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Bond

Bond Mark A - Mark D

Bond Mark A

The Bond Mark A was introduced In January 1949. It was powered by a Villiers 125cc engine whilst the deluxe version used a Villiers 197cc engine. The Bond "Mk A" initially was a very basic vehicle with a stressed skin aluminium body and  no doors. The aluminium body was formed over wooden patterns but was not actually fixed to a framework. Whilst the front of the vehicle had a girder type suspension the car had no rear suspension what so ever. The car also only had brakes on the back wheels and gear changing was by means of a lever on the dashboard.  Approximately 2000 "Mk A"'s were made until they gave way to the Bond Mark B.

The 1949 Bond Mk A. (My thanks to Nick Wotherspoon for allowing me to use this image from his web site.)

Bond Mark B

The Bond "Mk B" was first announced in June 1951. Whilst this shared many characteristics with the "Mark A" the "Mk B" featured rear suspension which gave a much more comfortable ride. Each suspension unit had a coil spring that could be adjusted for tension.Powered by the same 197cc Villiers engine, the vehicle was started using a handle connected to a modified kickstart lever or could be fitted with an optional electric starter. The Mk B came in four versions (a 2 - 3 seater Tourer, a Minivan, a Minitruck and a Family "Safety Saloon") Although the "Mk B" had many improvements over the Mk A, only 1414 were made.

Bond Mark C

The 1951 Bond Mk B. (My thanks to Nick Wotherspoon for allowing me to use this image from his web site.)

The Bond "Mark C" appeared in January 1953 though advertising for it had started as early as November 1951. The Mark C was totally different to the earlier Bonds. It featured "dummy wings" at the front of the car that actually housed a new steering device that allowed the car to be steered at 180 degrees. At the time for a 3-wheeler to be driven on a motorcycle licence it could not have a reverse gear, the 180 degree steering therefore meant that the Bond "Mark C" could turn around within its own length making the need for a revers gear almost unnecessary. Many other small changes also affected the Mark C that included some of the vehicles having steel rear wings (instead of fibreglass or aluminium) to help protect against bumps and knocks.

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Bond Mark D

The Bond Mark D arrived in May 1956. One of the most noticeable differences with this vehicle was that it now featured 12 volt electric's and larger, more reliable rear suspension units. The engine was available in two forms, uni-directional or reversing.  Using a 2-stroke engine meant that the reversing model could be be started to run the engine either forwards or backwards giving all the gears in both forward and backward motion. At first the Mark D used the same 3-speed Villiers gearbox but was eventually changed to a 4-speed version right at the end of production in October 1958. As the Family version of the Bond Mark D was so popular this was manufactured alongside the Mark E right up to the introduction of the Mark F in November 1958.

The 1956 Bond Mk C. (My thanks to Nick Wotherspoon for allowing me to use this image from his web site.)