A HIT-and-run driver almost killed a South Yorkshire teenager when he deliberately drove at him - in a three-wheel Reliant.
Detectives today widened the search for the driver who left 19-year-old Dean Newson so badly injured he nearly died on the operating table during emergency brain surgery.
Dean, who was walking home with mates when he was hit, now has a titanium plate in his skull after part of it was cut away to relieve bleeding in his head.
He is still suffering from short-term memory loss more than a year after the incident in Clifton, near Conisbrough.
Police say the crash was deliberate and they are treating the case as attempted murder.
They know the vehicle driven at him was a Reliant three-wheeler and they have spent months combing South Yorkshire for the owners of similar vehicles but so far have not tracked down the driver, who also had a passenger with him.
Dean's dad Mark says they are desperate to see justice done because of the effect it has had on the Warmsworth family.
"It took two weeks for the hospital to realise there was bleeding on Dean's brain and they rushed him straight to the Royal Hallamshire where they operated within the hour. They almost lost him on the operating table and they told us he wouldn't have lived beyond the next day if they had not carried out the cranial lobotomy.
"He was then in an induced coma for five days and he came home after 10 days but there had to be someone with him all the time for the next six months until he could have the plate fitted over the hole in his head. My wife and I had to take six months off work to look after him.
"He has done remarkably well but suffers from short-term memory loss and we are told he may suffer from epilepsy later in life. He has started a plumbing course but is having to study harder than other people because of his memory problem," said Mr Newson.
A year after the incident on Saturday October 11 2008 at 1.30am in Clifton village, Doncaster police are appealing for information from the public to help them trace the car, which would have been damaged in the incident.
Dean had been on a night out in Conisbrough with some friends and they were walking through Clifton when a blue three-wheeled car with two men inside passed them and stopped.
The driver of the car got out and assaulted one of the men in the group but then got back in the car and drove into the group at speed.
Dean was unable to move out of the way in time and was hit by the car, which failed to stop, and he rolled over the vehicle and hit his head on the road.
Mark added: "They all scrambled up a bank to get away but Dean was too late. There is no obvious reason as to why he used that car as a weapon and we would like as much information from the public as possible.
"We realise the car might have been repaired by now but we hope someone will recognise the description as being a Reliant driver they might know.
"This man has really affected Dean's life.
Before this happened he was hoping to join the Army but that's gone now because of his injury."
The driver of the car is described as a white man, around 5ft 9ins tall and of a stocky build. He has dark wavy hair and was aged about 20. The passenger was white, about 16, with light brown hair.
Det Con Andy Knowles said: "Since the incident, police have been searching for the suspect and the car and have visited owners of similar cars throughout the area. Even though three-wheeled cars are rare, there are still hundreds throughout South Yorkshire but it is quite an unusual car for young people to be driving.
"I am confident the public can help us, by providing information on three-wheeled cars that are maybe damaged or owned/driven by a person matching the suspects' description. This man was deliberately knocked down and sustained injuries, which almost cost him his life. I would urge the public to help us."
Anyone with information should contact DC Knowles on 01302 385676 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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