Green Luxury

Star Island is located in the Bahamas, and is announcing exciting plans for an eco friendly future-in the form of a luxury resort powered by trade winds, sun and currents.  But it gets more fabulous. 

Star Island is a 35-acre cay near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera.  Developers intend to transform this island of sand, coral rock, and trees into the world’s first carbon-neutral island resort.  This eco friendly luxury resort will define green, with no reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

Who says luxury hotels can’t be eco-friendly?  The growing trend of going green has infiltrated even the most luxe of hotels, making strides toward a decidedly green future and preservation of our planet.

Savvy travelers in growing numbers are supporting conservation by selecting which establishments they visit, and that also extends to luxury hotels around the world. 

Yes, sustainable hospitality practices are becoming increasingly prevalent among the luxury hotels of today.  Many luxury hotels are becoming LEED Certified, which stands for “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design”.

Kia has a bit of a reputation for being cheap (likely because their models appear to be disposable).  Judging by their latest concept car unleashed at the Chicago Auto Show, they are working on altering that perception.  Yes, it would appear that Kia Motors has stepped up its game a notch, and is heading in a decidedly “green” direction.

Did the realm of hybrid cars suddenly take a turn for the worst?  You be the judge. Meet the Honda P-NUT, a concept Honda that is just, well, nuts. 

The Personal-Neo Urban Transport (P-NUT) features well-defined sloping angles, and actually succeeds in resembling its namesake, a peanut.

Is a fuel-efficient gas-electric hybrid luxury car a figment of fantasy, or is this automotive oxymoron potentially an upcoming player in the world of exotic cars? 

Of course the market is the central decision maker on the matter, and it stands to reason that a luxury hybrid could prove quite valuable and perhaps even common in the future, as greener standards are adopted across the board in the automotive industry.

The words Ferrari and hybrid both evoke powerful emotions, and yet, they do not seem to fit in the same sentence.  Well, hold your horses, as they are rumored to be prancing in that direction!

Mercedes-Benz has managed to successfully dodge typical hybrid traps of the trade by making no attempt to disguise the fact that the S400 Blue Hybrid is going to double as a racecar.

Instead, they have downsized the S550’s engine by 36 percent and replaced the 5.5-liter V8 with a 3.5-liter V6 in efforts to offer a luxury green vehicle that cuts costs even before the hybrid equipment is added for further enhancement.  The V6 boasts 275 horsepower, and just as the V6 4-cylinder Toyota Pruis, utilizes the fuel-efficient Atkinson cycle to extract optimum energy from each combustion cycle.

On the heels of the release of the first-ever Lexus LFA supercar, Toyota has announced it will pull out of Formula One racing in efforts to cut costs.  The economic downturn has certainly affected everyone, and costs incurred with Formula One racing can be extensive, even for the world’s largest automaker.

With stricter mileage standards and fuel economy effecting the purchasing decisions of people worldwide, the question still remains-can luxury cars be green?  Let’s face it, the mass-market hybrids that have emerged recently are about as exotic as a plastic tote.

The River Gym is essentially a mobile gym, powered by those working out inside of it, and floating along the river. The design is the brainchild of Mitchell Joachim, architect and eco-designer.  Joachim holds a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

Better known for $3,000 Birkin handbags and signature scarves, Hermes is testing the waters in the world of luxury yachts-with a concept that is making quite the splash.

Just after showboating its new Lotus Seven-esque e1 electric sportscar at the Frankfurt Motor Show, eWolf has released details and images of the e2 concept, its next protégé and gift to the world of exotic cars.

As the world begins to bud green sprouts from many an industry, none have taken more heat than the automotive companies to reduce their carbon footprint.  The main way to reduce the negative impact of autos is to develop new and environmentally sound methods of both building and operating them.  Enter Fisker Automotive.

Forward-thinking Yokohama just got fluid, developing an eco-friendly approach to peeling out with fuel-efficient tires made using oranges.  Fruity idea? Read on.

Bentleys have historically been big, heavy and not built for speed, until now. Bentley has produced the fastest supercar in Bentley history, the brand new Continental Supersports with FlexFuel technology. As Bentley’s Chairman and Chief Executive, Dr. Franz-Josef Paefgen, said, “The Continental Supersports reflects the passion and enthusiasm of Bentley’s engineers and designers. This is the fastest, most extreme Bentley ever, dramatically styled to underline its supercar character. Importantly, it also pioneers the use of FlexFuel technology in the luxury sector.”

Despite the fact that FlexFuel technology is already on the road, most Americans have no idea what's going on. In short, Flex-Fuel cars have an engine able to run on a mixture of fuels, like gasoline and ethanol. Ethanol fuel is an ethyl alcohol, kind of like the alcohol found in your alcoholic drinks. Ethanol or E85 is easy to produce from common crops like corn and sugar cane and is a renewable resource, which petroleum gasoline is not. Plus, Ethanol contains almost 34% less energy per unit volume than regular gasoline which translates into lower mileage per gallon.

The 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports is super-fast. And the stats stack up, 621 hp output, zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds and 204 mph top speed. Bentley engineering boss Ulrich Eichhorn says, "it is  a shock! -- a lightweight Bentley." Keep in mind, the Continental Supersports still weighs 4,800 pounds which means Bentley is basically an engineering miracle maker.  What began as a project to lighten up the Continental GT coupe and add some umph, materialized into an official new car program at Bentley. Now the Bentley Continental Supersports is slated to debut for Miamians in the flesh at Bentley Miami. Bentley Miami has invited a select few to witness the fastest, most environmentally efficient Bentley ever! This is progress