Japan toilet maker unveils 'poop-powered' motorbike

Aug 29, 2012
A model with Japanese toilet maker TOTO's eco-friendly motorcycle "Toilet Bike Neo", a "poop-powered" motorcycle that can travel as far as 300 kilometres (180 miles) on a tank filled with animal waste.

Japan's best-known toilet maker on Wednesday unveiled a "poop-powered" motorcycle that can travel as far as 300 kilometres (180 miles) on a tank filled with animal waste.

Billed as the world's first waste-powered vehicle, the three-wheeler has a toilet in place of a regular seat and huge paper roll at the back.

But as a young female model climbed aboard for a test drive Wednesday, toilet giant TOTO was quick to point out that she would not supply the "gas".

"The it uses as fuel is not made from human waste. It's made from livestock waste and sewage," Kenji Fujita, a company spokesman, told reporters in a Tokyo suburb.

"We hope to raise awareness among customers about our green campaign through development of environmentally-friendly products such as water-saving showerheads and water-saving toilets," Fujita added.

The company—which makes toilets equipped with an array of features including heated seats, water jets with pressure and temperature controls, and ambient —has no plans to commercialise the motorcycle.

Explore further: Tech revolution ends up in the toilet

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