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Britain By Car - A Motoring History


Created Date:

21 September 2013

Last Modified:

18 December 2023
Letchworth

Ogle Models and Prototypes

The site of the original David Ogle design business.

Location
Birds Hill, Letchworth, SG6 1JA.

Date
1960 - present.

  • 1974 Reliant Scimitar GTE on Castle Hill, Lincoln © Dave Hitchborne.
    1974 Reliant Scimitar GTE on Castle Hill, Lincoln © Dave Hitchborne.
  • 1974 Reliant Scimitar GTE on Castle Hill, Lincoln © Dave Hitchborne.

Commentary
Industrial designer, David Ogle, established his design business on Birds Hill in 1960; and the company he founded has been responsible for many well-known designs of cars and industrial products.

Probably the most famous of the cars is the Reliant Scimitar, produced in various forms from 1964 to 1986.  Other car designs include the Bond Bug, a bespoke Aston Martin, a modified Ford Cortina (built for Stirling Moss), and two cars, the 1.5 and SX1000, produced by Ogle themselves in the early 1960s.

Amongst the many other Ogle industrial designs are the Bush T130 radio, the Raleigh Chopper bicycle, a number of Star Wars models, and the Marble Run children’s toy.

In 2000, the design side of the business was sold to the Swedish company Noor.

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