Quote:
Originally Posted by Big time
Let's make a list of non fuel consumption or emissions related features that a really ecological car should / shouldn't have
Like
Must haves
* Recycled plastic bottle parts. To help reduce the millions of plastic bottles thrown away everywhere. Heard a Mercedes Benz (not sure which one) has window frames made of such bottle plastic.
Must NOT haves
* Leather seats. No need to kill innocent animals just to get their skin when a synthetic fabric will do as fine. Maybe even better as they are longer lasting?
* Wooden dash. No need to cut trees as a plastic will both last longer and absorb impacts better.
* Harmful materials like asbestos, Heavy metals like Lead and Mercury and many other harmful chemicals.
Let's get creative yet hopefully not ridiculous...
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Or as long as possible. The longer the better.
Leather will always be available until people quit eating animals.
Material choices are ecological if they can be easily recycled. Steel is recyclable. Aluminum has huge energy benefits to recycle. Thermo-form plastics do. Glass does. So does the lead in our current batteries. The bottom line is to make a car last as long as possible and then get the parts into the recycle stream.
And wood is a most excellent building material as it is renewable - if we are smart about it.
Now the problem becomes powering the vehicle.