Really ecological cars shouldn't have leather seats, wooden dash...

[gone-ot]

Originally Posted by Xist

Old Tel, I would have stood corrected, but you seemed a little obsessed there.

Well, not really, as we actually wanted real cow-hide leather interior in our Prius, but had to "settle" for Toyota's SofTex®...and...go UP a model (from -3 to -4) just to get that thermoplastic polyuerethane (imitation leather) stuff! Needless to day, we were "pissed"!

So, I think you detected my not-so-latent hostility toward Toyota's marketing crap.

[Baltothewolf]

Who cares about the environment? I just want more MPG so I have more cash in my pocket.

[oldtamiyaphile]

Originally Posted by Baltothewolf

Who cares about the environment? I just want more MPG so I have more cash in my pocket.

This is ecomodder.com not pennypincher.com seems to be a common mistake

[oldtamiyaphile]

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.

You really haven't thought this through.

The ultimate ECO car would be built of natural materials where possible.

Wood lasts 100's of years in houses, medieval castles and so on, and can always be sanded back and refinished. Even when old houses are knocked down, the timber is reused/ remilled. Plastic goes 20 years and turns brittle and becomes landfill. Cutting down a tree is not a bad thing really, as (and this is if you think CO2 is somehow a poison) the CO2 is stored in the wood until it's burned or decomposed.

Synthetic fabric derived from oil? So ECO, not. I actually think natural hide is the most ECO friendly seat covering, providing the tanning chemicals can be 'controlled'. As long as it's cared for, it will outlast the car. Keep in mind that cows produce more 'green house gasses' than cars.

As has been said, the best car would be one that last a lifetime, or more.

[gone-ot]

Originally Posted by oldtamiyaphile

Keep in mind that cows produce more 'green house gasses' than cars.

Moo-methane!

[Xist]

Honestly, I am in favor of leather. How long does a good saddle last? Horses run on oats and create fertilizer.

They just fertilize the road, which is less useful.

Originally Posted by Baltothewolf

Who cares about the environment? I just want more MPG so I have more cash in my pocket.

I guess that my idea is that I want to take care of this world because it is where I keep all of my stuff.

By the way, the quote is from the cartoon.

[H-Man]

Originally Posted by oldtamiyaphile

This is ecomodder.com not pennypincher.com seems to be a common mistake

economymodder.com?

I'm with the wolf here, any environmentally friendly properties of my car is only a side effect of cost efficiency. I run my ignition timing advanced to the edge of what will pass both parts of a smog test, I put out more HC, CO, and NOx per cubic meter of exhaust gas (I even put out more HC, CO, and NOx per cubic meter than my dad's carburated corolla in part because I'm on factory catalysts and catalyst efficiency monitoring oxygen sensor and until 2013 I was on the factory upper oxygen sensor) vs running the ignition timing retarded, but my overall exhaust gas volume is lower. Even better, unless I run the AC at idle my car can't even keep the catalysts lit up anymore because they are so degraded.

[spacemanspif]

Just to add to the "pro-wood" side of this conversation: My friend is working on a 1931 Ford or Chevy pickup made almost completely out of wood. How many 80 year old metal cars do you see on the road these days??

[bhazard]

Innocent animals killed for leather? Beef comes from innocent animals as well. Would you rather the hide is just thrown away when the meat is harvested?

[oil pan 4]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

Well, not really, as we actually wanted real cow-hide leather interior in our Prius, but had to "settle" for Toyota's SofTex®...and...go UP a model (from -3 to -4) just to get that thermoplastic polyuerethane (imitation leather) stuff! Needless to day, we were "pissed"!

So, I think you detected my not-so-latent hostility toward Toyota's marketing crap.

The imitation leather sounds worse for the environment and never lasts as long as the vehicle.
What was the benefit exactly?
Oh I forgot, their bottom line.