The Ogle SX1000 is a

front-wheel drive Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitu ...

Mini The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...

-based coupé-style motor vehicle designed by

David Ogle David Slingsby Ogle (1921''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' – 25 May 1962) was a British industrial and car designer. He founded the design consultancy company Ogle Design in 1954. He was educated at Rugby Scho ...

, the founder of

Ogle Design Ogle Design is a British design consultancy company founded in 1954 by David Ogle and based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire. History * 1954 Ogle Design was founded and produced many successful designs of industrial and household products. * 1959 T ...

. The car was introduced to the public in December 1961, and from the following year David Ogle Ltd. offered to transform any customer's

into an SX1000 for £550 () All of the car's mechanical components came from the Mini, but with a new

fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

body shell. The windscreen comes from the Riley 1.5, as does the indicator stalk on the right of the steering column. The SX1000 has the same front disc and rear drum brake arrangement as the standard

Mini Cooper Mini Cooper may refer to: *Cars of the original Mini series called the "Mini Cooper", made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors 1961–1971, and 1990–2000 *Cars of the Mini (marque), including a number of different models produced ...

. A racing version of the SX1000 was produced later in 1962, the Ogle Lightweight GT. As well as its lighter body it had a built-in rollbar, lowered suspension, and bucket seats.

Engine and performance

BMC, the manufacturer of the

on which the SX1000 is based, initially refused to supply new parts to David Ogle Ltd, but eventually relented on condition that the word ''Mini'' was not mentioned in any promotional material. All Ogle cars were subsequently supplied with new Mini Cooper engines, and priced at £1,190 (). The motoring magazine '' Autocar'' was the first to road test the SX1000, over more than . Their complimentary test report stated that the car was able to exceed . '' Motorsport'' reported in their test that the car could reach on the straight and on a long downhill gradient, albeit with some road rumble and vibration through the gear lever. Fuel consumption was . While ''Motorsport'' magazine's reviewer was impressed by the car, and in particular by the high quality of its glassfibre body, the report's overall conclusion was that "Economically it is difficult to justify the purchase of a car like this which is heavier than the standard car from which it is derived and has fewer seats".

End of production

In May 1962 David Ogle was killed in a road traffic accident when he crashed into a lorry while driving an Ogle Lightweight GT to the

Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England, United Kingdom. Originally used as a grasstrack motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently host ...

racing circuit. The company decided to cease production of the SX1000 following Ogle's death. The last cars were completed towards the end of 1963, by which time 69 had been built.

Later developments

The moulds for the SX1000 were sold to Norman Fletcher of Fletcher Marine in 1966, and the following year saw its reappearance as the Fletcher GT. As of 2018 Nostalgia Cars UK are offering a replica version of the SX1000, their NC Coupe, also known as the SX1275.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

Virtual tour of the Ogle SX1000
Cars introduced in 1961 Front-wheel-drive sports cars Cars of England {{car-stub