Two Men Drive 3-Wheel Reliant Robin 14,000 Miles to Cape Town

Two men just proved that determination beats horsepower when they completed an epic 14,000-mile journey across Africa in a car famous for tipping over.

Ollie Jenks from the UK and Seth Scott from Canada spent over 90 days driving a Reliant Robin from London to Cape Town. The quirky English car has only one front wheel and was designed for quick trips to the grocery store, not crossing an entire continent.

Their silver Reliant Robin, lovingly named Sheila, was one of the last ever built. The previous owner told them it made him nervous to drive more than 20 miles in a single trip.

"No power steering, no air con, and it doesn't do well up hills or down them," Jenks told the South China Morning Post. "It is the most unsuitable car for probably any journey."

The duo documented their adventure on Instagram under the handle Hold My Gear, posting daily videos of their triumphs and disasters. In Ghana, their transmission completely failed, stranding them for five days until fellow Reliant Robin enthusiasts in the UK found a replacement and shipped it to them.

When their engine exploded later in the journey, the same community stepped up again. The kindness of strangers kept Sheila rolling through 22 countries.

The challenges went beyond mechanical failures. They drove through Benin during a military coup and received a military escort in Cameroon alongside local buses, which eventually abandoned them after too many breakdowns.

Their resourcefulness shone through in creative solutions. When their radiator failed in Namibia, they rigged the windshield wiper fluid pump to spray water directly onto the radiator to keep it cool.

Why This Inspires

The journey proves that impossible goals become possible with creativity and community support. Jenks and Scott could have quit after any of their countless breakdowns, but the encouragement from strangers across two continents kept them moving forward.

Their daily videos show genuine human connection overcoming technological limitations. From bribing Nigerian police officers with gas station candy to performing roadside repairs with whatever materials they could find, the pair turned every obstacle into an adventure worth sharing.

Sheila now rests in the London Transport Museum, where she earned her place by helping set two world records. Her battered body tells the story of what happens when tenacity meets kindness on the open road.