The Dingo Scout Car was a light armoured car built in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. They were produced by the

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

motor company during 1942.

History

Australia as a nation was ill-prepared for the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

and possessed little in the way of armoured vehicles. Being at the time unable to purchase them from their traditional supplier, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

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 World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The Dingo was based on a commercial Ford 30-cwt 134.5 inch

wheelbase In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (fron ...

chassis shortened to 110 inches, which was fitted with a

Marmon-Herrington 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 wa ...

all wheel drive kit to give the vehicle

4 wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer ca ...

. 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 The Victorian Railways (VR), trading from 1974 as VicRail, was the state-owned operator of most rail transport in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companie ...

. Serial production began in early 1942. The Dingo was equipped with a

Bren The Bren gun was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also use ...

light machine gun A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridges of the same caliber as the other riflemen of the ...

and Mk19

wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The most ...

. 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 The Royal Australian Armoured Corps (RAAC) is a corps of the Australian Army which provides the Australian Defence Force's armour capability. Armour combines firepower, mobility, protection and networked situational awareness to generate shock ...

(RAAC) tank museum at Puckapunyal, Victoria, at the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...

, at the Melbourne Tank Museum in

Narre Warren Narre Warren is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 38 km southeast of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Casey local government area. Narre Warren recorded a population of 27,689 at the 2021 census. ...

, and at the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns. There are also several vehicles in private ownership.

Notes

References

* Cecil, Michael K. (1993). ''Australian Scout and Armoured Cars 1933 to 1945'', Australian Military Equipment Profiles, vol. 3, . *

External links

Old CMP – Dingo
{{WWIIBritishAFVs World War II scout cars World War II armoured fighting vehicles of Australia Military vehicles introduced from 1940 to 1944