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Rinspeed builds a car of bamboo

Rinspeed announces its concept car for the 2011 Geneva auto show, the BamBoo.

Wayne Cunningham Managing Editor / Roadshow
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
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Rinspeed BamBoo
The BamBoo uses bamboo fibers in the construction of some interior components. Rinspeed

At next year's Geneva auto show, tuner and concept builder Rinspeed will show off an environmentally friendly concept car designed to evoke bronzed bodies soaking up the sun at St. Tropez. Although Rinspeed highlights bamboo in the car's name, only interior components are made from bamboo fibers, with a more conventional metal shell for the body.

Rinspeed BamBoo
The BamBoo comes with a foldable two-wheel electric bike. Rinspeed

In the past, Rinspeed has given us such wild concepts as the submersible sQuba and the iChange. In comparison, the BamBoo seems less ambitious, and even Rinspeed describes it as a "grown-up golf cart." Bamboo has become a favorite material for green construction because it replenishes itself quickly.

An electric powertrain propels the car, although Rinspeed offers no specifications for it. The press release also mentions an included two-wheel electric vehicle for that last mile. Think parking the BamBoo, then scooting around the narrow streets of a European town.

The 2011 Geneva auto show takes place from March 3 through March 13.