Comedy Car or Commercial Success? - Reliant's Three-Wheelers (Reworked)

[@greg5639]

My dad had three wheelers most his life . I still remember his first Reliant Regal van.ANU 995B. We where the only one in our cul-de-sac with a car , yet all the other kids would l laugh and say you've got a three wheeler / plastic pig . But were always happy being squeezed in the back for a day trip to Skeggy or onto the Tops of Derbyshire. Cheshire etc. Oh the care-free days of childhood in the late 60s and early / mid-70s 🙂

[@shona1578]

I love these cars. My late dad only ever drove Reliant three-wheelers after "upgrading" from motorbikes. The first car I remember was his blue four-seater Supervan III, BHN 776H, which he converted into an estate one day with a side windows kit from Halfords and a saw! I think the smartest car he ever had was the gleaming white Superrobin 850 estate, NEF 123P. We had some fun in that one, like the time we zoomed back from holiday at 80mph all the way up the motorway to the bemused looks of the four-wheeler drivers we passed... Or the time we raced the train, where the rail tracks and road ran side by side for miles... Ah, happy days! Thanks for jogging a few memories with such a respectful, informative video!

[@MagnaLynx21]

There's one that's on a street nearby me, I live in a Victorian / Edwardian town and seeing it go up and down the high street is a true delight.

[@josiebloggs5716]

I do enjoy whenever I see one of these charming little guys on the road they always make me smile :)

[@kawarps]

My first car was a 1987 reliant Rialto. I loved it. It was unique and practical.

[@Mookie1340]

Thank you for creating, such a great car, as I owned a Regal, whilst driving on a provisional Motor Bike Licence. Such great fun to drive. Had no problems with traffic, as the traffic was alway behind you. 😂

[@greg5639]

I remember the drivers always flashed their lights one another. Just like bike riders would nod their head at another bike rider. Somthing I still do when driving my car and making eye contact with a bike rider as I either give way to them or vice versa etc. Old habits hey ? 🙂👍

[@Mookie1340]

@@greg5639 Yes, it was always an old boy driving a 3 wheeler, would flash me, then shocked to realise a young twenty year old flashing him back. 😂

[@100SteveB]

Top Gear cheated when they showed the reliant tipping over so easily - they welded the rear differential together in order to encourage the car to tip much more easily than it would normally.

[@-DC-]

Similar to when they tested the Vectra VXR and pulled the ABS and Traction Control Fuses to create a story where one didn't exist.

[@Titan604]

Yes, and I understand they fitted a larger front wheel too to raise the centre of gravity.

[@johnsharkey1980]

@@-DC-Vectra 1.8i understeer terribly as do Zaria Mk1s Vauxhall have never been handling experts.

[@howardtayloresq.]

Really, 😮 I never knew that!

[@emaheiwa8174]

@@howardtayloresq.that show was full of BS 🤢

[@kirk5030]

Many years ago I had a Super Robin 850 and I drove it on my full motorcycle license. Great fun and quite nippy, but a bit hairy on windy days. I had it up to 85 mph ( on the speedometer) , once!!!

[@paulnolan1352]

They were popular with Signalmen for some reason in the late 60’s, 70’s. Often saw them parked next to Signal boxes and Rail Depots.

[@janhanchenmichelsen2627]

Never seen here (Norway), but I remember these cars from visiting the UK through the decades. Always intriguing.

[@jonntischnabel]

It used to annoy me when people called them a "robin reliant" , a bit like people saying "shandy bass" 😂🤦

[@captaindreadnought212]

You just can't help smiling when you see a Robin still on the road

[@bobcannell7603]

Mine saved me from motorcycling to work in deep Yorkshire winter for several years. It was cheap, reliable and economical and wasnt full of rust. If the regs had been changed to permit four wheelers would have totally changed life for people. A trabant that worked. Reputation not deserved. Top Gear lied about most things. I had a friend worked for them. Dont belive anything he said. The naked contempt thay had for their fans was sickening.

[@smada36]

My dad had a P reg Robin for a family car until I was ten. I always found it fascinating that when seeing another coming the other way the drivers would wave at each other. I drive a Smart FourTwo now but sadly drivers don't wave at each other. I feel that we should. However, I visited the States a few years ago and rented a Corvette. When I met other Corvettes coming the other way the drivers would wave to me. It brought back memories of my dad in the Robin and made me laugh.

[@Volker_GR]

Thank you very much! We Germans hardly know the little car from the road, but from Mr Bean 🙂 When it came to the question of the required driving licence, we also had a special feature in Germany. With the old class 4 driving licence, issued until 1954, vehicles of all kinds with a maximum of 250 cc could be driven. For this reason, Fiat 500s and Fiat 126s with a 14 hp two-stroke engine from the Goggomobil were available until the 1980s, most of them from the Steinwinter company. The Ellenator is a three-wheeler of modern times. A modern Fiat 500, four-wheeled, but with a narrow ‘Isetta track’ at the rear, so that the vehicle is considered a three-wheeler and with 20 hp can be driven by 16-year-olds with an A1 driving licence. Mostly financed by anxious parents to keep their offspring away from two-wheelers 🙂 And last but not least: Piaggio is currently discontinuing European production of the Ape. A sad day for all three-wheeler fans.

[@stevedickson5853]

From the mid 1970s onwards reliants had an 850cc - 40 bhp engine so were quite nippy

[@BakedRBeans]

Hello from USA. I'm glad someone mentioned Mr. Bean! (He didn't drive one, a bad guy chased him in one)

[@stevedickson5853]

@BakedRBeans it was an early 70s Reliant (Regal ) supervan , and it was Mr Bean that was the bad guy lol

[@TassieLorenzo]

@@stevedickson5853 Good point! But I guess it was meant to be a comparison of Bean's BMC Mini to unnamed's Reliant. Is it fair to say the Reliant is a superior economy car to a Mini, where the Mini has too many wheels?

[@ed_menno]

My dad always said some Robins were used by motorcyclists who didn't want the hassle of getting a car driving licence. I guess back in the day there must have been many people who found that a real bonus, but over time it was less and less of a USP for Reliant.

[@TheManFrayBentos]

There's still a place for a car like the Kitten - simple, cheap, reliable and economical. Easily repaired without a dealer computer and being ripped for parts. The three-wheeler is a no-go for modern buyers though - gotta be four. I say the above as a Reliant enthusiast for years; owned three Scimitars and well aware of the others for a long long time. If I could see a way of getting one of the Dolphins imported to here I'd look seriously at it.

[@volvo09]

The only issue with a small car like the kitten is that it's such a threat in any collision with modern vehicles. You'd have to drive like you were riding a motorcycle, always being aware of where a threat could come from.

[@FortunaFortesJuvat]

I see a new Ruairidh MacVeigh video, I know how my next 20 minutes will be spent!

[@KerbalRocketry]

really feel in these times that there's room for motor tricycles, fuel economic and small they'd suit most of our cities for deliveries

[@gregorylenton8200]

My dad had a Robin on THE ISLE OF MAN for years my opinion was this car was....FUN

[@hughofIreland]

Thanks for this video; I remember this car from years back. I had no idea of the backstory. Thanks again!

[@FlyingPlastic356]

10:24 ", Princess Anne has one of those, you know..."

[@shabbos-goy9407]

I lived in Gants Hill in the 70's as a very young boy. The main dealer Warrick Double sold them by the hundred. I remember the mechanics giving the Robins a shakedown PDI down my road on two wheels!! My fave colour was (and is) Magenta/Purple/Pink Robins and remains so.

[@jackking5567]

The Kitten was a great car. I once got a lift in a 3 wheeler and it terrified me - the knowledge that there was little stability at the front.

[@michaelclarkson2218]

One of my old friends had a Robin and a Rialto and I asked him what it was like to steer on a snow covered country lane with the one wheel in the front and he replied 'Pretty hairy'. 🙂

[@stevedickson5853]

They handled quite well in the snow I would leave other drivers by the side of the rd as my reliant just carried on regardless

[@jagmarc]

In thick snow like driving a pogo stick as the middle wheel bounces up and down on the heaped snow between the tracks left by 4 wheel cars.

[@emjackson2289]

Arguably "the Trabant of the UK" - and when you see just how big even the smallest car is these days - and yes, I understand they do need to be safe - one wonders will we ever get back to something that size e.g. original Fiat 500 or so?

[@TassieLorenzo]

That's true! Even Kei cars tend to maximise the Kei car dimensions and have quite tall and boxy shapes.

[@UncleJoeLITE]

Thanks RVM. 🇦🇺 These are odd 'cars'. _Makes me think of Tracey Ullman!_

[@mirzaahmed6589]

You mean RMV?

[@stevedickson5853]

Wow the Tracy Ullman vid I remember it, a Reliant Regal saloon if I remember her boyfriends in the video

[@UncleJoeLITE]

​@@mirzaahmed6589😂 yeah

[@UncleJoeLITE]

​@@stevedickson5853Paul McCartney 🎉

[@mickymondo7463]

I learned to drive in a Robin estate, and I still own a Kitten, although it is off the road due to the lower ball joints, which are a serious problem to find. I have been rebuilding my lower ball joints and refurbishing them to make them fully adjustable, so the Kitten should hopefully be back out in the new year. One day it will get a motorcycle engine fitted once I build a reversing gearbox for it, a Honda ST1100 Pan European motor squeezes in there quite easily.

[@sjcuk]

"Reliant's Three Wheelers" The Bond Bug wasn't mentioned.

[@stevedickson5853]

Owned two in the past, miss them both best fun i ever had driving around and the 1st one being the van version and the 2nd being an estate they seemed to gooble up anything in the back.

[@Foxonian]

One thing that did Reliant in was the elimination of the registration/cycle "loophole" in the early 2000's.

[@ccooper8785]

I remember back in 1976/7 my Grandfathers neighbour, his wife and their 5 children happily squeezing into a Robin van and setting off for a day out. As my Dad did not have a car, I was jealous and certainly not going to take the mick...

[@Your.Uncle.AngMoh]

Another great video, Rory. Thanks. This would be another great car to "retro" with a basic battery to drive around the city and suburbs. Restrict the power output to work within the capacities of the car with an option for a little extra power to be able to drive in motorway traffic for the odd intercity trip such as London to Oxford- which really isn't that much of a drive in a country such as Australia.

[@jadefalcon001]

I should be going to sleep. But nope! gotta watch this first!

[@paulframe85]

You've got a pony in your pocket. I'll get the suitcase from the van....

[@michaeloreilly657]

Nice to see your own work included in the video.

[@userscott]

Amazing video! I have a Reliant Robin and so very happy to see this!

[@RichardFraser-y9t]

Design for low cost and the mass market is hard.

[@lezking5060]

It's a shame that Reliant aren't still around now - The Robin/Kitten could have been the basis for a cheap, basic, but practical electric car and van.

[@More_Row]

I just imagine people tipping over all over the place like Clarkson when I see this vehicle. Would love to have one back then though.

[@stevedickson5853]

They don't tip over easily, top gear did things to theirs to make sure it did

[@More_Row]

@ oh yeah , I’m sure. The whole show is sort of scripted comedy show based around cars so that checks out.

[@TassieLorenzo]

@@stevedickson5853 While true, Robins seem to be rarely (ever?) raced in tarmac motorsport so is the cornering capability really all that high compared to rival Imps and Minis? Doesn't a single wheel axle severely lack roll stiffness (like a motorcycle with zero roll stiffness) compared to an axle with two wheels spaced apart?

[@stevedickson5853]

@TassieLorenzo Reliant 3 wheelers were never designed to race in motorsport, and if you drive them normally and not absolutely crazy they will not tip over I know because I've owned 2 of them and are quite stable and never rolled mine over

[@andyt2510]

Noticed the @HubNut sticker on the Kitten at 11:33.

[@BobAbc0815]

Who needs a 4th Wheel anyway?

[@drstevenrey]

Further down the road, I really want a Kitten. Me like a lot. What a sweet happy car.

[@brylcreemy]

Brian Murphy drove a Reliant in George & Mildred…the butt of many jokes in the show.

[@fivefootthreetothreefoot]

I keep expecting to see Jeremy Clarkson rolling one over in the background

[@jamesecroucher]

0:29 “would become one of the most successful car brands in Europe” 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@Richewhite-g1h]

I can still see Dell Boy and Rodders driving around in theirs

[@thomasfrancis5747]

No mention of Fox, Ant (both seen in the video) and Bug?

[@MrStr8den]

A picture of the V6 engined Reliant Scimitar sports car would not have gone amiss, especially where mentioning the housing estate that now sits where the factory used to be.

[@robertwilloughby8050]

Both. The answer is both. Comedy car AND commercial success.

[@SlavaArduino123]

For some reason decided to find the reliant today and this popped up

[@leedsman54]

I had a Supervan 3 in the mid seventies. I thought it was ok, my only gripe was that you seemed to feel every bump.

[@michaela21212]

Always fun dodging debris on the road 😅

[@andyrbush]

Well presented

[@darrensmith6999]

Great Video as always , Thank you (:

[@paulduffitt7338]

never heard of 26mpg from a morris minor ....what is your source?

[@CurioByBSpokeDesigns]

Regularly got more than 40 mpg from mine

[@drstevenrey]

Give me a '46 Regent and I will bolt a Honda Shadow ACE engine in there. It will go like stink. I like 'ye olde looke' of the Regent a lot. That could be a barrel of fun. What else was the Harley Davidson Servicar and that is a hoot as well.

[@jaex9617]

I'm thinking 70 MPH must've been pretty exciting.

[@Traincraft_Fan]

"comedy car", i think that is a Mr Bean reference

[@kevinbarry71]

It looks a lot like something I rode before I moved up to two wheels at age 4

[@duncancurtis5108]

Where would we be without the Trotter Trader of Peckham?

[@shatbad2960]

'Ere' you got a loisence for that'? 'Oh you have, that's fine then'....

[@jagmarc]

Robin Reliants I had two of these dammed things useless steering wandering all over the road and tips over onto side when making any sudden turn. And side turnings brake halfway through one then over it goes again. One thing about it went well over 90 MPH and really good on fuel.

[@AtheistOrphan]

RELIANT ROBIN!

[@PhilBurns-oc2vg]

Has anyone seen them banger racing? Absolute mayhem

[@daveash9572]

When you talk about licensing costs, do you mean the road tax?

[@Mitch-Hendren]

It was both, it was classed as a tricycle which only needed a motorcycle license rather than the expense of passing a car driving test , and the annual car tax rate was a third of the cost of a 4 wheeled vehicle , that and 60mpg on 2 star petrol ( the cheapest) it was quite a saving .

[@pullahuru9168]

Ah the car that mr Bean used to wedge out of the way

[@danielt.8573]

After Brexit the very first thing to do would've been to roll back all those big laws and little laws imposed by the EU for decades that lead to the demise of the british car industry. Same thing with farming by the way.

[@trewlove]

@HubNut sticker spotted

[@phwodehouse]

where is the ogle design bond bug?

[@roughchippy]

Your videos are excellent, but what's happened to the audio..... AI surely?

[@michaelmiller641]

It's his real voice!

[@mirzaahmed6589]

People couldn't afford the equivalent of 12 GBP?

[@-DC-]

Yep WW2 absolutely Destroyed the British Economy.

[@stevedickson5853]

People were still using war coupons till the early 50s and Britain broke after the war, times will have been tough

[@alexkirtel]

Sacrifice for the algorithm

[@kierancurtis8545]

Why is he speaking likes he's a robot these days?.

[@tonymento7460]

If you watch Mr . Bean DVD’s he has a 3 wheeler car

[@MattBrownbill]

He has a Mini. The 3 wheeler is his rival. Iirc

[@stevedickson5853]

Green Austin mini vs Blue Reliant Supervan 3

[@AtheistOrphan]

No he doesn’t. He has a Mini.

[@stephmaccormick3195]

Yeah... it's a comedy. Like UK's car sector.

[@numberstation]

🥱

[@Foxbat1155]

You've officially ran out of proper vehicles to comment on.

[@aerotube7291]

Lol

[@cooperised]

Lol

[@conradharcourt8263]

My word, what an original comment. You must be so very clever!

[@jaex9617]

Your Toyota Corolla awaits.

[@TassieLorenzo]

@@jaex9617 The Toyota Corolla is legendary! For some reason people prefer the old-fashioned rear wheel drive ones like the AE86 Sprinter and Trueno, though Toyota race teams ran both the Sprinter and front drive GTI/FX-GT in the 1.6L Group A class.