c.1973 Bond Bug Barn find condition; looks relatively complete and engine turns with a booster pack - very exciting! Bond Cars Ltd established themselves in Preston, Lancashire in 1965, not as a new business, but the result of re-naming Sharps Commercials Ltd, an earlier business formed by Lawrie Bond in 1948 who had produced quirky three-wheeled micro cars in the 1950s under the Bond banner.

The company was taken over by the Reliant Motor Co of Tamworth in 1970 who quickly closed down the Preston factory but continued to make cars under the Bond name, most notably the famous Bond Bug three-wheeler which came about after Reliant commissioned Tom Karen of Ogle Design to design a fun car.

Karen had worked with Reliant as early as 1963 for a modern three-wheeler to replace the popular Regal range, however his design was considered too adventurous and nothing came of this initial collaboration.

By the late 1960s, attitudes had changed and Karen’s design was dusted off and prepared for p...