Dingo (scout car)

Last updated

Dingo Scout Car
Dingo scout car at the 2007 Australian War Memorial open day.jpg
A Dingo Scout Car
Type Scout car
Place of origin Australia
Production history
No. built245
Specifications
Mass4.5 tonnes
Length4.6 m
Width2.1 m
Height1.9 m
Crew2 (Commander, Driver)

Armour Front 30 mm, sides and rear 10 mm
Main
armament
0.303 (7.7 mm) Bren light machine gun
EngineFord V8
85 or 95 hp (63.5 or 71 kW)
Power/weight19 or 21 hp/tonne
Suspensionwheel 4x4, leaf spring
Operational
range
km
Maximum speed 90 km/h

The Dingo Scout Car was a light armoured car built in Australia during World War II. They were produced by the Ford motor company during 1942.

Contents

History

Australia as a nation was ill-prepared for the Second World War and possessed little in the way of armoured vehicles. Being at the time unable to purchase them from their traditional supplier, the United Kingdom whose industrial output was dedicated to more immediate needs in Europe, they were forced by circumstance to develop and build them from what resources were available in Australia, and armoured cars and scout cars were no exception. Much creative application and innovation was spawned by the lessons learnt from the Great War.

The Dingo was based on a commercial Ford 30-cwt 134.5 inch wheelbase chassis shortened to 110 inches, which was fitted with a Marmon-Herrington all wheel drive kit to give the vehicle 4 wheel drive. [1] It was powered by either an 85 hp or 95 hp Ford V8 engine. On to this was fitted an armoured body manufactured from ABP-3 (Australian Bullet Proof plate type 3) by Victorian Railways. Serial production began in early 1942.

Dingo Scout Cars halt during a parade through Sydney in December 1942 Dingo (AWM 027537).jpg
Dingo Scout Cars halt during a parade through Sydney in December 1942

The Dingo was equipped with a Bren light machine gun and Mk19 wireless. The vehicle's weight restricted its off-road mobility and the front axle could be distorted when travelling over rough terrain. A lighter version with only 10 mm of armour and an open top was proposed at the end of 1942 but not proceeded with as armoured cars could now be imported from overseas. All 245 vehicles produced were disposed of in 1945.

Surviving Dingos are on display at the Royal Australian Armoured Corps (RAAC) tank museum at Puckapunyal, Victoria, at the Australian War Memorial, at the Melbourne Tank Museum in Narre Warren, and at the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns. There are also several vehicles in private ownership.

Notes

  1. Spoelstra, Hanno. "Trucks converted with Marmon-Herrington All-Wheel Drive Conversion Kits". Marmon-Herrington Military Vehicles. Archived from the original on 20 August 2011. Retrieved 9 June 2011.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armoured fighting vehicle</span> Combat vehicle with both armament and armour

An armoured fighting vehicle or armored fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, assault guns, self-propelled guns, infantry fighting vehicles (IFV), and armoured personnel carriers (APC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Universal Carrier</span> Armoured personnel carrier/weapon carrier

The Universal Carrier, also known as the Bren Gun Carrier and sometimes simply the Bren Carrier from the light machine gun armament, is a common name describing a family of light armoured tracked vehicles built by Vickers-Armstrongs and other companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daimler Armoured Car</span> British armoured car

The Daimler Armoured Car was a successful British armoured car design of the Second World War that continued in service into the 1950s. It was designed for armed reconnaissance and liaison purposes. During the postwar era, it doubled as an internal security vehicle in a number of countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferret armoured car</span> Armored car / Scout car

The Ferret armoured car, also commonly called the Ferret scout car, is a British armoured fighting vehicle designed and built for reconnaissance purposes. The Ferret was produced between 1952 and 1971 by the UK company Daimler. It was widely used by regiments in the British Army, as well as the RAF Regiment and Commonwealth countries throughout the period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daimler Dingo</span> British armoured car

The Daimler Scout Car, known in service as the Daimler Dingo, is a British light, fast four-wheel drive reconnaissance vehicle also used for liaison during the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M3 Scout Car</span> Type of Armored car

The M3 Scout Car was an American-produced armored car. The original M3 Scout Car was produced in limited numbers, while the improved M3A1 Scout Car saw wide service during World War II and after.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marmon-Herrington Armoured Car</span> Armoured car

The Marmon-Herrington Armoured Car was a series of armoured vehicles that were produced in South Africa and adopted by the British Army during the Second World War. RAF Armoured Car companies possessed them, but seem never to have used them in action, making greater use of Rolls-Royce Armoured Cars and other types.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armoured Carrier Wheeled Indian Pattern</span> British Indian armoured car

Armoured Carrier, Wheeled, Indian Pattern (ACV-IP), known also as Indian Pattern Carrier or other similar names, was an armoured car produced in India during the Second World War. It was typically armed with a Bren light machine gun. Those produced by Tata Locomotives were called "Tatanagars" after the location of the works. 4,655 were produced, used by Indian units in the Far East and Mediterranean and Middle East Theatre, typically in divisional reconnaissance regiments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humber Scout Car</span> British armoured scout car

The Humber Scout Car was a British light scout car used in the Second World War. It entered service in 1942 and continued in production until 1945. Designed for reconnaissance, and liaison between armoured units, it provided protection only against light arms fire, so was not a front line vehicle. More importantly it was small and fast and could quickly evade trouble. It became the shape format for the post war Ferret armoured car which began production in 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humber Light Reconnaissance Car</span> British armoured car

The Humber Light Reconnaissance Car, also known as Humberette or Ironside, was a British armoured car produced during the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhino Heavy Armoured Car</span> Armoured vehicle

Car, Armoured, Heavy (Aust), also known as Rhino, was an armoured car designed in Australia during the Second World War. Due to enemy action and design problems the project never got beyond a prototype stage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S1 Scout Car</span> Weapon

Scout Car S1 (American) is an armoured car produced in Australia for the United States Army during the Second World War.

The Marmon-Herrington Company, Inc. is an American manufacturer of axles and transfer cases for trucks and other vehicles. Earlier, the company built military vehicles and some tanks during World War II, and until the late 1950s or early 1960s was a manufacturer of trucks and trolley buses. Marmon-Herrington had a partnership with Ford Motor Company, producing trucks and other commercial vehicles, such as buses. The company may be best known for its all-wheel-drive conversions to other truck maker's units, especially to Ford truck models. Founded in 1931, Marmon-Herrington was based in Indianapolis, Indiana, with a plant in Windsor, Ontario, and remained in Indianapolis until 1963. It is now based in Louisville, Kentucky.

NAPCO (Northwestern Auto Parts Company) was a four-wheel drive automobile parts manufacturing company founded in 1918.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford GPA</span> US amphibious jeep

The Ford GPA "Seep", with supply catalog number G504, was an amphibious version of the World War II Ford GPW jeep.

The British Army made extensive use of a variety of combat vehicles during the Second World War. This article is a summary of those vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Military Pattern truck</span> 3 ton 4x4 Cargo

Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) trucks were mutually coherent ranges of military trucks, made in large numbers, in several classes and numerous versions, by Canada's branches of the U.S. 'Big Three' auto-makers during World War II, compliant to British Army specifications, primarily intended for use in the armies of the British Commonwealth allies, but also serving in other units of the British Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armoured vehicles of the Cypriot National Guard</span> Military unit

The Cypriot National Guard employs several armoured vehicles in its operations.

References