Ford eyes dandelions as sustainable alternative to synthetic rubber

Ford, in conjunction with Ohio State University, is turning to the humble garden weed as sustainable resource, researching the dandelion's potential use as an alternative to synthetic rubber. While the automaker already makes considerable use of sustainable materials in its vehicles – such as soy foam seat cushions and straw-filled plastic for interior trim – this latest discovery opens up a wealth of new possibilities for automotive applications. According to research conducted by Ford, a milky-white substance that is found in certain dandelion roots can produce a sustainable rubber that could be used to create plastic parts for vehicle interiors.

Audi A7 Sportback – Official photo leak

The Audi A7 Sportback Leaks Out We reported last week that Audi were due to reveal the Audi A7 Sportback tomorrow (Monday) at the Pinakothek der Moderne München in Munich. So it’s hardly a shock that the first official photos of the new Audi A7 Sportback have turned up ahead of the event. With the official reveal tomorrow – and some official detail likely to drop in to our inbox sooner than that after this leak – there isn’t too much point going in to huge speculation about what’s to come.

Audi Sport Quattro Concept arrives on video

It does seem almost a certainty that Audi are planning on building a production version of the Audi Sport Quattro concept we saw at the Frankfurt Motor Show last month. After all, Audi has already had one stab at a high-end recreation of the iconic quattro in 2010, turned up at Frankfurt with a second, more powerful, version and has now got that version running around on video to celebrate 100,000 Facebook Likes. If Audi are going to build the Sport Quattro it’s almost certainly going to be a limited edition run at a price that eclipses even the current range-topping Audi R8 V10 Plus.