Sports car made of wood: is it eco-friendly?
Remember back in the day when your mom's super-cool station wagon had wood paneling on the side? Pretty righteous. These days you'd be hard-pressed to find a car comprised of something other than plastic and metal -- unless you're talking about the Splinter, a new sports car constructed by North Carolina State University students that's made with wood composites. Is it eco-friendly?
Apparently it doesn't matter, as the car won't ever be mass-produced. It was a graduate project, and, according to the students, they "aren't trying to sell anything," and "aren't trying to save the world." In fact, they could care less if future cars are made from wood -- they just wanted to see if they could do it.
However, as you'll see on Winding Road, the students did find some cool ways to make the car more efficient.
I don't know about you, but I'd be up for driving a car made out of wood. Kind of cool in a retro way, don't you think?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-28-2007 @ 6:26AM
gab said...
I think this car was a brilliant idea but it probly not the most eco-safe in the world. Its wood constrution is the reason, we are trying to cut down on killing the rainforest not help it. Also we need trees to live; I am sure just about everyone knows that trees give offf oxygen we need to breathe and take in carbon dioxide that we give off after breathing out. Other wise it is some amazing idea i dont kno why people could have thought of something like the Splinter sooner.
CONGRATS GRADS!
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12-28-2007 @ 7:45AM
koo said...
Well it's a neat idea as a project, definite props to the students for trying to make it work.
Wouldn't want to be inside one if it gets hit by another car though.
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12-28-2007 @ 11:12AM
Melody said...
A car made of wood? Come on! If this gets mass produced, forget about recycling paper cause it won't make a difference. People will be chopping down trees left and right to make cars (it's silly to think about - trees are those tall things made of wood that we need to, uh, breathe!). But when that happens, I'll stop recycling. Now, if you made a car made of something that we can't get rid of, like garbage, that ran on vegetable oil or whatever, then you'd be in business. But wood? Good job for making it work and all, but now these ideas have been formed in others who think that it's a good idea...crap.
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12-28-2007 @ 11:14AM
Melody said...
A car made of wood? Come on! If this gets mass produced, forget about recycling paper cause it won't make a difference. People will be chopping down trees left and right to make cars (it's silly to think about - trees are those tall things made of wood that we need to, uh, breathe!). But when that happens, I'll stop recycling. Now, if you made a car made of something that we can't get rid of, like garbage,
that ran on vegetable oil or whatever, then you'd be in business. But wood? Good job for making it work and all, but now these ideas have been formed in others who think that it's a good idea...crap.
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12-28-2007 @ 6:33PM
Lara said...
wow....
wood+gasoline=?
i wonder what tat's gonna result in..
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12-29-2007 @ 3:34AM
Billy said...
yea, i think you people are seriously misinformed. do you think manufacturing cars out of metal is good for the environment? we have to mine metal from the ground destroying many natural habitats and the industrial smelting process involves burning lots of coal, releasing CO2 and sulfur oxides into the atmosphere. Now, I do not know how the pros/cons between the two weigh out, and i dont think you do either, so before you jump to conclusions about the wood car, maybe you should have some more information. And dont stop recycling, that doesn't even make any sense.
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