Live in a Beetle?
2010-09-03 14:41
Never mind car-shaped beds or ‘green driving’, an actual Beetle-shaped house stands in Austria, testament to car lovers everywhere. And it is eco-friendly too.
Architect Markus Voglreiter designed this Volkswagen Bug. Located in Salzburg, Austria, the building is completely energy-efficient. With special heating and insulation that reduces energy consumption the home has become quite a land mark in this town, earning the name, the ‘auto residence’.
The Beetle house is divided into two areas, one for parents and one for children, allowing them to live separately. The walls contain a raft of windows and the inside boasts pinewood, metal staircases, sustainable technologies and energy saving systems.
Although on wheels, the house unfortunately cannot move. At night time though, the bedroom lights look like the real headlights of a car. Before it was redesigned by Voglreiter, the address was just an ordinary 70’s style house. It cost R8.5m to construct the three story home, with the design was based on the original 1935 Beetle.
Voglreiter’s penchant for automotive architecture also includes The Car, Das Auto in 2007, a Beetle-shaped restaurant. Costing just under R15 million, the restaurant can hold 300 people inside and 320 people on the outside terrace. Daniell Porsche had a role in funding the auto restaurant.
A car lover or just creative? No one is quite sure what Voglreiter’s reasons were to build a car-themed home. One thing is for certain though - his auto residence appeals (on some level) to car lovers everywhere.
