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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.

Crunch watch Nov 09: the auto industry in crisis

Welcome to CAR's news aggregator as we round up the seismic change in the auto industry. Top tip: news summaries are added from the top hour-by-hour Monday 30 November 2009• Saab's future is likely to become clearer tomorrow when the GM board meets in Detroit. It will have to decide whether to seek a new buyer or put Saab into liquidation (Financial Times)• Don't rule out an eastern bid for Saab: Beijing Automotive is still interested in buying the Swedish car maker despite its joint bid with Koenigsegg hitting the rocks, reports Automotive News.

Car industry needs to agree on an app standard

Application developers who want their programs to run in cars are flush with options -- too many options. They can choose to target Toyota Entune standard, Ford Smart Device Link, BMW Connect, and many more. All, by the way, completely incompatible with each other, meaning that any programmer who wants their app in multiple cars has a long road ahead of them.