Now here's a "car" you can truly live in... What you're looking at in these pictures is the "Auto Residence" home and its sister project, "The Car . Das Auto" restaurant, both of which are located near Salzburg Austria. Although it may take a wee bit of imagination to figure it out, the design of the two buildings is themed after the classic Volkswagen Beetle.
Buckle up now so we can tell you the whole story. It all started almost a decade ago when the owners of mundane 70's style home built on the border of a nature preserve in Gnigl near Salzburg, turned to architect Markus Voglreiter with a crazy idea; transform their home into something that resembles a car and more specifically, the original VW Bug. Their dream came true with the completion of the project in 2003.
In addition to its unique styling that includes some snazzy details like the headlamp shaped windows and suspension spring-themed columns inside, the "Auto Residence" is also eco-friendly making use of what Voglreiter describes as "a 3-liter energy heating and insulation technique that optimizes all current building technologies, drastically reducing energy consumption."
Apparently, the VW Bug-inspired home was a hit in Austria as four later, Voglreiter went ahead and designed a larger in size -and dare we say sportier looking- version in the form of a restaurant and bar called the "The Car . Das Auto". Located north of Salzburg, the car-shaped restaurant is said to have cost approximately €1.6 million to build.
Source: Markus Voglreiter / Stadtbaumeister
