Solis SV24 Electric tractor - Here is what we know so far...

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

Here is a new video of the Solis SV24 in action compliments of my friend Andrew with The Kelley's Country Life... I think he does an excellent job of conveying what everyone here is saying, which is, "electric vehicles are not for everyone"... but he has the opportunity to provide testing and input into the innovation process which is pretty darn cool if you ask me. His channel is great and he has been working on solar projects to help get off the grid in Florida... This tractor will likely be operated for free while he is testing it...

Here is his video;

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

I want to see it till and the battery life while tilling.

 

[5030]

Cub Cadet produced an electric small tractor decades ago called the 'Electrak' and it was a flop. I like the blurb 'Goodbye to diesel costs' Small units like that don't consume much diesel in the first place and that nice solar array in the background I'm sure cost more than the small amount of diesel a unit that size would consume in years.

I don't see that unit being anything but a 'fad' tractor for an owner with excessive money to spend. Certainly, electric tractors don't work for what I do 'farming'. John Deere has one, a utility tractor capable of meaningful field work but the cost (last year) was north of 225 grand with a 6 hour run time. I've never seen one anywhere around here because farmers are about P&L not fads.

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

I want to see it till and the battery life while tilling.

Follow The Kelley's Country Life on Youtube, I think he will be releasing a video of tilling a food plot with it.

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

Cub Cadet produced an electric small tractor decades ago called the 'Electrak' and it was a flop. I like the blurb 'Goodbye to diesel costs' Small units like that don't consume much diesel in the first place and that nice solar array in the background I'm sure cost more than the small amount of diesel a unit that size would consume in years.

I don't see that unit being anything but a 'fad' tractor for an owner with excessive money to spend. Certainly, electric tractors don't work for what I do 'farming'. John Deere has one, a utility tractor capable of meaningful field work but the cost (last year) was north of 225 grand with a 6 hour run time. I've never seen one anywhere around here because farmers are about P&L not fads.

I agree with you and think that we are a long ways from having electric tractors that can do what diesel tractors can do, but I'm not so sure it's a "fad" per say, maybe just very early in the product lifecycle... It's amazing the technological advances that have been made in just the last 100-150 years.

I'm sure someone once thought their horse and buggy or tractor pulled plow was the "bees knees" too and that those new fangled gas automobiles would never take off... haha... kinda like that "Internet thing" that we can all now sit in our chairs and debate silly topics like the metrics and likelihood of success of electric tractors.

I find the strong distaste for this technology fascinating... the term luddite comes to mind... sadly this is also so embroiled in politics that it just muddies the water.

Luddite: people who dislike new technology

“Luddite” is now a blanket term used to describe people who dislike new technology, but its origins date back to an early 19th-century labor movement that railed against the ways that mechanized manufacturers and their unskilled laborers undermined the skilled craftsmen of the day.

I think you'd be surprised at what Andrew has in his solar array... he is building it to protect from outages from hurricanes in Florida and to be more self sufficient... all good stuff and not necessarily politically motivated

I do appreciate all the passionate responses out here... let's just see what this tech can do, and maybe someday the price comes down...

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

I'm not a fan of battery powered tractors, but I think the writing is on the wall, and eventually, it's something that might become more common. Same with cars and pickups.

While I'm wiring my garage, I'm debating installing the wiring for a place to charge a battery powered vehicle. I'm curious what the power needs are to charge a tractor?

What size outlet is the best to do this? Is there a 220 option or just 110? How many amps is the most it can handle?

@EddieWalker you can charge the Solis with either 110 or 220... There are rapid chargers for vehicles but i don't know what difference is required in terms of the outlet requirements.

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

said current battery technology is sufficient

Is or "is not" sufficient? I assume you meant "is not"?

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

The only way I'd maybe and that's a big maybe go near an electric vehicle is a hybrid and then the chances of me even go that route is next to nil. The cost of replacement batteries, the life of them makes it seem , to me anyway, a fools choice and that's just my thoughts.
I've always used this scenario as an example.
Say I have a 50km round trip to work every day so that's 250kms a week, say 300 for round figures. Friday night something happens and I have to go out on a 50 km trip but since I only charge the car once a week so I don't ruin the battery, I can't go as the battery is almost dead.
Same timeframe, we have a storm go thru and the power goes out for 30 hours which it did just a couple months back. How do I even go out for necessities?
Stuck in traffic on a Friday night on the way home in the winter obviously with the heat on.
Once the grid is overloaded the rates will go up higher than they are now.


Yup, 100% agree

I'm with you, i'm not ready for an EV but would consider a hybrid... chances are I won't even do that as I've probably only got 1 or maybe two more car purchases in my lifetime... my current gas guzzling Nissan Armada is a 2011 and it will be replaced with another large SUV or truck... so guessing that won't be electric. With used car prices so high, we bought my daughter a new car and also stayed away from both hybrid and EV due to lack of consistent infrastructure to support it. We are merely on the bleeding edge of this topic and technology...

 

[Hardy Brothers Outdoors]

Nah it'll never work... lol reminds me of this commercial from the Super Bowl... It's funny... I call it the wheel... I've got 10 forks right here baby! lol

Don't be like Larry...

 

[5030]

At 73, I won't be around to concern myself with it anyway.