A Renault 4 has driven the length of the UK powered entirely by solar energy as part of the 2026 Easee Sun Run.
Timed to coincide with the longest days of the year, the five-day, 1,000-mile journey saw the Renault 4 Plein Sud drive from Land’s End to John o’ Groats using only energy generated by the sun.
Along the way, the route took in the varied ways solar energy is being gathered and used around the country – from ice cream parlours in Cornwall to off-grid living in northern Scotland.
Across the entire challenge, no electricity from the grid was used to power the vehicle during the record journey. Instead the Renault charged using a three-phase Easee Charge Pro EV charger connected to a combination of established solar arrays and portable, solar-charged battery storage units.
Anthony Fernandez, CEO of Easee, said: “The Easee Sun Run goes a long way to showing what clean mobility is capable of today. In connecting electric vehicles, renewable generation and energy storage into one flexible ecosystem that works together efficiently, clean transport can become more resilient and more accessible.
“Many of the technologies needed to deliver that are already here, and they’re in action today – from intelligent home charging to scalable, business-ready solutions that help fleets make the switch. The journey we’ve just completed may be poetic, but it’s squarely grounded in the reality of smart, clean technology available to consumers and businesses now.”
The Renault used for the challenge was a fitting choice, and not just because of its retractable fabric sunroof. The Plein Sud name translates as “due south” – the optimal direction for solar panels.
The car used was a completely standard model with a 148bhp motor and 52kWh battery capable of up to 242 miles.
At the start of the journey close to Land’s End, the Renault and one of the larger portable storage units were charged using fully solar energy, with top-ups en route supplied through a carefully coordinated network of solar installations and pre-charged mobile battery units.
Along the way, the team marked the summer solstice near Stonehenge and charged up at the UK’s first commercial solar farm in Chard, Somerset, before revealing how an off-grid solar system has helped turn rural Derbyshire’s Whaley Bridge Cricket Club into a community hub.
The journey went on to explore the next generation of flexible, rollable solar materials at Swansea University in Wales, and visiting Durham University to see an experimental EV capable of racing on energy generated directly from the sun.
In Scotland, the expedition visited a solar pyramid south of Edinburgh and the grounds of Dunrobin Castle in Sutherland, where local residents are using solar generation and battery storage to aid off-grid living.
Project leader Jeremy Hart said: “You set out thinking this is about getting from one end of the country to the other, but it quickly becomes about everything in between. One stop is a solar farm doing exactly what you’d expect, the next is a cricket club running itself off grid, then you’re looking at research that could change how solar works altogether. Each stop adds something different, and by the time you reach the end, you realise the car has been picking up that same energy all along and quietly turning it into miles.”
