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Ford Shows Off Recyclable Car

Posted by michael on from the drives-itself-to-the-junkyard dept.

Opspin writes "MBDC (who wrote the book Cradle to Cradle) write in their January Newsletter about a Ford Concept Car that includes Bluetooth technology as well as Cradle-to-Cradle design strategies. Read the MBDC press release, and the Ford Motor Company press release."

4 of 205 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Ugly thing by hether · · Score: 5, Informative

    To prove my point, I found some more photos of the thing. Especially notices the seats.

    From the Detroit Auto Show
    http://www.corral.net/photopost/showgallery.php?ca t=539&thumb=1

    and From this story

    http://www.evworld.com/images/ford_modelu_2.jpg
    http://www.evworld.com/images/ford_modelu_1.jpg

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    Most people would die sooner than think; in fact, they do.
  2. Ford Sucks by inc01 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Don't forget that Ford really sucks.

  3. Re:Cars have been recyclable for quite a while. by Inda · · Score: 5, Informative
    Unless it hasn't been possible to melt down old cars and make new products out of them until now?
    When I worked for BMW Rover Body and Pressings I saw a lot of waste metal. There is even a scrap metal merchant next door who would probably go bust if the plant was to shut down. Most of the scrap metal is used to make central heating radiators if I remember correctly. NONE of it goes back into making cars though - the quality of it is just too poor.
    --
    This post contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide.
  4. Check out German cars for recycling.. by zlexiss · · Score: 5, Informative

    Because of the European take-back regulations, BMW and other automakers have been designing their cars to be taken apart and recycled faster and easier for several years now.

    Back in one of my environmental engineering classes, we saw a film on one of these take-back plants. It took a couple people just an hour or so to strip a BMW from all its recyclable parts, including stuff like draining (and saving) the fluids, pulling off all plastic parts, etc.

    And BMW is always watching and feeding back into the design process. They've reduced the types of plastics used to have less bins and sorting involved. They've reduced the use of gluing, welding, and riveting of parts on and replaced with mechnical fasteners (screws, bolts), making it easier to take apart. Instead of a taillight assy having two types of plastic (lens, backshell) being glued or rivetted together, now its one type that may snap together.

    German car fetishists may voice concern that stuff like this may reduce the quality or performance of their favorite vehicles, but to me that means they aren't as purist as they claim, they don't trust the same engineers that designed their favorite cars in the first place.