Hood Solar Panel

I had one on the hood of my Tacoma. I cut the cable and used M/F Deutsch DTP 2 pin connectors and a 3D printed housing on the cowl to extend the cable to the charge controller w/in the cab... After I had to replace the charge controller I placed in the engine bay because the environment fried it.

I didn't have any issue with it on the hood. The surface is pretty tough. It never pealed up. Placing it on the hood kept the roof clear for the roof rack. Yes. There will probably be efficiency loss with the heat when it was closed but I found that I could position the vehicle and prop the hood open to get the panel perpendicular to the sun for most of the day.

I would recommend getting the vinyl for the hood just in case you want to or need to remove it. I already had it on the Tacoma so I opted out.

IMG_20200830_133923.jpg

PXL_20201215_185342074.jpg

PXL_20201215_193831704.jpg
 
This was under the hood cowl. Braided wire cover was for the ditch lights. Solid cover was solar. Additional Deutsch connectors allowed for the removal of the hood cowl.

The OCD really kicked in on this project :ROFLMAO:
original_d72ae6b4-baba-4e58-9494-f3f7890b84ce_PXL_20201203_001451398.jpg
 
highsmith said:
EOD Guy has a solar panel on his roof. (Scroll down on this post)
Click to expand...

Air circulating under the panel is beneficial for efficiency. The panel will stay cleaner on the roof too. The issue that I had with the Tacoma is that the solar panel on the rack creates an either/or situation. The Lensun on the hood was a (very expensive) solution to that specific need and occupied space on the exterior which really couldn't be used for anything else.

I'm going to go with a portable panel & power now.

Thanks for posting the EOD Guy link. He's got some really good ideas that I'm going to copy shamelessly.
 

Electrical Information:​

Peak power: 115W
Solar cell efficiency: 23.5%
Maximum power voltage: 23V
Maximum power current: 5A

I am trying to understand how such a low output system really benefits a vehicles battery?
115/13v = 9a on the DC side at full solar exposure and system output. That sat peak which we all know is only for a few hours a day.
Maybe the system runs higher during peak sun hours?
So 9a/ hours is not much of a charge for as many hours on whatever the charge/ sun exposure curve is.
Trying to justify vs cool factor and I cant vs a spare a battery or tiny Honda silent gen which are great.
Please advise?
Thx.
 
Area 51 said:

Electrical Information:​

Peak power: 115W
Solar cell efficiency: 23.5%
Maximum power voltage: 23V
Maximum power current: 5A

I am trying to understand how such a low output system really benefits a vehicles battery?
115/13v = 9a on the DC side at full solar exposure and system output. That sat peak which we all know is only for a few hours a day.
Maybe the system runs higher during peak sun hours?
So 9a/ hours is not much of a charge for as many hours on whatever the charge/ sun exposure curve is.
Trying to justify vs cool factor and I cant vs a spare a battery or tiny Honda silent gen which are great.
Please advise?
Thx.
Click to expand...
This was typical for my 90W panel on the Tacoma's hood. Normally, from about mid afternoon onward, the Tacoma would be partially shaded when parked in the driveway. The 5 peak days were when I moved it to where it was in the sun for a full day or it was on the road.


Screenshot_20210514-232801.png
 
Last edited:
Area 51 said:
Trying to justify vs cool factor and I cant vs a spare a battery or tiny Honda silent gen which are great.
Please advise?
Click to expand...

The main purpose for solar on the hood was basically maintaining the battery when the Tacoma was not in use. That was it's primary purpose. It made sense to have it as part of the build. It could also run a smallish ARB fridge and keep the battery topped off when traveling but that was a bonus in addition to filling the need.

If you don't need something specifically for the vehicle and if space isn't tight then a portable solution is better and that's what I'm going with for the LC.
 
Area 51 said:
vs a spare a battery or tiny Honda silent gen which are great.
Click to expand...

This was a spare motorcycle battery and some blue sea stuff in one small pelican case. Charge controller and cable storage in another pelican.

This with a combination of 3 small 50W panels that I could put out and position as needed sufficed for the longest time. I plan to get back to that with the LC.

MVIMG_20190406_110950.jpg

IMG_20181031_211027.jpg
 
lcat63 said:
I may be an outlier, but I never cared too much for hood mounted accessories.
View attachment 29844
Click to expand...

I'm with you despite what it may appear. The hood mounted solar on the Tacoma served a function and solved a problem. That's why it was there. I have no interest in painting myself into that corner again.

I am in no position to criticize anyone who wants to do something just for the sake of appearance though. I am seriously considering doing a wrap on my white 1958 in one of the original FJ40 colors.

FJ 40 colors.png
 
Last edited:
I opted for a less visible option to keep the battery topped off...... Tho it doesn't provide for any power to run other appliances, I do have 2 - 100w flexible solar panels that I use to keep the EcoFlow Delta 2 pro power bank charged.

Solar Charger.jpeg
 
EOD Guy said:
I do have 2 - 100w flexible solar panels that I use to keep the EcoFlow Delta 2 pro power bank charged.
Click to expand...

EcoFlow Delta 2, Aux battery, and 100W flexible solar panels is my current, similar, solution. It not being tied directly to a vehicle also means more flexibility. i.e. power outages. If you watch the EcoFlow site you catch sales with significant discounts.

I heard good things about Jackery from friends too.
 
I tried several flexible panels (other brands) for a teardrop trailer. The first two panels that I purchased didn't put out anywhere near the advertised power. The third panel put out the rated power, but two of the individual cells got excessively hot. The fourth panel put out the rated power and lasted for a year or two before it died, and I then had to peel it off the sheet metal it was installed on. In contrast, every one of the rigid solar panels I installed at my off-grid house in 2009 are still putting out the full rated power.
 
Last edited:
geomars said:
I tried several flexible panels (other brands) for a teardrop trailer. The first two panels that I purchased didn't put out anywhere near the advertised power. The third panel put out the rated power, but two of the individual cells got excessively hot. The third panel put out the rated power and lasted for a year or two before it died, and I then had to peel it off the sheet metal it was installed on. In contrast, every one of the rigid solar panels I installed at my off-grid house in 2009 are still putting out the full rated power.
Click to expand...
Who made them? I've had pretty good luck with SunPower

Also. Speaking of EcoFlow discounts. If you head over to their site there is a sale going on until the 13th. You can get an EcoFlow DELTA 2 Portable Power Station for about the same as the Lensun.
 
My foggy memory of this from 5 years ago with many different panels is that the first two (that didn't put out the rated power) were cheap ones from eBay (no brand specified). One was sold by dealsbycraig. One or two of the better ones were Renogy. I also have a small (50w) Sunpower panel that I never mounted anything but is still working properly after occasional use over 5 years.
 
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