Scout Cars
Scout Cars
The Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum has bought the car seen in the photograph above. It was in store for a while after a complete strip-down and overhaul of its engine which restored
the car to a fully functioning condition. This was confirmed by successful test drives. It is now displayed at the centre of an exhibition of Salisbury's industrial past in the new museum galleries opened in July 2024. It is believed to be one of only
two remaining cars built by the Salisbury firm of Scout Motors. Picture
shown by kind permission of the Museum.
The purchase was funded by contributions to a special appeal fund. At the AGM in April 2014 SWIAS members unanimously endorsed the
idea of the Society making a donation and some members are also known to have made personal
donations.
The firm of Scout Motors may be seen as
Salisbury's last real effort to remain
independent in England's world of
industrial endeavour. Two clock-making
brothers had taken their skills into the
early world of the internal combustion
engine and moved into motor
vehicle manufacture with great success,
providing transport for the individual,
then effectively on to the masses. The building seen behind the car is the Scout factory at Churchfields Road, Bemerton (an area now absorbed into an expanding Salisbury), seen during demolition.
The Society published the story of the firm and its products in 2013 as Monograph No. 21: "Scout Motors of
Salisbury" by Jim Watkinson. This is now out of print and has been replaced by an expanded and updated second edition published in 2023 as Monograph No. 25: "Scout Motors of Salisbury" by Jim Watkinson and Julie Mettyear. See the SWIAS Publications page of this website for details of how to obtain a copy.
The ownership of the only other car known has been traced by Jim. He was welcomed by its present owner in the summer of 2014 and was able to swap information and enjoy a ride. He reports that the car was surprisingly smooth and ran quietly at 30-35 mph in top. His comment on the visit: "What a day I had." Looking at him smiling while he said that, it was obvious that it was an understatement!