Britain’s most diabolical vehicle, the Sinclair C5, is making a comeback after 40 years – heads turned when I drove it
FORTY years ago, entrepreneur Sir Clive Sinclair unveiled the Sinclair C5 – which promised to be the future of transport.
With its white plastic body and futuristic display panel, the battery-powered three-wheeler looked like something straight out of Star Wars.
But despite a glitzy launch event, the project failed from the off.
Press and consumers were unimpressed, and it was pulled from production after just six months.
The negative headlines weren’t so bad for Sir Clive, who later won the affections of a string of beauties, including glamour model Vicky Lee plus former lapdancer and Miss England, Angie Bowness.
In any city today, though, you will be surrounded by scooters, bikes and cars all whizzing by with the distinct hum of an electric motor.
So was Sir Clive on to something after all?
There was only one way to find out — to take the C5 for a spin to see if we missed a trick all those decades ago.
It certainly didn’t seem that way at the launch event on January 10, 1985 at London’s Alexandra Palace.
In a dramatic unveiling, six C5s burst out of cardboard boxes driven by women dressed in matching grey and yellow outfits and lined up in front of the world’s media.
They had been expecting a car — but what emerged instead was a one-seater tricycle. But still, everyone there enjoyed scooting them round the arena.
It was all going to plan until the Press took them for a ride outside.
Heading down the hill away from Alexandra Palace was easy. But with its weak motor, the journalists couldn’t get them back up — and everyone was stuck at the bottom of the hill.
“It’s a Formula One bath chair,” mocked The Sunday Times.
Though advertised as having a 20-mile range and top speed of 15mph, in reality the lead acid battery could barely manage to deliver ten miles of range and only just hit 13mph.
It first went on sale for £399, just over £1,200 in today’s money, and was aimed mainly at suburban professionals.
Despite selling 2,000 of them a month after launching — with customers including Elton John and young princes Harry and Wills — interest quickly trailed off and production in the factory in Merthyr Tydfill, Wales, came to an end in June 1985.
Today it’s seen as little more than a relic of the wannabe space-age Eighties.
But a dedicated group of hobbyists are now restoring and upgrading the vehicles.
So I headed to the Sinclair C5 Depot in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where there is a collection of more than 50 refurbished models.
It was my chance to see if they deserve a comeback in 2025.
Looking like a cross between a jet ski and a go-kart, the C5 has a confusing layout with the steering handles beneath your half-outstretched legs.
But despite having to do a bit of yoga to squeeze in, once my bum was in the seat and my feet were on the pedals, the unusual steering design felt quite intuitive.
Speed of a road bike
Though good luck if you are any taller than six feet or haven’t managed to shed that Christmas dinner weight yet.
After a bit of pedal work, at a push off a button, the motor kicked in and we were off.
But I soon became aware of a few limitations.
No reversing too quickly — this would, apparently, kill the electrics.
More worryingly, the C5 came with standard bicycle brake pads, making it notoriously bad at stopping.
Brushing aside mental images of crashing, I sailed towards the coast at about the speed of a road bike. And if you’re wondering about suspension, forget it.
Freewheeling towards the sea, my life was in the hands of the Almighty.
But whizzing along the promenade, I did get a taste of the world the late Sir Clive envisaged. Passers-by stopped and gawked.
One even complained that I was faster than his golf buggy.
Save a few near-misses with beach huts and babies in prams, driving it was a breeze.
It wasn’t long, however, before the actual breeze was felt — a complaint made by many original owners — and it became hard to keep my thumb on the throttle button without feeling it was about to succumb to frostbite.
Thankfully, the C5 comes with a built in way of warming you up. And I’m not talking heaters.
Because if you have to tackle a hill you will soon be getting hot and bothered pedalling like a madman to give the motor a much-needed boost.
So do I think the Sinclair C5 deserves another lease of life?
For me, it’s a resounding yes.
It may bump you about, freeze your hands off, and even treat you to an unwanted workout.
But we are still trying to get from A to B and electric transport is here to stay.
So why not have a bit of retro fun while we’re at it?