Mercedes is developing "solar paint" that would add thousands of kilometres a year to electric cars

Mercedes-Benz has revealed promising developments for the electric car segment at the Auto Shanghai 2025 motor show. One of them is "solar paint", thanks to which cars could additionally receive enough energy to drive thousands of kilometres a year.

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Mercedes is considering the use of an active photovoltaic surface with solar cells with an efficiency of up to 20 per cent. Studies have shown that under ideal conditions - such as in Beijing - such a system could provide the car with up to 14,000 kilometres of mileage per year, equivalent to about 39 kilometres per day. While this is not enough to do away with charging altogether, the extra energy generated by parking in the sun could significantly improve the usability of electric cars.

In parallel, the company is working on a programmable micro-converter that operates at the level of individual battery cells. This system makes it possible to regulate the characteristics of each cell individually and maintain a stable voltage of 800 volts, regardless of the degree of charge and the state of the battery. This, in turn, opens up opportunities for longer driving range, optimised energy flow within two-way charging, and a more flexible modular layout.

Another area of research has been the development of a new braking system in which the mechanism itself is integrated into the enclosed transmission and engine unit, rather than being placed at the wheels. Such a design, according to Mercedes, is virtually wear-free, maintenance-free, corrosion-free and does not emit particulate matter during braking. In addition, it should be less noisy, reduce material degradation under high loads and contribute to improving the overall energy efficiency of the vehicle.

Complementing the technological development package is co-operation with the University of Waterloo in Canada. The focus is on neuromorphic computing that mimics the principles of the human brain. Such systems can ensure faster and more energy-efficient performance of artificial intelligence tasks. This is especially important for active safety systems, which will be able to more accurately recognise road signs, markings and other road users even in poor visibility conditions.

Source: Carscoops