Autocars Sabra in Context
Autocars Co. Ltd was Israel's first car manufacturer, better known for utilitarian vehicles such as the Sussita, which used fiberglass bodies to avoid the cost of steel pressing tools. The Sabra grew from a desire to build something more glamorous. Autocars commissioned a two-seat sports car design in Britain, and the resulting car used a fiberglass body over a steel chassis with mechanical parts sourced from Ford of Britain. Reliant, which built the early cars before Israeli production started, later sold its own version as the Reliant Sabre. The Sabra name, meaning a native-born Israeli, also referred to the prickly pear cactus that appeared in the car's badge.
Understanding Autocars Sabra
Autocars Sabra generations are treated as a single line in this catalog, since the car was produced for only a few years and evolved through detail changes rather than a full redesign. Autocars Sabra body styles included an open roadster and a closed coupe, both sharing the same fiberglass construction and front-engine, rear-drive layout typical of British sports cars of the era. Modifications, once published here, would distinguish engine and body combinations. For enthusiasts, the Sabra is significant less for performance than for what it represents: a young nation attempting to build a sports car of its own.