The automotive industry is one of the biggest industries in the world. It is a home to diverse and innovative car brands across the globe that are known for their legacies, styles, and histories. Names are one of the most notable things about an auto manufacturer. The name is what builds the distinct identity of a firm, and this is why each of them chooses their initials carefully.
Each letter of the alphabet represents uniqueness. Qualities and history that you will find associated with car brands that start with U will be entirely different from automakers beginning with the letter F and so on.
Today, we bring you a comprehensive list of car brands that start with O. Although O-initial brands are fewer in number compared to some other letters, they still have significant impacts in their respective markets.
So, let us begin by exploring some prominent O-letter automakers in the automotive world.
1. Opel
Opel or Opel Automobile GmbH is a German car manufacturer founded in 1862. It is one of Europe’s largest automakers. Earlier, the company used to produce sewing machines, but it began selling wheel bicycles in 1886 and eventually started making cars in 1899.
Currently, Opel is a subsidiary of Stellantis since 2021. Before that, it was owned by General Motors from 1929 to 2017, and PSA Group, before its merger with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, formed Stellantis in 2021.
2. Orca
Orca Engineering was a Liechtenstein-based sports car company founded in 2003. This family-owned corporation designed and manufactured the well-known Orca 113 platform, which came in three variants, of which only seven cars were produced.
After the Orca 311 platform died out in 2007, the company shifted its focus to its upcoming project, the Beck LM800 supercar. As of 2012, the Beck LM800 was the only vehicle under development at Orca. However, there are no new developments except that it runs on an Audi twin-turbo V8 engine.
3. Osella
Osella is one of the prominent European car brands beginning with O. It is an Italian racing car maker and former Formula One team established by Vincenzo ‘Enzo’ Osella in 1965. Osella is well known for producing competitive vehicles mainly used for various sports cars and mountain races.
4. Obvio
Obvio is a Brazil-based vehicle manufacturer that specializes in building microcars. This company’s vehicles are described as “high-performance urban cars” and Obvio! 828 and the Obvio! 012 are great examples. Obvio had planned to sell its cars in the United States via the ZAP distribution network. However, the plan halted after the company’s prominent vehicle designer, Anísio Campos, died in 2019.
5. Ogle
Ogle or Ogle Design is a British design consultancy company founded in 1954 and is based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire. Since its launch, the company has produced many successful industrial and household product designs.
The company entered into transport design and small-scale car production in 1959. From 1959 to 1962, Ogle built a series of complete cars, including SX1000 and SX250.
However, after the death of the founder, David Ogle, in a car crash involving one of his SX1000 cars, the new MD ceased car production.
6. OKA Australia
OKA Motor Company was an Australian manufacturer of cab over all-terrain vehicles, especially tour buses and four-wheel drive trucks. The company was founded in 1986 and was headquartered in Bibra Lake, Western Australia.
Before the company became defunct in 2011, it had built nearly 500 vehicles. The new company OKA All Terrain Vehicles was established in 2017 and built on the legacy of OKA Australia.
7. Oreca
ORECA, or Organisation Exploitation Compétition Automobiles, is a French racing team and a race car constructor founded in 1973 by Hugues de Chaunac. This O-initial firm has built its reputation as a manufacturer of race cars, sports prototype cars, and GT cars.
It assisted Renault Sport in building the new Mégane V6 and Audi R8 in the 2005 Le Mans 24 Hours with Audi, 100 customer cars to GT3 specification for Dodge.
8. ÖAF
ÖAF is an Austro-Hungarian car and truck manufacturer earlier known as Österreichische Austro-Fiat. This car brand that start with the letter O was created by Fiat in 1907. The brand is now entirely incorporated into the German group MAN.
ÖAF Tornado 19-230, ÖAF Tornado 16-192, ÖAF Tornado 9256, ÖAF Husar, MAN with ÖAF-Grille, and 1977 ÖAF light wheeled vehicle are some of the most popular cars produced by ÖAF.
9. Oettinger
Oettinger Sportsystems is one of the top tuners of Volkswagen, Skoda, Audi, and Seat cars. This Germany-based company also sells several products ranging from elegantly styled aerodynamic kits to high-quality alloy wheels, performance-enhanced engines, sports exhaust systems, comfortable suspensions, multimedia solutions, and individual leather equipment.
10. Ora
Ora is the only Chinese car brand on this list that starts with the letter O. This brand was introduced in 2018 by Great Wall Motor (GWM) to exclusively build battery electric cars. The iQ5, R1 (Black Cat), and R2 (White Cat) are the initial models of Ora.
11. Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile, formally known as Oldsmobile Division of General Motors, was a car brand of American vehicles. The brand was established in 1897 as Olds Motor Vehicle Company. It had produced over 35 million vehicles till it went defunct in 2004. Oldsmobile was highly noted for its several groundbreaking technologies and designs. It was one of the oldest automobile brands in the world after Renault, Opel, Peugeot, and Fiat.
12. Oltcit
Oltcit was a Romanian automobile manufacturer founded in 1946 in Craiova, Romania. This car brand was a joint venture between Citroen and the communist Romanian government. The company’s main products were Oltcit Club and Citroën Axel hatchbacks. However, Oltcit ceased to exist in 1991 because Citroen decided to withdraw from the joint venture.
13. O.S.C.A
O.S.C.A, officially known as Officine Specializzate Costruzione Automobili, was an Italian maker of racing and sports cars founded in 1947 by the Maserati Brothers. The company was headquartered in San Lazzaro di Savena, Bologna, Italy. The company aimed to develop a vehicle to compete in the famous Italian 1,100 cc racing class.
The MT4 was OSCA’s first model, featuring a 1,092 cc engine producing 55 PS at 6,000 rpm. OSCA was sold to MV Augusta in 1963. The brand ended its operations in 1967.
14. Oakland
Oakland, or Oakland Motor Car Company, was a private American car manufacturer established in 1907. It worked as a private firm until 1909, when General Motors acquired it, transformed it into a brand, and used it to build touring cars and automobile engines. In 1931, due to the Great Depression, GM killed Oakland, and Pontiac replaced it.
15. Ohta Jidosha
Ohta Jidosha was one of Japan’s most prominent automotive manufacturing companies in the 1930s. This O-letter brand was established in 1922, and cars were built from 1934 to 1957, when its production ceased. Ohta Model OS was the first prototype produced by the company featuring a 736 cc 4-cylinder engine. Other builds included Model OE, Ohta Model OC, Model PA, Model VK-2, and Model PK-1.
16. Officine Meccaniche (OM)
OM, or Officine Meccaniche, was an Italian truck and car manufacturing brand. It was founded in 1899 in Milan, Italy, to make Railroad locomotives and equipment. However, the company started car production in 1918. Tipo S305 was the first OM car.
The brand disappeared in 1975 after it was subsumed into Iveco, an Italian multinational transport vehicle-making company. Although OM no longer makes cars, it is still a forklift builder.
17. Overland
Overland Automobile was an American vehicle producer established in 1903 and based in Toledo, Ohio. It was one of the earliest mass producers of automobiles. Overland ceased to exist in 1926 when a big merger took place. Willys-Overland became the successor to this automaker.
18. OSI
OSI stands for Officine Stampaggi Industriali, a coachbuilding company founded in 1960 in Turin, Italy. It became defunct in 1967, but during its short time, this car brand built some custom-built cars based on Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Ford models.
Alfa Romeo 2600 Berlina de Luxe 1965, Alfa Romeo Scarabeo 1966, Ford Anglia Torino, and OSI-Ford 20 M TS were the prominent custom models built by OSI.
Thus, you can see that although car brands that start with O are fewer in number, they have made significant contributions and have had an impact on the automotive world.
From the innovative engineering of Opel and the classic American heritage of Oldsmobile to the racing prowess of OSCA and the modern electric vehicles focus of Ora, these O-initial automakers bring something unique to the table and offer rich legacies and promising futures.
