If you tell the McGees that their house looks like a scrap heap, they won’t be offended. That’s because it’s made from salvaged car roofs.

The McGees’ family homestead was designed by Leger Wanaselja Architecture and uses over 100 salvaged car roofs. The plan was to build a house that was eco-friendly by using green technologies and reused materials, and these reused materials included roofs from gray-colored cars found in Berkeley, California junk yards. And getting the right roofs wasn’t easy – they had to be in good condition, and this meant no dents or paint chips (the cars were in the junk yard for a reason, so not as simple as it sounds),

Once the right car roofs were found, they were cut into long tile-like shapes. Once cut, they were used to construct the upper outside walls of the house, giving tiles a slate-like appearance. And roofs weren’t the only car part used for this house. It also features cool awnings made from old Dodge Caravan side windows.

This is a unique way to keep car parts out of landfills. Would you ever consider buying a home that’s been partly constructed out of old car parts? Leave us your thoughts in the comments section below.

GALLERY: Home Built With Salvaged Car Parts

[Source: Gizmag]

If you’re looking for an excuse to ditch your car and find a more eco-friendly way to commute, but are finding it hard to commit, take the Undriving challenge and apply for your Undriver License.

Based out of Seattle, Undriving.org wants you to find other ways to get around. You can walk, bike, take public transit, or come up with your own creative mode of transportation – just leave the car parked in the driveway.

So here’s how the Undriving challenge works: just like any lifestyle commitment, you set a goal for yourself that involves leaving the car at home and finding alternative ways to get around. It can start small, say riding your bike to work once a month, and you can work your way up to bigger goals from there. As proof of your commitment, you’ll get an Undriver License, which is photo ID that you can use as proof of your eco-goal.

“If you want to drive, we have no problem with that,” said Nicole Fallat, a member of the group’s board. “But if you want to get from point A to point B, we say you don’t have to drive and help you get creative thinking about that.”

To get your Undriver License, there’s a $20 donation charge to cover the cost of materials and shipping within the U.S. There are also plenty of ideas of ways to pledge your support, in case you’re stuck for ideas. You can check out all the details on Undriving.org’s site.

[Source: New York Times]

With the release of Ford’s electric Focus hatchback around the corner, Ford is looking to educate consumers on eco-friendly vehicles. They’ve teamed up with SHFT.com, a website developed by actor Adrian Grenier (from Entourage) and film producer Peter Glatzer to promote green and eco-consciousness to younger consumers.

Ford is chipping in by funding a series of short documentaries in order to push forward the idea of sustainability by incorporating pop culture like film, music and design. These documentaries will take an in-depth look at how innovators are shaping sustainable businesses. SHFT.com will also be helping promote Ford at events such as film festivals.

“SHFT.com celebrates businesses where great design, sustainability and innovation meet, which is why we are so excited to be forging this relationship with Ford,” said Grenier.

[Source: Automotive News]

You drive so much, you might as well move into your car permanently. It’s a good thing someone thought of the Habitat micro home.

The marvellous idea of designer Jon Salerno, the Habitat micro home combines your car and your home in one convenient location. The design features a small car that’s docked underneath the home, giving occupants another room. Measuring in at 100 square feet, when you add the car to the Habitat, you get an extra 32 square feet of space.

Another great thing about the Habitat is that the home and car feed off each other. This means they can power the other, storing and feeding energy they collect from solar and wind power sources (the home’s roof is outfitted with solar panels).

It’s a cool way to save space and be eco-friendly, but we think you may need more than 132 square feet of living space. What do you think? Would you be able to make due with cramped living quarters? Let us know in the comments section below.

[Source: Inhabitat]

Who says that highways can’t be green? Not the environmentally friendly folks in Carmel, Indiana. They’ve built a double teardrop roundabout that may be the greenest highway intersection in the United States.

When the time came for the city to make a major upgrade to Keystone Parkway, one of their busiest intersections, they decided to take an eco-friendly approach to it. Not only has their innovative thinking reduced carbon emissions and made the area much more pedestrian friendly, it’s also reduced the amount of car accidents.

The Keystone Parkway uses 1/3 less area than the tightest traditional diamond intersection. The design preserved dozens of buildings, reduced traffic noise and eliminated stoplights. By getting rid of all the stoplights, they were able to reduce car idling, improve traffic flow and reduce accidents by 78 percent. They didn’t just take elements out – they also added in some new ones, such as green space, street lighting and wide egress.

It cost $112 million to redo the Keystone Parkway, which saved the city $1 million in construction costs compared to traditional designs. Would you like to see similar road construction used in your city? Leave us your thoughts in the comments section below.

[Source: Inhabitat]

Audi is all about harnessing the sun for its power. In fact, at its main plant in Ingolstadt, Audi plans for its e-tron models to have their batteries charged with current obtained directly from photovoltaic equipment on the plant site.

That’s not all they’re using the sun for – by the end of the year, Audi is extending its solar energy capacity by adding on photovoltaic modules to a 7,500 square meter area of the new Audi A3 body construction building’s roof.

“This concept shows that Audi is tackling the topic of electromobility systematically,” said Plant Manager Peter Kössler. Using innovative thin-layer modules, this new photovoltaic installation meets stringent environmental protection, efficiency and flexibility standards.

For this project, Audi is once again working with Green City Energy (the automaker worked with the Munich-based company in 2009 to install photovoltaic modules on 11,600 square meters at the Ingolstadt plant). The new addition at Audi will have a peak output rating of 500 kilowatts and about 460 MWh of electricity can be generated from this new installation (that’s enough juice to power 180 households for a whole year). Thanks to this new extension, the plant will increase its total annual output from solar power 1,500 MWh.

The new addition marks the first time that solar energy generated on site has been used directly in Audi’s electricity network. As well as the new battery charging stations for electric cars, other production facilities will also use this green electricity.

Audi also uses solar power in its second German production plant in Neckarsulm. The photovoltaic installation is found on the roofs of garage parking facilities, and generates more than 1,000 MWh of electrical energy annually.

Putting a new spin on “reduce, reuse and recycle,” Ford has announced they’re going to give old blue jeans a new lease on life.

If you’re buying a 2012 Focus (on sale early next year in North America and Europe), Ford will be using cotton from recycled clothing for carpet backing and sound-absorption materials inside this car. Thanks to the recycled jean material, drivers will be treated to a much quieter cabin.

“Ford is continually looking for greener alternatives,” said Carrie Majeske, product sustainability manager. “Recycled content is a way to divert waste from landfills and reduce the impact of mining virgin material.”

This isn’t the first instance of Ford using non-metal recycled and bio-based materials in new vehicles. In vehicles such as the 2011 Explorer, the automaker uses soy foam seat cushions, recycled resins for underbody systems, recycled yarns on seat covers, and natural-fiber plastic for interior components.

In every new Focus, Ford will use the equivalent of two pairs of blue jeans in each new Focus.

“The good news is these jeans didn’t end up in a landfill, nor did we use the water, fertilizer, and land to grow virgin cotton,” said Majeske. “It’s an alternative that our customers can appreciate, it’s cost effective, and it’s better for our planet. These are the kinds of sustainable solutions we are looking for in all our vehicles.”

If you’re a woman and you’re looking to get lucky, you may want to think about driving a cleaner car to get some more dating action. Who knew that driving green was good for your love life?

In the 2010 Timberland Eco-Love Survey, results showed that American men had a better opinion about women who care about the environment. In fact, their numbers show that one-quarter of men polled think that women who are eco-friendly make better life partners (24 percent) than those who aren’t so environmentally responsible.

Other interesting results include 54 percent of the men surveyed would question whether to start a relationship with someone who litters. Some men would wonder if a woman was worth dating if she doesn’t recycle (25 percent), leaves the lights on when not at home (23 percent) or drives a gas-guzzler (21 percent) – that means you’d have better luck picking up if you traded in your SUV for a electric hybrid. The only issue with that trade in would be the downgrade in backseat space. But if the front seats recline in the hybrid, the problem solves itself and you’re all set for your next green date. Vroom, vroom!

[Source: Autoblog Green]