BACK TO REALITY
The Robin made it to the Classic Motor Show at the NEC, so all David had to do was get it home again…
THE STORY SO FAR Miles driven 76 Total mileage 64,056 WIt’sh naet’esd geodne wrong another impromptu repair
DI’mAV pIrDouSdIM ISTER to announce that our Reliant Robin made it all the way to the NEC for this year’s Classic Motor Show without so much as a hiccup ( C, 1C4WNovember). Unfortunately, the bit of the return leg devoid of mechanical mischief was… about 50 yards.
I’ve long thought that Birmingham’s three-day smörgåsbord of motoring nostalgia is a bit of microcosm; it’s so easy to immerse yourself in what’s happening between the NEC’s walls that I’d put the journey back to Peterborough at the back of my mind. But the wonderful bit at the end of the NEC’s closing day when hundreds of classics all blare their horns to mark the end of the show quickly jolted me back to reality. Once we’d packed up the C stCaWnd, I headed over to the next hall to retrieve CBA.
Even though the Robin had behaved impeccably on its outing to Birmingham, part of me was dreading the drive back, because the twohour trip would be the fi rst time I’ve taken the Reliant out at night. I knew from its visit to the MoT station and subsequent outings on cold, miserable autumn mornings that its lights were working a treat, but how would they cope with the the poorly lit country lanes on the fi nal stretch back towards the offi ce? More worryingly, would the lorries slugging their way through the average speed stretches of the M6 simply miss the tiny three-wheeler altogether, making me the meat in a glassfi bre sandwich?
As it turned out I didn’t even get out of the NEC’s maze of access roads before it started to play up. I clambered into the Reliant, threaded my left knee past the deep-dish steering wheel and pulled the choke out, ready for the off.
The Robin’s starter motor throbbed eagerly, but just as the 850cc engine felt like it was about to burst into life, it died again.
‘Too much choke!’ shouted club stand manager, James Holland, who knows our car well, having spent most of this summer removing the old rotten chassis and fi tting a new one. It might have been bitterly cold outside and the car may not have run for four days, but he reckoned that the NEC’s warmth meant that it shouldn’t have needed as much assistance to fi re up as usual.
I followed his advice, but got the same result the second time. And the third and fourth. Then it suddenly fi red, so I threaded my way out of the hall’s doors.
My mobile phone rang about 15 seconds later, and when I pulled over to answer it, it was James informing me that CBA was leaving a trail of fluid in its wake – which turned out to be petrol. My heart sank. At best I’d be in for a long night; at worst I’d be heading home on the back of a breakdown lorry, and I’d be forced to borrow Chris’ Rover Tomcat. James and fellow ROC member, Adam Turpin, rushed out to help and it didn’t take them long to diagnose the problem – the carburettor float, which regulates the amount of fuel being sent to the engine, had jammed, forcing excess petrol out through an overflow pipe. Ahhh, that’d be the tricky start-up and the tell-tale drips explained (sorry, NEC safety people). Much to my relief, James and Adam reckoned that they had a spare one to hand – so they opened the bonnet and got the quickest Reliant repair in history underway. Just a quarter of an hour later, the Robin was back to its usual self again and another AA callout was avoided.
I ventured out of the NEC and onto the M6 rather nervously – but the car was spot on, behaving just as well as it did on the outward leg, quickly settling into its 65mph stride and even overtaking the occasional lorry. Even on the bit I was really dreading – those dark country lanes on the fi nal stretch back to base – it turned out that its Fiesta MkII headlights were more than up to the task of cutting through the darkness, even though there’s ( hopefully) a place reserved in hell for whoever is responsible for leaving all those potholes unfi lled.
Some two and a half hours after all those classic car horns had sounded to mark the end of another successful NEC show, CBA buzzed confi dently back into the C cCarWpark, mission accomplished.
The Robin’s next mission is manage a return journey without breaking down. Here’s hoping…