DaveH Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 Correct Dave - Regal it is/was. I found this for some more info: THE BOND BUG Hey what an amazing number of replies and posts to my mention of having a 3 wheeler. As a vehicle which was often derided, laughed at and ridiculed I am amazed at how popular this has become. Reliant are now out of business, - but it looks like with the interest here there could still be a market for them lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart0742 Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 As a vehicle which was often derided, laughed at and ridiculed I am amazed at how popular this has become. and that was only your wife Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 and that was only your wife She stopped laughing after going in the Rialto on 2 consecutive days with me in 1988. Day 1, me wife + 2 daughters go to Mitchells tiles on Chesterfield Road, load the Reliant up with enough tiles, adhesive, grout, ourselves and other stuff to redo our bathroom. It was so heavy it just about bottomed the suspension and lifted weight off the front wheel making the steering a bit light. Blokes I got to load thought I would never be able to pull away with such a load as it was an uphill start. Got it going, acceleration was very sluggish and braking distance was noticably longer but it drove OK. POINT MADE, It had enough power to pull a reasonably large load, more than you would want to put in a car of that size. The 410kg limit is an unlaiden (kerbside) weight but it did have a loading of up to 8cwt, a suitably large load. Day 2, me wife + 2 daughters decide not to start on bathroom but to take a day trip to Cleethorpes. We go in the Rialto by the Parkway / M1 / M18 / M180 route. It takes us only just the top side of an hour to get there from our drive to the promenade parking. An average speed of, er, well, ahem, 70mph POINT MADE, It was just as fast as any other car and could travel long distances at the maximum speed permitted by law on UK motorways. After that I suppose like anyone she was quite impressed. She wasn't with me the day I got a front wheel puncture though, - now that can be quite scarey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart0742 Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 She stopped laughing after going in the Rialto on 2 consecutive days with me in 1988. Day 1, me wife + 2 daughters go to Mitchells tiles on Chesterfield Road, load the Reliant up with enough tiles, adhesive, grout, ourselves and other stuff to redo our bathroom. It was so heavy it just about bottomed the suspension and lifted weight off the front wheel making the steering a bit light. Blokes I got to load thought I would never be able to pull away with such a load as it was an uphill start. Got it going, acceleration was very sluggish and braking distance was noticably longer but it drove OK. POINT MADE, It had enough power to pull a reasonably large load, more than you would want to put in a car of that size. The 410kg limit is an unlaiden (kerbside) weight but it did have a loading of up to 8cwt, a suitably large load. Day 2, me wife + 2 daughters decide not to start on bathroom but to take a day trip to Cleethorpes. We go in the Rialto by the Parkway / M1 / M18 / M180 route. It takes us only just the top side of an hour to get there from our drive to the promenade parking. An average speed of, er, well, ahem, 70mph POINT MADE, It was just as fast as any other car and could travel long distances at the maximum speed permitted by law on UK motorways. After that I suppose like anyone she was quite impressed. She wasn't with me the day I got a front wheel puncture though, - now that can be quite scarey. I thought the story was when the bloke in the shop asked what type of car you had, she replied "we have not got a car its a Reliant 3 wheeler" Then there was that lump in the road around the corner from my house, that was designed to trip up 3 wheelers but was ok for normal cars Sorry I should have added my name to my last post :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 I thought the story was when the bloke in the shop asked what type of car you had, she replied "we have not got a car its a Reliant 3 wheeler" Then there was that lump in the road around the corner from my house, that was designed to trip up 3 wheelers but was ok for normal cars Sorry I should have added my name to my last post Yes Stuart both of these are true. It was in Mitchells tile shop where the assistant asked before he took the load of tiles out to the car park on a fork lift truck what sort of car we had and my wife did say that. They didn't think the car would take the load but were very impressed when it did. That lump was a bit of a problem, as was avoiding hedgehogs and cats and things. You had to be aware that the wheels were not on the sides of the car with clear space underneath, you had a wheel under the centre of the car as well which hit obstacles that normal cars could straddle. But these days with all those damn speed bumps its near impossible to avoid them whatever you drive and its nackered suspensions all round. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 5, 2010 Share Posted April 5, 2010 But these days with all those damn speed bumps its near impossible to avoid them whatever you drive and its nackered suspensions all round. Glad I have been reminded of these posts by a recent link. My current car, a Vauxhall Corsa, has recently cost me a fortune to get through its MOT as it had to have all 4 suspension units and springs replaced. Now, what was I saying about those bloody speed bumps and their effect on car suspension units? :o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only me Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 My first car was a mini 850 bought from an auction. I loved the old rotbox fords especially the 1600E cortina. Here is a couple of pics, i sold the cortina a few years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 My first car was a mini 850 bought from an auction. I loved the old rotbox fords especially the 1600E cortina. Here is a couple of pics, i sold the cortina a few years ago. I think Stuarts first car was a Mk. III Cortina 1600E and I'm suprised he hasn't posted anything on here yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only me Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 I think Stuarts first car was a Mk. III Cortina 1600E and I'm suprised he hasn't posted anything on here yet. It probably was a 2000E like this one Dave......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 It probably was a 2000E like this one Dave......... I'm pretty sure it was a 1600, - but I'll wait until he replies on that one. My dad also had a Mk III Ford Cortina 1600, this one Previous to that he had a Ford Corsair 2000E similar to this one This was a great car until one day in 1978 when, coming home from my grandad's on the Herdings a young lad in a mini on the wrong side of the road came crashing into him at Herdings bus terminus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart0742 Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 It probably was a 2000E like this one Dave......... Unfortunately it was nothing as grand as that, it was the base level Ford Cortina 1600, did not even manage an "L", all pretty basic in them days, vinyl seats, no radio, no heated rear screen etc. But You could do all your own maintenance and stuff with some spanners and a socket set, oh and a big hammer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only me Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 I'm pretty sure it was a 1600, - but I'll wait until he replies on that one. My dad also had a Mk III Ford Cortina 1600, this one Previous to that he had a Ford Corsair 2000E similar to this one This was a great car until one day in 1978 when, coming home from my grandad's on the Herdings a young lad in a mini on the wrong side of the road came crashing into him at Herdings bus terminus. Hope you dont mind me correcting you Dave but the top car (your dads) was a Mk 4. The 2000E corsair had the sort after gearbox. People who had the cortina mk2 1600E would often fit these gearboxes as they were more suited to the 1600GT engines than the factory fitted ones. The red 1600GT in my pic had the corsair 2000E box fitted. The MK2 GTs and 1600Es were almost same except for some trim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vox Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 The 2000E corsair had the sort after gearbox. Was that the "Bullet Box"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vox Posted April 6, 2010 Share Posted April 6, 2010 You could do all your own maintenance and stuff with some spanners and a socket set, oh and a big hammer. How did we do this and what did we use. I was in Cornwall with my cousin in a Datsun Cherry 100A. One of the engine mountings had been busted for ages and eventually the bolts dropped out of the other one so the engine all but dropped out. So how did me 'n' my cousin lift the engine (which was hanging on the drive shafts and the stabiliser bar/s) back into place and bolt it back up ? We searched around and found what we eventually used at the side of the road. Remember, the bolts in the one good mounting had dropped out altogether. Miles from anywhere and NO tools. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart0742 Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 How did we do this and what did we use. I was in Cornwall with my cousin in a Datsun Cherry 100A. One of the engine mountings had been busted for ages and eventually the bolts dropped out of the other one so the engine all but dropped out. So how did me 'n' my cousin lift the engine (which was hanging on the drive shafts and the stabiliser bar/s) back into place and bolt it back up ? We searched around and found what we eventually used at the side of the road. Remember, the bolts in the one good mounting had dropped out altogether. Miles from anywhere and NO tools. Did you use a pair of women's tights or was that for something else he he Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only me Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 Was that the "Bullet Box"? Thats right Vox, I think the Lotus Cortina also had this gearbox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 Hope you dont mind me correcting you Dave but the top car (your dads) was a Mk 4. The 2000E corsair had the sort after gearbox. People who had the cortina mk2 1600E would often fit these gearboxes as they were more suited to the 1600GT engines than the factory fitted ones. The red 1600GT in my pic had the corsair 2000E box fitted. The MK2 GTs and 1600Es were almost same except for some trim. Yes you're right it was a Mk IV now I come to think of it. I'm not that good at identifying cars but I can tell you that the motorcycle behind the car, which was mine, is a Honda CX500. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 You could do all your own maintenance and stuff with some spanners and a socket set, oh and a big hammer. ..and you didn't need your own drive or a garage either, - you could do it in the middle of the road! I had a couple of friends with a traction engine who retubed the boiler in the middle of the street once. :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 Did you use a pair of women's tights or was that for something else Were the tights to lift the engine into place with or to fasten it in place afterwards? Besides, vox didn't mention any female occupants in the car and he said he found what they used at the side of the road. I'm not sure how vox got out of this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vox Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 Were the tights to lift the engine into place with or to fasten it in place afterwards? Besides, vox didn't mention any female occupants in the car and he said he found what they used at the side of the road. I'm not sure how vox got out of this situation. In the interest of brevity I didn't mention our wives and a trailer. We'd left the trailer (along with a toolbox) at the campsite while we went out for the day. We didn't even have the jack and wheel-brace. But no! - - tights were not involved. And here's my cousin, his wife, and mine, with the Datsun. Cornwall, 1984 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 In the interest of brevity I didn't mention our wives and a trailer. We'd left the trailer (along with a toolbox) at the campsite while we went out for the day. We didn't even have the jack and wheel-brace. But no! - - tights were not involved. And here's my cousin, his wife, and mine, with the Datsun. Cornwall, 1984 Hey it was in 1984 that I did a 2 week camping tour of the entire south west peninsula (thats all of Cornwall) with my disabled friend from the Fellbrigg, Pete Orton. We went down in my first, very clapped out, 3 wheeled Reliant Robin van and we had some adventures with that. Shredded the front tyre to pieces on the M5 near Gloucester on the way down We lost the front wheel hub cap (twice) and get funny looks when we tried to buy a replacement one, getting the reply, - "Them 3 wheelers don't need a front wheel hub cap, - it's under the car where you can't see it" They DO have a front wheel hub cap, a fairly vital component as it keeps water and dirt out of the heavily greased front wheel bearings. Had to patch a large hole in the exhaust, twice, once in the car park at Boscastle and once on the A43 near Oxford on the way home after finishing our tour at Bournmouth. The car park and main street at Boscastle is the one which became devastated by floods 20 years later in the summer of 2004. Interesting thing was, we pulled up in this car park knowing that we had to repair the exhaust. Across the road was a "garage" if you can call it that, a single pump for fuel outside and inside piled high with allsorts of junk. I went in and asked if he had a silencer bandage to repair the exhaust, not holding out much hope that he had. "Ooo Arr" said the owner in a nice SW England accent " Reckon oi got warn o' them somewhere". He turned around and picked one off the shelf directly behind him and handed it to me Having paid him and got outside the shop, being suprised that he had actually got them I looked at the packet it came in and on the bottom of it it said - "Made in Boscastle, Cornwall, England" lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markbaby Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 OK, first car eh? Mine was a 1969 Wolseley 16/60 in blue and cream. The interior was blue leather with walnut cappings to the dashboard and doors. My dad bought it for me from one of his work colleagues for £150. I didn't want it at first because it was an "old man's" car, but soon grew to love it. It had a four speed manual box with no syncromesh on 1st gear so it made a lovely roaring sound a bit like the old buses. When I got it the floor was covered with off cuts of old carpet about four or five layers thick. i soon turfed these out and found a big rusty patch in the driver's footwell. My mate and I soon patched this up with a piece of sheet steel and it was a good as new. It wasn't until it rained one night that i found out that it wasn't exactly water tight. I opened the drivers door and there was a good 2" of water in the footwell, held in by the steel patch! A swift belt with a hammer and screwdriver soon created a new "drain hole". The car ended it's days by being written off by a kid on a motorbike! My second car I bought for myself from one of the owners of "Sweeney's" hairdressers. The Vauxhall VX4/90 cost me £750. I loved this car! 2.3 litre, 4 speed box with overdrive on 3rd and 4th, Tropic Green Starfire metallic paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syrup Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 My first car was a 1952 Ford Prefect ( First Picture excuse my Sister and her friend ) which i bought for £48 i managed to get it cheap because the clutch was slipping i was an apprentice motor mechanic at the time so that wasn't a problem, i didn't have a full licence at the time so L plates were a must, so a workmate of mine who had a licence kept it at his home and would call for me for work in a morning so i could drive it to and from work, that worked fine until i failed my test with Kenning's ? Driving School ( Morris 1000s) so i sold it to my Mother because she preferred it to her 1956 Ford Popular second picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 8, 2010 Share Posted April 8, 2010 OK, first car eh? Mine was a 1969 Wolseley 16/60 in blue and cream. My dad also had a Wolseley, except that his was a Wolseley 1500. Seen here being cleaned on the drive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted April 8, 2010 Share Posted April 8, 2010 My first car was a 1952 Ford Prefect ..and my dad also had a Ford Prefect, - seems to have had a lot of cars in his time my dad!! His was a later model than syrups and looked nothing like it, I think it was a 1960 / 1961 model and it had a totally different body shape. Unfortunately he had this car when I was quite young and so I have no photo of what it looked like for comparison. Can only really remember 2 things about it.- 1} For some reason it was a continental left hand drive model. We were going out one day with dad driving and me in the passenger seat. We were going around Manor Top roundabout (in the days when Manor Top was a roundabout), having come up City Road we were going straight ahead down Ridgeway Road. A Bloke in another car which had come up Prince of Wales Road onto the roundabout behind us ran into the back of us on the roundabout. This guy immediately admitted liability and offered the apology, - "Sorry mate, - I thought that the young lad was driving it" 2} Like a lot of Fords with the 100E or 105E engines it had the big rubber tube thing which connected the engine to the radiator carrying hot water from the engine back to the radiator. It was always bursting once the engine started to get really hot, resulting in the front of the car dissappearing in a cloud of steam. :angry: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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