The Fox was one of several small four-wheeled economy vehicles produced by Reliant, a manufacturer well known for its three-wheeled cars and trucks.

Because of the law, several companies built such vehicles in Greece, including Namco, Autokinitoviomihania Ellados, MAVA, Automeccanica and others.

MEBEA, which had already built the Robin under licence, modified the four-wheel chassis of the Kitten to carry greater weight and developed the prototype of the light utility vehicle which would become the Fox, complete with glass-fibre reinforced body.

Thus, "MEBEA did what other Greek companies had also done": it found a partner abroad to obtain type certification, for which the procedure was much easier for vehicles that were already certified in another country.

[citation needed] Reliant started producing the Fox in its Tamworth factory in 1983, as an "informal successor" to the Kitten.

[6] However, another website says that in 2017, UK vehicle registration data showed 37 Foxes licensed for road use and 123 on full- or part-time SORN.

Reliant hoped that it would "fill a niche" left by the British Motor Corporation taking the Mini Moke out of production.

[11] The yellow top also had more low-end torque and by lowering the Fox's rear axle ratio to 4.1:1, it was able to pull additional weight.

Heavier springs and a more robust tie bar on the front suspension were added to make the vehicle more suited to commercial uses.

[13] Other vehicles built on Kitten/Fox running gear are the Cipher, the Jimp, the Salamander, the Asquith van and the Liege sports car.