Eco One: Students build a race-car made up from food!

Sounds like a premature April fools day joke, but it isn’t; the Eco One racer has a shell made from hemp, tires from potatoes and brake pads from cashew nut shells! It also runs entirely on bio-fuels and bio-lubricants. Created by the WMG students at the University of Warwick, the Eco One had been designed originally with a top speed of 125mph – 201 km/h, but project manager Ben Wood has ‘tweaked’ the original Formula Student engine claiming he can achieve up to 150mph – 241 km/h!

Ben, who’s studying for his Engineering Doctorate at WMG, stated: “Almost everything on the car can be made out of biodegradable or recyclable materials. All the plastic components can be made from plants and, although the chassis has to be made from steel for strength, steel is a very recyclable material. We already have the shell, brake pads, fuel and tires sorted. My aim is to end up with a race car that’s 95 per cent biodegradable or recyclable. If we can build a high-performance car that can virtually be grown from seed, just imagine what’s possible for the average family car.”

The Eco One will make its first public debut at the "Sexy Green Car Show" at the Eden Project which runs from 30 March to 15 April.

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