Slashdot Mirror
Ford Shows Off Recyclable Car
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."
Unless it hasn't been possible to melt down old cars and make new products out of them until now?
They are quite progressive about this subject. Here is a research paper on the German law.
For decades the automobile has been the most recycled consumer product. First a discarded automobile is stripped of its vauable parts. Ever attend a 'all-you-can-carry' day at an automotive salvage yard? A huge crowd of people disassembling autos for the parts they need. Doors, hoods, dashboards, engines, alternators, seats, anything....
Also note, that the majority of stolen cars are stolen for their parts.
After striping, depending on the car and its arrival condition it can be anything from a stripped shell to pretty much intact. At this point the car is crushed.
The crushed car is then put through a shredder, then through various processes the metals are separated and depending how advanced the facility, the plastics and other materials.
BTW, under consideration in europe for auto recycling has beena dismantling approach. Where the automaker takes the car back and actually diassembles it, rather than using a crusher and shreadder.
Even if one is displeased with the actual amount of automotive recycling, the fact remains, it is higher than other consumer products.
I think they're trying to make it look like an SUV. They just couldn't make it an actual SUV because they're being 'green'.
Whence? Hence. Whither? Thither.
The car companies are trying to buy some good karma with enviro freaks and government types while they continue to produce gas-guzzling behemoths for the public.
I agree. The first thing that entered my mind when I read this was, "when will it stop being a concept car?" (the second being how ugly it is, as others have posted). I'm far from being a granola, but I'd like to see at least some balance in companies' lineups.
And for those saying that the auto industry is just "answering a need": The market difference between a green car and a power SUV is virtually nil. In both cases, you've created the demand through endless hype and ads. Taking the easy out in marketing, I'm sure that a "green" car could be sexy, too (c.f. all those reviewers talking about electric cars' near-instant acceleration).
I thought I'd head the name of this consultancy before: Wired had an article on MBDC last year. It spotlights their work with Ford, so I'm guessing that Ford has at least some actual intent to put their money where their mouth is. At least, until the government gets even softer on pollution regulation...
Recycling is only part of the whole point anyway. What's also at issue here is the process used to create the car, in how it effects the natural environment, the workers, and the end users of the product. Regardless of how recyclable a material is, MBDC doesn't like it if it exacts too high a cost to produce. Hence the car roof made out of simple biomaterials. They also don't like materials that off-gas potentially toxic chemicals -- for example, "new car smell", an enticing mix of plastics, glues, solvents, etc.
For that matter, you may also not realize that your car is largely made from recycled materials too. I toured Ford's casting plant in Cleveland a few years ago, and they had a five story high pile of scrap metal that they melt down to make engine blocks. They just melt some of it down, check the chemistry, adjust the chemistry, and cast the blocks. If they needed to lower the carbon content, they would throw in some old railroad rails (which are steel and lower in carbon).
By the way, I'm personally of the opinion that nobody should be driving a car >10 years old. The improvements in emisssions technology and safety have been dramatic, and your old car can be recycled and turned into new ones.
--
The internet is the greatest source of biased information in the history of mankind.
Actually, the "new SUV every two years" mentality is better for the environment that your suggestion that people keep their 20-year-old cars. The emissions on a new SUV are vastly better than those on a 1980 diesel Mercedes.
We're not talking about disposable stereos or computer monitors here -- the environmental damage caused by junking cars (which as noted above by other posters are recycled at a rate of over 80%) is far less than the damage caused by letting old dirty 7 MPG (that's no joke) Galaxie 500s drive around.
If it ain't broke, you need more software.
DETROIT - General Motors Corp. dealers sold 309,263 new cars and trucks in November in the United States, down 18 percent versus November 2001. GM's overall truck sales (171,862) were down 26 percent; car sales (137,401) were down 6 percent.
So they brought in all sorts of incentives (0.9 percent financing, rebates, etc) to pump up their year-to-year sales figures.
Experience shows that it takes about 5 years for the marketplace to "correct" from abberations introduced by such marketing schemes.
Just look at their financials (quarter ending september 30th 2002) Quote from yahoo financials
Gross profit of almost $13 billion, and a loss of almost a billion bucks *cough*after expenses*.cough*
It wasn't a sustainable business model in the '70s, it didn't work for the dot-bombs in the '90s, and we're going to see SUV sales go through the floor when SUVs are required to meet the same standards (safety, fuel economy, etc) as other passenger vehicles.
So who's going to benefit? Not the big three, who can't see past the latest quarter. My money is on Toyota.
By the way, I'm personally of the opinion that nobody should be driving a car >10 years old. The improvements in emisssions technology and safety have been dramatic, and your old car can be recycled and turned into new ones.
Sure, safety and emmisions might have gone up.
But even my 71 Super beetle runs MUCH better then most 6-7 year old cars i see driving around, burning a quart of oil every ten feet.
In addition to that, i bet you that that very same 31-year old car (her birthday is coming up in 2 weeks) will still be around 10 years from now, where as your brand new SUVs will already have been thrown away, as the trend seems to be much closer to disposing cars every 3-6 years at most to buy a brand new one.
Strange to sound like an old-timer (esp as i am only 21) but they just dont make cars like they used to.
and sadly, probably never will.
Stop over-analyzing your analizations