Reid was educated at Loretto School in Edinburgh. He spent the early part of his career in Formula Three and other junior single-seater championships without breaking into Formula One, despite receiving a letter of acceptance from the Jordan F1 Team in 1991. That opportunity collapsed when his Japanese property-company sponsor went under due to the economic downturn in Japan, leaving Reid unable to raise the required sponsorship. The Jordan seat went instead to Bertrand Gachot, who was subsequently jailed and replaced by Michael Schumacher. Reid kept the letter of acceptance in a frame on his bathroom wall.
Reid won the Japanese Formula Three Championship in 1992, the same year he began a successful stint in Japanese touring cars. Driving an ex-BTCC Vauxhall Cavalier for Team HKS, he won multiple races in the Japanese series between 1992 and 1996 and finished fourth overall in 1994 against a field that included Tom Kristensen, Steve Soper, and Joachim Winkelhock. That form brought him to the attention of BMS Scuderia Italia, which ran the works Nissan team in Europe.
Reid's endurance career began in earnest at the 1990 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he drove the Alpha Racing Porsche 962C in Group C1 and finished third overall, winning among the non-works entries. He returned to Le Mans the following year in a 962C with Konrad Motorsport. Later outings included a McLaren F1 GTR with the Lister Storm in 1996 and MG Lola appearances in 2001 and 2002, when his car claimed pole in class before gearbox failure ended the run. In 2005 Reid drove for Scuderia Ecosse in a Ferrari, qualifying with a best lap of 4:13.237 before a delaminated tyre forced a retirement.
Reid joined the BTCC in 1997 with RML, running the new works Nissan Primera alongside David Leslie. After a development-heavy first season, he delivered his best results in 1998, fighting for the title until the final round before losing to Sweden's Rickard Rydell. He moved to Prodrive for 1999 to help develop the works Ford Mondeo, and in 2000 came within two points of the championship — a collision at the last round of the season costing him the title by the narrowest possible margin to teammate Alain Menu.
From 2001 Reid drove for West Surrey Racing in the MG ZS, winning the final race of the 2001 season as a non-points entrant. In 2004, with MG withdrawn from the programme, WSR struggled to secure funding but managed to enter Reid a few days before the season opener. That season he came closest to winning the title in the MG, also claiming the Independent Drivers Cup ahead of Matt Neal. WSR was unable to fund his place for 2005 and a planned MG campaign in Germany ended when the manufacturer folded.
Reid spent several seasons in the Argentinian TC2000 series helping Honda Petrobras develop their Honda Civic for competition. He won the 200 km de Buenos Aires in 2008 alongside Jose Maria Lopez. He returned to the BTCC for three rounds of the 2009 season with WSR under the Team RAC banner, helping support Colin Turkington's title challenge. He subsequently competed in British GT and Britcar endurance events, driving a Chevron GR8 in 2012 and 2013. Since 2016 he has raced in the FunCup UK Championship with the Iron Maiden-sponsored Team Trooper.
Reid also made several appearances on the British television programme Top Gear, competing in motorhome and bus races, a catering-truck challenge, and a limousine taxi race.
Gallery · 4 related images
