Audi prototype with solar roof to be built by end-2017

German premium car maker Audi and Alta Devices, a subsidiary of Chinese solar-cell specialist, Hanergy, have joined forces in a project that will attempt to use thin-film solar cells in the panoramic glass roofs of Audi models. The electricity these cells generate will flow into the car’s electrical system and could, for example, supply the vehicle’s air-conditioning system or the seat heaters – a gain in efficiency that can increase the range of an electric vehicle.