Sabra Sportscar – Made in Israel

Did you know Israel actually made cars in the 1960’s?!

In 1960, Yitzhak Shubinsky contracted with Reliant, who were already making cars in Israel, to combine an Ashley body, Leslie Ballamy chassis and a 1700 cc Ford engine into a convertible sports-car.

The name “Sabra” was chosen because it means both “born in Israel” and cactus, which was its logo.

In 1961, at the New York Autoshow, the first Sabras were introduced. Reliant produced the first 100 cars in the UK. The rest of the cars were produced in Haifa.

Between 1964–68 about 350 cars were made. Production stopped with the Six Day War. Worldwide, over 100 Sabra cars are still traceable!