Reliant Van Insurance
T.L Williams created Reliant in 1935 to take over the manufacturing of the Raleigh 3 delivery van that he invented in 1933. An English manufacturer, the company was based in Tamworth at Staffordshire for most of its existence, before it moved to Cannock in 2001.
The Raleigh 3 was first powered by a 750 cc V Twin engine, but later featured a four cylinder variation on the famous Austin 7 engine. A car version of the Raleigh 3 van debuted in 1952.
Reliant is notable in that it produced a number of composite-bodied vehicles that catered to specialised markets, such as the Scimitar, Sabre, and SS1, all of which were sports cars. Additionally, the Reliant Robin, Regal, and Rialto were all three-wheeled economy cars. The Reliant Bond Bug also falls in this grouping, and it was a short-lived fun car.
The 1980s saw Reliant build the Reliant Fox, a utility/pickup. The Fox was a forerunner to other, four-wheeled variations on the Robin, including the Kitten and Rebel models. Due to their expertise where it came to building cars with composite bodies, Reliant was also instrumental in the design and production of lightweight shells for the Ford RS200, a Rally car, and the newer London taxicabs which have glass fibre bodies and were the first London taxis to have wheelchair provisions built into them.
Something of a niche brand, Reliant now spends the majority of its time importing specialised European vehicles, such as those made by Piaggio and Ligier.
