Cars That Start with O

Today, we’ve compiled a list of cars that start with O. Over the years, automobile manufacturers have produced some amazing vehicles that fit the criteria. As you read on, you’ll find out how some of them changed and influenced the car industry as we know it today. Let’s go!

5 Cars That Start With the Letter O

Outback – Subaru

The Subaru Outback is a famous car that starts with the letter O. The Outback is fantastic for its year-round reliability and speed. It’s often heavily used in the modding community, as owners are able to quite easily add upgrades and tunings to increase their already quick speed and year-round usability. 

When the vehicle was originally released back in 1994, Subaru named it differently, depending on where the car was going to be sold. One of these names was the Legacy Outback. When the vehicle eventually arrived in Australia in 1996, the name “Legacy Outback” was shortened to just one word: “Outback”.

Over time, the name “Outback” became the one that so many fans love. Since its original release back in 1994, Subaru has come out with six generations, each one progressively adding better, newer features and upgrades.

For the 6th generation Outback, Subaru wanted to do something different that would hopefully appeal to their fanbase. They did this by adding a new trim option to the 2022 model year, which they called the Wilderness.

The Outback Wilderness features 9.5 inches of ground clearance, a turbocharged 2.4-liter FA24F engine, and re-tuned transmission gearing with revised front- and rear-gear ratios.

Marketed for off-road use, the Outback Wilderness has 17-inch wheels with standard all-terrain tires, enhanced body cladding, and synthetic upholstery. The Subaru Wilderness made this newest addition to the Subaru Outback family a fantastic option for many outdoors enthusiasts.

Omega – Lotus/ Opel

The Lotus Omega, created by Opel and upgraded by Lotus, has a fascinating history. This seemingly plain-looking sportscar could match and exceed the speed of many high-end cars of its time, like Ferrari and Porsche, while also excelling in comfort. Just with these two factors (speed and comfort), the Lotus Omega — also known as the Lotus Carlton — would have no doubt become famous, cementing its place in history.

And it did; however, not in the way that many had hoped. During its production year, the Omega generated controversy among the press and in the automotive industry, changing the public opinion of the sports car.

This was mainly due to its speed and that it came without a limiter. Many wrote that the car did not need to exceed 180 mph and was dangerous. At the time, it was common for German automakers to electronically limit the top speed of their high-end performance cars to 155 mph. 

Without a limiter, the Omega Lotus became the primary target for joyriders and thieves in the UK for its high performance and comfort. For example, on the 26th of November, 1993, an Omega Lotus was taken from a house in West Midlands, UK. 

In what followed, a group of robbers used the vehicle to undergo night train raids and, by the end, totaled around 20,000 British pounds worth of cigarettes and alcohol. In a report, a West Midlands police officer stated, “we simply haven’t been able to get near the thing and it looks unlikely that we ever will.” To this day, the car has never been recovered and its location is currently unknown. 

Optima – Kia

The Kia Optima, which was originally known as the Kia K5, is a midsize vehicle that has been produced by Kia from the year 2000 till today. This car was marketed worldwide through different nameplates, which can cause some confusion for car enthusiasts.

For instance, in Europe and Canada, this vehicle was called the Kia Magentis when sales first began in 2002. Kia Lotze and Kia K5 were the names used for the South Korean market. In the United States and Malaysia, the name Optima was used until the 2021 model year, when the name K5 started being used for all markets. Fortunately for Kia, the Optima has been a fantastic-selling product for this company.

The Kia K5 was able to help bring this company back into the car market after years of negative public opinion. During this time, Kia was known for producing awful, poorly made cars. Today, Kia still carries that stigma.

However, thanks to cars like the Optima, Kia is slowly rebuilding trust with customers. And customers are loving it. But what’s not to love? The Optima is, on the whole, a great affordable car that will suit almost any driver’s needs.

It comes with four seats and plenty of room. The Optima also boasts impressive horsepower! It’s no doubt that the Kia Optima will remain on the market for a long time to come. 

Oxford – Morris

The Morris Oxford was a series of motor cars that were produced by Morris, a British company, from 1913 onwards. With its original vehicle, the Bullnose Oxford, these cars came to be named by its founder after the city of Oxford, the town in which he grew up. The manufacturer of the Morris Oxford would eventually turn the city of Oxford into an industrial city by choosing it as the area for producing his cars.

The cars were a big hit with the public. In 1925, Morris sold nearly double the number of cars of their competitor, Cowley, and represented 41% of British production. This model name continued to be used throughout the years and lasted until 1971.

The Oxford Morris became a staple British automotive car industry. At times, this lineup had its flops, as well as its major successes. But, through to the end, Oxford Morris remained true to its roots and to the customers it served. 

Ocean – Fisker

Lastly for cars that start with O, we have the Fisker Ocean, a luxury crossover SUV. Launched in early 2023, this car was to be the first of three in a series of mass-marketed, all-electric vehicles produced in the USA. Fisker advertises that the Ocean will have a maximum range of close to 300 miles for even its lowest-cost trim options. 

The vehicle is produced in rear-wheel and all-wheel drive. Fisker stated that the vehicle will also be equipped with a lithium-ion battery pack with a maximum charge of around 80 kilowatt hours, as well as a solar panel roof to help charge the battery. Fisker also stated that the Ocean is designed with recycled materials and sustainability in mind.

This exciting vehicle will be added to the all-electric motor Fisker vehicle lineup. Fisker has hopes of reaching the ranks of Tesla and VinFast. As of now, many in Europe are interested in the production of this vehicle. This includes a Danish ride-sharing company called Viggo.

In anticipation of the car’s release, Viggo ordered about 300 Fisker Oceans. They have plans for these vehicles to be used by their employees. By ordering early, Viggo is helping Fisker become a legitimate car brand that many need to look out for.

4 Car Brands That Start With the Letter O

Opel

The car manufacturer Opel was founded in Germany in 1862, where it originally produced sewing machines. In 1886, Opel began to make a special type of bicycle called the penny-farthing, which became a huge success.

In 1888, the production of bicycles exceed the number of sewing machines being produced by Opel. Then, in 1898, Opel began its first real foray into the automotive world, helping to revolutionize the European automotive industry.

Since then, Opel has been owned by different companies over the years. From 1929 until 2017, General Motors was a majority shareholder. In 2017, GM sold its stock to the PSA Group, Stellantis’s predecessor. Stellantis currently owns Opel. It purchased the company at a staggering $2.3 billion dollars USD (2 billion Euro), bringing to an end American ownership of the company after nearly 90 years.

Opel is a car manufacturer in Europe that’s been around for a long time. This company has been an innovator, leader, and ideator in the automotive industry. Opel’s research has also helped play an even greater role in aviation and spaceflight. The company still has its headquarters where it started, namely in Rüsselsheim am Main.

Orca Engineering

Orca Engineering was a car company that was based in Liechtenstein, and it specialized in sports cars. This company gained most of its fame for designing and producing the Orca 113 platform, as well as the Beck lm800. Rene Beck and his son Ralph founded Orca in 2003. At the time, the Orca 113 platform came in three variants. Unfortunately, Orca only produced seven vehicles in total on this platform. 

When the Orca 113 platform couldn’t find customers in 2007, Rene Beck moved on to his next supercar project, the Beck lm800. The Beck LM 800 was the only vehicle that was actively developed at Orca engineering but never reached production.

In fact, there are very few things that we know about this supercar. We know that it uses an Audi twin-turbo V8 and weighs about 900 kg. Its acceleration from 0 to 100 km per hour was under 2.8 seconds and it had a top speed of approximately 420 kilometers per hour. Even though little was known about this car, what can we do know is that the family-owned company Orca made sure that their cars were always the best that they could be.

Osella

Next on our list, we have the Italian racing car producer and former F1 team, Osella. Named after its founder Vincenzo Osella, Osella participated in 132 Grand Prix races between 1980 and 1990, in which they scored five championship points.

The team originally began its racing career in 1965 by using Arabath sports cars In local and national races in Italy. Building off this success, Osella expanded into the single-seat racing scene in 1974 to further develop the business.

Through hardships and successes, Osella was able to continue to do the impossible and compete at the highest level. Osella continues to produce amazing top-of-the-line sports cars today, and acts as a beneficiary to many current F1 teams. Osella’s rich history and drive to do the impossible are what make this company so endearing to many.

O.S.C.A.

O.S.C.A. was another legend in the Italian car manufacturing industry. O.S.C.A. stodd for Officine Specializzate Costruzione Automobile. This Italian company began in 1947 in San Lazzaro di Savena, Bologna, when it was started by the Maserati Brothers.

These famed inventors had left their original company when their contract ended and they felt that they wanted to start something new. They had dreams of competing in the Italian races at the 100cc level.

Because of the Maserati brother’s industriousness and intelligence, they were able to do extremely well and eventually win championships. Unfortunately, in 1967, the company closed down, putting an end to these brothers’ fortuitous adventure and racing aspirations. 

Conclusion

As we can see from the amazing list of cars and manufacturers starting with the letter O, the automotive industry has been revolutionized. It’s been amazing to see how many of these great companies had simple but extraordinary beginnings. Now, when you think of great car names that start with the letter O, you will know which ones to look out for. 

The image featured at the top of this post is ©AppleZoomZoom/Shutterstock.com.