The Daimler Dingo
This month’s highlight is a scout car of the 11th Hussars pictured on operations in northern Germany in 1945. The vehicle entered production in 1939 as the Car, Scout, Daimler, Mark 1 but it was commonly known as the Dingo. Various marks were produced and production of all marks amounted to 6,626 vehicles. From 1942 scout cars were also built under the Humber name and almost 4,300 were produced by the end of the war. The design led on to the larger Daimler Armoured Car fitted with a 2 Pounder (40mm) Gun which was also used by the 11th Hussars.
The Daimler Dingo, which was also manufactured in Canada, cotninued in use in thee early 1960s with the Territorial Army. It was replaced by the Ferret Scout Car.
The Dingo featured independent wishbone suspension and a 2.5 litre Daimler engine with a Wilson pre-selective Gear Box which gave 5 gears in both directions. It had a crew of 2 and the driver’s seat was at an angle so the driver could see better over his shoulder whilst reversing.
It was 10ft 5in long and 5 ft 7in wide. It had a height of 4 ft 11in. It weighed 3 tonnes and its armour protection was 30 mm maximum. The six cylinder petrol engine produced 60 bhp and a top speed of 55 mph. It had a range of 200 miles.
Standard armament was a single .303 in Bren light machine gun, but some units including the 11th Hussars modified their vehicles with one or two Vickers K Guns on improvised mounts as shown in the picture. These guns were ex-aircraft guns and featured a high rate of fire offering additional fire power.
The vehicle was extensively used in the North African campaign and an original Dingo in desert camouflage ois on display in the Museum.
The information in this highlight was updated with the assistance of members of The Daimler Dingo Scout Car Society.