After working for the past two years on its latest all-solar vehicle, the 30-student Solar Car Project team from Stanford is ready to put to the test what they call the fastest solar car ever built. Called the Xenith, it will be taken to the Australian Outback later this year to take part in the World Solar Challenge – a race where solar-powered vehicles will have to duke it out on a 3,000 km (1,864 mile) course.
The Xenith packs 26 glass solar panels and each one is packed with ultra-high efficiency silicon solar cells. While Stanford touts it as the fastest solar car ever built, we don’t have any details about the car’s max speed so we have no idea how fast it can truly go. But the team driving the car hopes to average about 60mph during the race, so I guess we’ll find out how fast it truly is at the World Solar Challenge this October.
And just in case you were wondering – the car is street legal, so don’t be surprised to see cars like these cruising around our streets in the future. Head over to cnet for more detailed images and information about the Xenith.