The Fall of the trend-setter (IH Scout).

When you ask an off road enthusiast what a good off roader should have they will mention three things, a short wheel base, good amount of torque with a light and durable chassis and rugged suspension and build quality. It so happens that an International Scout had all this making it the go to choice and at present day this is causing it go up in value. I myself love the look this small two door SUV, and wanted to share more information about it, previously i have written about the Land Rover and the Land cruiser and now i wanted to write about the International Scout.

About International Harvester

International Harvester started building short bed and tall body pick-up trucks in 1907 and in 1953 when the pickup truck industry expanded itself towards more consumer needs and comforts, they launched the truck based people carrier the “ Traveall”. The Scout came from a company that made its mark on the agriculture industry, the International Harvester  company can be traced back to 1834 when it was properly established with the help of the industrial capitalist titan J.P Morgan who stepped in to finance a merger between McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, Deering Harvester Company, Milwaukee Harvesting Machine Co., Plano Manufacturing Co., and Warder, Bushnell, and Glessner, this formally established the International Harvester. IH also took part in supplying several rugged military vehicles for the US army, the first to be supplied were the International Harvester M-1-4 Half Ton Cargo Truck, which was produced beginning in 1941.shortly after this their M-2-4 One-ton 4x4 were produced and the approximate number produced was close to 10,500.

About the Scout

Back in 1907 they deviated from manufacturing agricultural equipments  to manufacture their lightweight trucks named the model “A” or the “Auto Buggy”. From 1960 to 1965 IH produced the Scout 80 one of the first consumer SUV’s. 1958 was the year when IH started development on vehicle that would replace the horse, at the time the market for such a vehicle was non-existing the Jeep was to utilitarian unlike what the Scout 80. The Scout 80 were more liveable it came with sliding windows and a large bench seat. The Scout 80 was powered by a 152 cubic inch naturally aspirated 4 cylinder engine that bumped out 93 horsepower. This vehicle was were versatile, as it came with an option of a  hardtop called the travell-top, sport-top which was a soft-top, and a cab-top roof. IH advertised proudly as to how usable/ versatile te 80 was, they said it could be converted to anything right from a station wagon to a light-duty hauler, and a runabout”. Throughout the half a decade run IH sold 100,000 80’s and to celebrate this they launched what is known as the 100k, edition which had a pearlescent white body with red interiors, only 3000 were produced.

The Scout 2 is what is now highly sort after as it came up with updated styling a better interior and a V8, what was also becoming common among the Scout’s were the Dana 44 axles and power disc brakes. models like the Scout Traveler and Scout Terra came along in 1975 with extended wheelbases, both measuring around 118 inches. When the growth in the SUV market started going up again the SS2 Scout was launched, it was a barebones SUV with no roof, or doors and competed against the Jeep.

Scout and racing?

Think about it, it has all the right recipes for a good Baja 1000 buggy, short wheel base light weight and most importantly a V8. Jimmy Ray Jones a professional electrician loved his Scout 800A V8  that he decided to go racing. He took part in the he NORRA (National Off Road Racing Association) Baja 1000, taking home 13th place. He sold the 800A in 1972 and moved up a weight class and entered with a  Scout II 4 x 2. The same year, he won the 4 x 2 class in the Baja 1000, and suddenly IHS was a name in racing.

What happened to such a popular SUV?

To us enthusiasts we view this as a very sad defeat to the other three big guns from Detroit, the introduction of the Ford Bronco and Chevy Blazer just meant that a small company like IH could not keep up anymore. The other reason for its downfall is said to be the flawed business management, however Barbara Marsh’s classic book “A Corporate Tragedy” says that it was not  “The United Auto Workers’ 1979-80 strike” against IH or the poor build quality that brought an end to the company but the business model, a company that could have developed a new vehicle, identified a new market just could not manage due to their business management and the quick response from the companies in Detroit.

What next?

For those who have the money and the passion for a Scout could reach out to companies like New Legend 4x4 that restomod Scouts mainly the Scout 2’s. I personally feel that like the comeback of the Ford Bronco and the Chevy Blazer someone has to re introduce the IH scout as a niche product as that market is yet to become tough, with competicion being only the Bronco when it comes out.

Bibliography

“The Complete History Of The International Harvester Scout 4x4.” HiConsumption, 14 Aug. 2018, hiconsumption.com/2018/08/history-of-the-international-scout-harvester/.