Chevrolet Volt battery covers transformed into… duck houses?

Filed under: Hybrid, Etc., Chevrolet, GM, Electric

Chevy Volt battery housing turned into bird house

Chevy Volt battery housing turned into bird house – Click above for high-res image gallery

Yes, you read that right. General Motors has indeed taken scrap battery covers that would otherwise have been discarded and, with the help of a team of youngsters from the Lasky Recreation Center in Detroit, turned them into duck houses.

Seems odd, no doubt, but we’d certainly rather see creative recycling such as this instead of sending off the scrap bits and pieces to rot for hundreds of years in a landfill or some other ignominious end-of-life scenario.

According to The General, these homes “will provide a safe place for wood ducks and even screech owls to lay their eggs.” For what it’s worth, this is the second such creative recycling project we’ve heard about from the team behind the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, the first being the reuse of oil-soaked boom material from the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico made into underhood plastic Volt parts. Nice work, GM.

Gallery: Chevy Volt battery housing recycled into duck homes

Chevy Volt battery housing recycled into duck homesChevy Volt battery housing recycled into duck homesChevy Volt battery housing recycled into duck homesChevy Volt battery housing recycled into duck homes

[Source: General Motors]

Chevrolet Volt battery covers transformed into… duck houses? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 23 Mar 2011 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LA 2010: Porsche pulls the covers off 2011 Cayman R

Filed under: LA Auto Show, Coupe, Performance, Porsche

2011 Porsche Cayman R

2011 Porsche Cayman R – Click above for high-res image gallery

Porsche has pulled the silk off its all-new 2011 Cayman R, the latest variant of the German automaker’s two-seat coupe. Aside from the obligatory decals and badging designed to differentiate this new flagship Cayman from its siblings, the Cayman R boasts a chassis that has been lightened by about 120 pounds and a handful of other tweaks.

Inside the cabin, the Cayman R features Alcantara and leather upholstery, sport seats, strap door handles and a painted console color-keyed to the exterior. Under the skin, the suspension has been enhanced with shorter, more rigid springs and there are customized anti-roll bars on the front and rear axles (the ride height is about 20 millimeters lower than the Cayman S).

Motivation comes from Porsche’s 3.4-liter flat-six, bumped up slightly to 330 horsepower, while transmission choices include Porsche’s excellent PDK automatic gearbox or a traditional six-speed manual. According to the automaker, the 2,855-pound Cayman R will hit 62 miles per hour in less than five seconds and top out at 175 mph. Look for the Cayman R in dealers wearing a $66,000 price tag before the end of the year. Follow the jump for the official press release from Porsche.

Gallery: LA 2010: 2011 Porsche Cayman R

2011 Porsche Cayman R2011 Porsche Cayman R2011 Porsche Cayman R2011 Porsche Cayman R2011 Porsche Cayman R

Gallery: 2011 Porsche Cayman R

Photos copyright (C)2010 Michael Harley / AOL

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LA 2010: Porsche pulls the covers off 2011 Cayman R originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 15:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Anchors away as 60 Minutes covers Top Gear

Filed under: Videos, Celebrities

60 Minutes Top Gear

Click above to watch the video after the jump

Few television programs are as intimately familiar with the stop watch as the blokes over at Top Gear. But they’re not alone. On this side of the Atlantic, the icon is the rightful property of the CBS News magazine show 60 Minutes. And as many celebrities and documentary segments as the Top Gear crew may have interviewed and screened, 60 Minutes has been doing it longer.

Still, the two programs are about as different as can be. You wouldn’t expect to see 60 Minutes host Steve Kroft firing a camper van at a giant target any more than Jeremy Clarkson asking the next presidential candidate the hard-hitting questions. But as we previewed last week, Kroft headed to Top Gear‘s studios outside London to interview Clarkson, Hammond, May and producer Andy Wilman… and even tried to get a word or two out of the since-departed Stig.

Follow the jump to watch the results that aired this past weekend, plus some deleted scenes courtesy of 60 Minutes Overtime. (Thanks to everyone who sent in the tips!)

[Source: CBS News]

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Video: Anchors away as 60 Minutes covers Top Gear originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 12:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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