Seat Brisa and Duna concepts point the way to solar power

At this point, vehicles covered in solar panels aren't yet able to offer a viable alternative to the fossil fuel-powered cars and trucks that we currently rely on. There's hope that this fact will someday change, but that date's still a way off in the future. Regardless, we can still have some fun with the idea, and that's exactly what Spanish design student Miguel-Angel Iranzo Sanchez has done.

Sanchez put pen to paper to design two interesting concept vehicles that would be powered solely by the sun's rays. First up is the Seat Brisa, a low-slung three-wheeled sportscar with a floorpan made from laminated plywood. Sanchez also penned a concept called the Seat Duna, which is an electric dune buggy that would be based on the Volkswagen Up! concept. Eco-friendly touches include rocker panels fashioned from laminated cedar wood.

Both concept vehicles would feature body panels made from a translucent elastomer with photovoltaic cells embedded within, which would send power to an electric motor.

[Source: Car Body Design]