Scimitar Drivers

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The GT Coupe' replaced the Sabre Six, a small 2 seater which the company had been producing in small numbers from the early 60's.The new Scimtar GT, designated the SE4 ( SE being the first and last letters of Sabre), was designed by Ogle and was essentially a 2 seater coupe' which utilized the straight 6 engine of 2,553 cc produced by Ford for use in their Zodiac range. The Coupe' chassis was very similar to that used for the Sabre with only minor changes to the track and wheel base. 297 of these cars were built before Reliant introduced the SE4a/b.

Scimitar GT

The change in engine size was forced on Reliant, as the straight 6 engine was made obsolete by Ford. The introduction of the new model saw the first V6 Scimitars. The engine size had been increased to 2,994 cc and the new engine used a single Weber carburetor in place of the triple SU type fitted to the earlier models. The subsequent increase in power gave the car a higher top speed ( 120 mph) and a 0-60 time of 9.4 seconds. Improvements were also made to the rear axle location which improved high speed stability. Reliant produced nearly 600 of these and clearly established the Scimitar GT as a fast and civilized 2 seater.

Scimitar GT SE4c

During 1968 Reliant introduced a further variant of Scimitar, the SE4c was introduced to offer a more economic alternative to the 2,994 cc model. The 4c had a 2.5 litre V6 engine. These cars were not produced in great numbers  (118) although a 10% increase in mpg was achieved. Production of the GT ceased in 1970 with a total of 1006 cars produced.

Scimitar SE 4a/b