Invacar

The Invacar (abbreviated from "invalid carriage") is a small single-seater microcar vehicle designed for use by disabled drivers, and was distributed for free in the UK.

In the number of former servicemen disabled in the Second World War they spotted a commercial opportunity and approached the UK government for support, leading to the creation of Invacar Ltd.[1][a] The British Ministry of Pensions distributed Invacars free to disabled people from 1948 until the 1970s.

Developments, including an extended wheelbase, widened track and use of Austin Mini wheels, saw the Invacars through to the end of the final DHSS contract in 1977.

[5] On 31 March 2003, almost all of the remaining Invacars owned by the government were recalled and scrapped because of safety concerns.These included failing crash tests at Mira in 1974, a high accident rate and poor handling test results.

Their use had been in decline since the introduction of the Motability scheme in the late 1970s, offering disabled drivers a conventional car with modified options.