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Common page
The Sabra is a cactus (Opuntia) that grows in the Mediterranean area (originating from Mexico in fact).
"Sabra" is also the name of honour adopted by Jews born in Israel, meaning:
"I can
survive in difficult circumstances, I produce nice flowers and sweet
fruits and watch out dealing with
me, you might get pricked".
Sabra is also the name of a Palestinian refugee camp, sadly we
encounter "Sabra" most frequently in discussions about what happened
there..
You might want to visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabra
to get a view of all the meanings of the word "Sabra".
But the Sabra is also...
With much regards to Mr Yohay Shinar
This bright red Sabra, with Itzhak Shubinski (Autocars' owner and CEO) at the wheel, is most probably NOT an Israeli-built one...As it now appears, first ever Sabra to have been registered in Israel did so as late as on January 1962.
This picture, taken in July 1961 at the latest, may actually show UK Sabra #4 (Chassis 200004), a red Sabra sold to Posseidon UK (a maritime company owned by Shubinski) and shipped ex-Two Gates on April 6, 1961. As it was never registered in Israel, it was probably re-exported to Europe, or the U.S., once its PR days were over.
The passenger should be Yehiel Kimmelman, editor of Barehev: a car magazine
(Thanks
Ronen) |
![Sabra ST4701](../images/ST4701/SabraisraelST4701%20Aug-1961_small.jpg) |
And - in 2006 - the S200207: last Tamworth Sabra
alive and kicking |
Note:On the whole site we tried to lay a tiny red
rim round "click-to-enlarge"-pictures.
Sabras were made in two basic versions in Tamworth
(UK) as in Haïfa (IL). |
the Soft Top: ST |
the Hard Top: HT, the hard top
probably came later |
![Sabra ST4701](../images/ST4701/SabraisraelST4701%20Aug-1961_small.jpg)
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![Sabra S200100](../images/S200100/S200100FD_small.jpg)
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The first Haifa and Tamworth cars
were all LHD roadsters (ST-HT) with 1703cc Ford Consul engine and had: |
![Sabra MKI Rear Wheel Arch](../images/ST4703/Squared.jpg)
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![Sabra MKI Rear](../images/S200100/Back.jpg)
lens
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![Sabra MKI Engine](../images/ST4847/MVC-003S_small.JPG)
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Square rear wheel arches, steel wheels with a disk with "S" in the centre and an
unlockable fuel-cap- large hole above the fuel cap. |
Alfa Romeo-tail-light-lenses and separate reflectors
besides them, a narrow spot for the numberplate. |
A single Zenith downdraught carburettor giving 72
b.h.p.
Haifa-cars had frame-numbers like "47xx". |
There's other differences: the
first (Haifa-made?) Sabras had a one-leaver hood-opening system. Wire-wheels were an option as was the
"Alexander"-kit with 2 SU's and stronger valve-springs ??? to
provide more power, first cars had a cooling-system with expansion-tank......
.
Tamworth cars all had a VIN-number like S200xxx while Haifa cars had
different VIN numbers ST47xx or HT47xx according to the model. |
The "differences"-page gives more details. |
Mid
62 the first GT's were made in Tamworth, with a slightly modified rear. |
![Sabra GT](../images/GT4827/4827_SabraSportGT1700hintenseitlich_small.jpg)
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From august 63 the Haifa roadsters adopted the rear of
the (new) GT to make a new modell: the MKII with: |
![Sabra MKII Rear Wheel Arch](../images/ST4885/ST4885_03_small.jpg)
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![Sabra MKII Rear](../images/ST4847/Achter.jpg)
lens
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![Sabra MKII Engine](../images/ST4864/MECIsabracabrio3_small.jpg)
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Round rear wheel arches, wire-wheels and a
lockable fuel-cap, smaller "hole" round the filler-cap. |
Austin A40-rear-light-lenses, reflectors incorporated, a
wider spot for the numberplate. |
2 SU's but not the "Alexander"-kit, so probably not the
extra valve-springs but
giving 90 b.h.p. framenumbers like "ST-HT-GT-48xx". |
The mould of the body and the hood
must also have been changed because the front wheel arches in the MKII
models have a flare round the edges of the front-wheel, both on body as on
hood.. |
Tamworth stayed with the square
rear wheel arches (for -[almost all]- the roadsters that is) but eventually made some 50
RHD-cars named "Sabre", mostly with a modified (short) nose.
Frame-numbers carried on S200150..... The choice of that
name: "Sabre" - close to "Sabra" certainly has had his
influence on the names of later Tamworth cars. |
![Sabra Meeting 2002 Luxemburg](../images/RSSOC_Sabra/2002/Luxemburg_02.jpg)
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Left and right pictures of meetings in Luxemburg and Reims showing different types of one family.
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![Sabra Meeting 2001 Reims](../images/milen02/Millen0208.jpg)
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![Sabra S200153](../images/Rssoc/RSSOC_2003/Zon_03_Marchb_small.jpg)
Sabre-4 : S200153
Malcolm & Val Marchbank
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Later
Tamworth made the Sabre-6,
based on the short-nose Sabre, first with modified rear suspension
later also with Triumph front-suspension and giving the car finally the power
for real competition with a 2553 Ford Zephyr engine giving 109 b.h.p.
Emile Robyns' S300130 thanks Emile
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On Utube: Mark Jordon's Sabre Six
Six
minutes film on Circuits du Remparts Angouleme 2006
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SABRA ASSEMBLY
STATISTICS |
Autocars Haifa IL made Sabras |
With regards to Yohay Shinar, who compiled these data (and
more). |
|
1961 |
1962 |
1963 |
1964 |
1965 |
1966 |
1967 |
1968 |
Total |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tot |
5 |
31 |
33 |
38 |
12 |
6 |
42 |
4 |
171 |
|
Reliant -Tamworth UK
made Sabras-Sabres |
Regards to Geoff Cooper who preserved these data
(and more) from oblivia. |
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Total |
26 |
144 |
81 |
10 |
4 |
5 |
24 |
52 |
30 |
3 |
379 |
minus 45 (RHD) so Sabres: + 2 show-chassis, equals
to: Sabras: 332 |
THE ORIGIN OF THE SABRA AND SOME QUESTION
MARKS ABOUT IT
(thanks to the books of Don Pither, The Scimitar and his forebears,
Court publishing ; Reliants Sportscars,Sutton publishing.
The Sabra was an idea of Mr Shubinsky of AUTOCARS LTD in Haifa,
Israel, who made the necessary contacts during a visit to the Racing Car Show in 1960.
A combination of an Ashley polyester body and a Les Ballamy chassis resulted 9 months
later in a SABRA prototype on the New-York Motor Show of 1961. Export to the US was
clearly the aim (import of $$).
The factory in Haifa was not ready for production, and here the ? ?
start. A first series of SABRAs was built in Tamworth, in Reliants plant, as
can be seen on several published pictures. Evidently Autocars had agreed that the first 100 Sabras would be made in Tamworth (most of them for export to the USA).
It's not clear at all why production in Haifa didn't get going. Autocars made some 450 Carmels a month so they had the capacity...
An annual production of thirty-odd cars wasn't going to deliver much $$ to Israel (did they give priority to the local market where Utility Vehicles like the Carmel were wanted?) anyway it's strange that Haifa kept producing the underpowered 4-cylinder Sabra (until 1968)and never switched to the 6-cylinder wich would have outrun or at the least matched most USA-sportscars.
Guess we'll never find out why 81 cars were imported in
Belgium
An unrivaled total of survivors in this little country, so
let’s keep this funny little car on the road and nurse it well. For extra
information look on the framenumbers-page on Scimweb (see Favorites) or on the
"History" - page on this site.
Jacques Vandevelde
Belgian Sabras - Statistics
Data of the Belgian National Institute for Statistics:
Sabras known (having a numberplate) per province. Down under (green background)... new cars
registered that
year.
Province Totals |
<< |
1966 |
1967 |
1968 |
1969 |
1970 |
1973 |
1978 |
1983 |
1988 |
1993 |
1998 |
2002 |
2005 |
Antwerpen |
|
|
|
16 |
|
|
7 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
Brabant |
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|
|
30 |
|
|
13 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
Henegouwen |
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|
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4 |
|
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3 |
|
|
|
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1 |
|
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Luik |
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|
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0 |
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1 |
|
|
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1 |
0 |
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Limburg |
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1 |
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1 |
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Luxemburg |
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|
|
1 |
|
|
|
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1 |
1 |
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Namen |
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|
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1 |
|
|
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
O-Vlaanderen |
|
|
|
3 |
|
|
4 |
|
|
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1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
W-Vlaanderen |
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|
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3 |
|
|
3 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
België Total |
12 |
|
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59 |
|
|
34 |
8 |
7 |
8 |
11 |
15 |
14 |
15 |
New cars/year |
|
7 |
32 |
8 |
- |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
One of the prettiest Sabras I know is Henk's:![Sabra ST4884](../images/ST4884/Theeuw1_small1.jpg)
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What about Jacques's?![Sabra ST4847](../images/ST4847/MVC-011S_small.JPG)
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But there's more:
The first Sabra-meeting in Belgium, september 9,
2000, organised by the RSSOC (see Interesses) with
Tony (near the Sabre-6) and Jaki Heath... with his "full-option"-Sabra
Jacques Vandevelde
at the right Jef Neefs
![Sabra Meeting 2000](../images/Millen/Millen1.jpg)
Watch where the drivers positioned themselves...... who's from the
continent?
TOP
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