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GREEN, COFFEE - NOW CHOCOLATE-DRIVEN CARS

2010-01-20

(Image: AFP: The WorldFirst Lola on a test run - an F3 that's built using renewable materials and runs on the oily waste chocolate factories discard.)

Fuelled by leftover chocolate and with components made from carrots, potato starch and flax, the world's first sustainable Formula 3 racing car has a top speed of 215km/h and can accelerate from 0-100 in 2.5sec.

Sound nuts? Not yet - brake pads made from cashews are still under development.

Meet Lola, the British University of Warwick's blend of muscle and eco-friendliness and the world's first racing car made from renewable and sustainable materials.

Researchers from the university showed off their prize possession at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's energy conference in Boston'The public has really taken the car to its heart, because she's fun'.

Kerry Kirwan, one of the car's designers, said: "She's incredibly green, taking materials that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill. It lets people engage with recycling without the finger-wagging.

"The public has really taken the car to its heart because she's fun."

Many of the car's components would more usually be found at a farmer's market - or in a rubbish bin, since most of the materials are actually industrial waste.

The two-litre BMW engine has been converted from petrol to diesel and set up to run on fuel derived from waste from chocolate factories or other plant-based oils.

Among Lola's other unique features is a radiator that converts ozone back to oxygen.

Steve Maggs, another member of the design team, said: "It's a racing car that cleans up as it goes along."

The WorldFirst Formula 3 racing car took the university more than nine months to develop and cost the equivalent of R1.5-million. - Reuters