Biodegradable Sports Car Debuts
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 03.29.07
Students at Warwick University in England have built a car out of biodegradable materials. The tires are made out of potatoes, the brake pads composed of cashew nut shells, and the body of the car is hemp. The car, which runs on bio-fuels, and bio-lubricants, has a top speed of 125 mph.
Ben Wood, studying for his Engineering Doctorate at WMG, the global innovation specialists based at the University of Warwick, said: "Almost everything on the car can be made out of biodegradable or recyclable materials. All the plastic components can be made from plants and, although the chassis has to be made from steel for strength, steel is a very recyclable material. We already have the shell, brake pads, fuel and tires sorted. My aim is to end up with a race car that's 95 per cent biodegradable or recyclable. If we can build a high-performance car that can virtually be grown from seed, just imagine what's possible for the average family car." The Eco One is currently on display at the Sexy Green Car Show in Cornwall over the next two weeks.
:: Via: AutoGreenBlog
Neat toy but since its not street legal mostly useless.
But isn't that where most of our innovation for products comes from, in instances where they can be tested to their limits? It seems to me that a race car would be a logical step in showing the structural integrity of these products.
Useless because its not street legal? It has been designed as a race car, and like other race cars its not street legal. Legality is just a rubber stamp.
The cool thing is that the components of a car can be made from diodegradable materials! Put the components together in a different shape and its a street legal car!