Top Gear
3 HN mentions · mentioned in 3 months, 2014–2021
9:45 · 6.1M views · Dec 18, 2008
Top Gear segment in which Hammond and May try to turn a Reliant Robin into a space shuttle. Launching is easy, but landing it safely is the problem.
Mostly referenced as a funny aside when space shuttle or small cars come up.
3 comments from Hacker News
I get images of Topgears Renault Robin space shuttle clone in my head. While obviously not hitting the heights the shuttle can it was an impressive endeavor that might satisfy your curiosity; this video
Doesn't matter. If you take the conservative assumptions that go into manufacturing, say, a car and apply those to a rocket, you'll get something that won't even lift off the ground, much less make orbit. Any rocket HAS to be very close to the limits of what materials used allow, and not the +50% margin of error you routinely seen in other fields. What you say about SpaceX is true, but only relative to the rocket industry as a whole. E.g. SpaceX uses cheap, available materials and simple designs over exotic composites and complex mechanisms. But they still operate close to the margins, as they have to in order to have any payload capacity at all. In fact, the move to steel probably reduced their mass margins even further. EDIT: Actually maybe I shouldn't have used a car as an example: this video
I mean sure, we've seen the capabilities of the Reliant Robin as a tiny 3-wheeled car, so electrifying such a vehicle only makes sense. First, the incredible handling on cobblestone and narrow streets in the UK: [LINK] Then later, scientists were actually able to launch one into outer space as a viable alternative to the space shuttle: this video