Wunder Institute

Innovation is Proven in competition

One chocolate company decided to repurpose their scrap as fuel, creating one of the most powerful, efficient, cleanest and zero-waste energy options available.

B

ertha will take you on an adventure where technology and human beings have a symbiotic, rather than destructive, relationship with nature. She is a 1992 Mercedes Benz Diesel G-Class that has been fully restored and modified to run on a newly engineered bio-fuel. Driver and co-driver are two women committing to wit and grit as they navigate their way through the deserts and mountains of the American West using only map and compass. The destination is not a finish line. We’re driving straight into the future.

Preservation + Sustainability

Our world is at an important point in history. We are researching and creating a way to not only preserve the land beneath our feet, but to model systems that ensure coming generations thrive.

Human Empowerment

We believe that individuals are inherently powerful. However, not all are given the opportunity to share their story and reach their potential. We wish to change that by inspiring action, uniting communities, and providing models that empower others.

Scalability

Wunder is a movement that is scalable to a global level. What started as a simple solution is moving the needle for the rest of the world.

The Micro

65,000+

lBS of cocoa butter Waste diverted from landfill

30

year old Mercedes Benz Gelandewagen

1

team to change the world

The Macro

0

carbon footprint

1,000,000+

Humans empowered to take action

1

Global movement for good

Rebelle Rally

The Timeline

01

The Building

Part of our culture is to buy quality manufactured products, maintain them, restore when necessary and reinvent to improve. This is what we did with a heavily abused Mercedes G-Class. Bertha the G Wagon has been fully reconditioned, but she is now powered by a newly developed bio-fuel intended to transform the way the world understands diesel vehicles and energy. Honoring the craftsman and machine, we made a zero-waste vehicle fueled by Chocolove cocoa butter certified by the Rainforest Alliance.

02

The Testing

Testing the engineering of the vehicle and perfecting a bio fuel is where the most time and resources are spent. The vehicle is taken to the extremes of the earth and challenged in the grueling cold and altitude of the Rocky Mountains and the brutal deserts of California. By the time the competition starts, we will have driven 10,000km and put in 10,000 hours.

03

The Training

We not only want to prove the efficacy of vehicle and fuel, we want to prove ourselves and win in competition. Waking up at 5am every day for coordinate plotting, working as a full time professional and mother of three, and time behind the wheel are only a piece of the puzzle. Being able to shovel 32 cubic tons of sand and change 150lb tires are essential to being in contention for the win.

04

The Preparation

Bertha arrived with an OM 603 capable of approximately 135 HP. In the past year, we have rebuilt 2x OM 606 engines, attempted 3 different turbo configurations, amended the entire fuel system, reworked air delivery and cooling so that Bertha can contend with the most modern vehicles while NEGATING particulate emissions and reducing gaseous emissions by an estimated 80-90%.

05

The Competition

Competing to become some of the best drivers, bravest minds, and strongest women on the planet, the Rebelle Rally is 2,000+ kilometers of proving ground. When you cross the finish line, who you were before the competition will be a distant memory in the rearview mirror. When a Rebelle crosses the finish line, she stands in Wunder of who she has become.

Bertha the g wagon