Yep, that's right. But, the key is in your last statement.
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a stock motor @ ~0.7A draw running 4 700mAh NiMHs will run for about an hour. And a powerful motor running over 2A will last for 15 minutes or so. Right?
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The power needs of the motors is the factor. The motor isn't pulling that 700mA cause if it did, it would deplete the batteries almost immediately. It runs for an hour or so. That means it's sipping from the batteries until they are depleted. The motor pulls most of it's current needs at stalled conditions. Once the car is moving, the power requirements drop considerably more. This stall current is the power needed to run the car continuously from solar cells. This is another reason battery capacity isn't really related to solar cell output. What I need to factor this is the stalled current of the drive and steering motors combined. This number is what is needed to run the car continuously from solar cells. Capacity and runtime become irrelivant at this point.