is about 30 miles away so I expect it will be 1/4 charged when I first leave it on the roof. If I get 100% sun every day (3miles / day) I would expect that it ought to be fully charged upon my return. However, I don’t expect 100% sun so maybe it will be 75% charged (which should just enough to get home). (I wonder how much of the charge will be spent trying to keep the EV battery cool)
even if it fully charges, it won't damage the battery at all. it would take long term storage or many, many shorter term to do any damage.
