Autoblog

Now that it's all hip to be green, you may look at your hybrid car with its properly inflated tires and Love Earth bummer sticker and think "what else can I do to help the environment?" Turns out the answer is to drink beer out of recycled windshields turned into pint glasses. These glasses from Uncommon Goods are handmade in Colombia from old car windshields. The green tint that once protected your eyes from glare now protects your beer from harmful rays.

Not a beer drinker? They also sell recycled windshield wine glasses. And of course, you'll want to protect your sustainable-wood coffee table with drink coasters made from recycled road signs. Then you can sit back and relax in your one-of-a-kind Speed Chair made from recycled speed limit signs.

[Source: Uncommon Goods]

Not all of us on the AB team have kids, but all of us know somebody who does. For the dad's in the group, toting around a diaper bag with duckies and bunnies is out of the question. Anything that screams of Mr. Mom is the last thing you want. Here's a bag we think you might be able to carry around with your machismo intact. It's made out of recycled tires, inner tubes, and HEMP!

Designed by Angela Greene for Richmond, Virginia based Passchal, the bag was inspired by a female customer who wanted a baby bag for her husband to use. "As I was designing it, I thought that the buckles, grommets, rivets gave it a Harley look," explained Greene to Reuters. The resulting "Dad's baby bag" is made from recycled inner tubes, trimmed with hemp, and features a battery-operated light to help find things inside.

Ken Kobrick, owner of Passchal, explained how the company uses old inner tubes from Virginia and other nearby states and then puts them through a thorough cleaning process, which is necessary when dealing with a product that will carry baby related items. The rubber spends three days soaking in cleansing solution to rid it of contaminants. The bag measures 16 x 11 x 5, is waterproof, has lots of extra pockets, a seatbelt-like strap and retails for $175. Act now and you might get in on the special holiday pricing of just $119.

[Source: Reuters]

End of Life Vehicle Regulations will become more stringent in the U.K. in January, and as a result some companies are finding creative ways to reuse those vehicles that were once thought destined for the scrap heap. Westfield Sportscars, a kit car manufacturer in the U.K., has developed a new kit that can transform one's rotting first generation Miata, which has always been known as the MX-5 in Europe, into a practically brand new two seat, open-top sports car.

The donor cars are usually unuseable in their current state because of decaying body panels, regardless of whether or not their running gear is fine. Westfield says it recycles as much of the MX-5 as possible into the new car, a claim substantiated by the wheels on the car that come straight off of the original.

The idea of recycling a car yourself rather than placing that burden on automakers could catch on if hot, little two-seat British sports cars are the end result. Due to the Miata's popularity with autocrossers and the success of the Spec Miata racing series, however, we doubt many of these iconic roadsters ever end up on the scrap heap.

[Source: Westfield Sportscars via Piston Heads

Your 1990 Ford or Honda or BMW has finally died or it feels that way from the repair bills. So should you start your new car shopping surfing the Internet or the good old newspaper?

Not so fast, say the Engine Repower Council (ERC) and the Car Care Council (CCC). According to both organizations, it may make more sense to rebuild your vehicle, especially if it's the engine that is giving you (and your bank account) fits.

"When a car or truck suffers major engine damage, often the first reaction of most consumers is to buy a new or used vehicle," says EPC chairman Rick Miller. "In some cases that might make sense, but often it's simply not necessary. And it's a very expensive proposition compared to re-powering your car or truck's worn out engine with a rebuilt/re-manufactured engine."

Besides long-term costs, the article discusses other advantages of rebuilt engines, many of which are at least as good if not better than the original ones due to better components, designs and materials. Rebuilt engines are also more environmentally friendly since they may use recycled parts, materials and have to comply with current pollution standards. Finally, rebuilt engines are usually backed by one-year warranties.

[Source: The Auto Channel]