‘Take that Jeremy Clarkson!’ Grandfather turns three-wheel Reliant Robin into tank

It may only have three wheels, but this Reliant Robin comes complete with tank tracks and machine guns and has been built with Jeremy Clarkson in mind.

Bernard Reeves, 67, got so fed up with the flak the Top Gear presenter would give the model on his show that he decided to spend six months converting the three-wheeler.

Now that his work is complete the retired restorations specialist has named the vehicle “Rugged Robin”.

The beast is kitted out with tank-like tracks and a Browning 50 calibre machine gun, as well as a Vickers machine gun and two further sub-machine guns. The “Rugged Robin”, which Bernard claims is capable of around 50mph, is certainly a far cry from Del Boy and Rodney’s much maligned yellow three-wheeler.

“The Reliant Robin is a handsome little car which has been much loved by the thrifty working man and the young driver just starting out,” he said. “It has become the butt of ridicule and bullying, particularly by one Jeremy Clarkson, a public school buffoon who really should know better, the blighter.

Bernard Reeves built the vehicle to belie the negative connotations of the Reliant Robin. Image- SWNS.“So when the lady across the road gave me a Reliant I thought I would do something silly with it. I decided to put some tracks on it and it worked, it is fantastic to drive and will go anywhere - it is like a normal car.”

The Robin still has its original 850cc engine but the rest of the vehicle is a hybrid, as it has the rear-axle from a Bedford van, Land Rover gearbox mountings, a front-wheel from a Hillman Imp and suspension coils from a Honda 90.

Bernard said that the bizarre contraption could be driven on the roads as vehicles with tracks don’t require MOTs. It also came at a snip as most of the parts came out of skips.

“I have had so much fun with the Rugged Robin and when I took it to the War and Peace military show it went down really well,” he added.

“People were falling about loving it. Everyone seemed to like it, including the ex-military personnel.”