Talking to Roger Dudley about his Scamp at Falcon's September Autotest prompted me to do some research into these little kit cars which seem so ideal for Grass Autotests.
The Scamp was advertised in the September 1971 issue of Hot Car Magazine and there was an ad inside (thanks to Roger Dudley for the scans)
When BMC, or whatever they were called at the time, decided to axe the Mini Moke Robert Mandry cashed in and produced nearly 3,000 of these simple but effective machines.
The Mk1 appeared in 1970 and had a sloping front like Roger Dudley’s; For £175 you could buy a robust tubular chassis, clothed in aluminium sheet. Rear suspension was taken care of by Mini trailing arms while up front the Mini power unit nestled safely in it’s original sub frame. If you felt more adventurous you could order your Scamp with a Van, Pick-Up or Estate body and there was even a version with six wheels!
Scamp Mk1 - As you can tell by the stickers Scamps were popular Autotest machines. However, while their robust tubular chassis resists even the toughest tin worm it makes the car too heavy to be really competitive against the best cut down Mini specials.
Scamp Mk2 - The revised Scamp was launched in 1978. The new boxy front was necessary to bring the lights up to regulation height. If you look at the picture of the Mk1 on the left the "Spotlights" are in fact the official Headlamps!
Towards the end of the 70’s, a Mk 2 version appeared with a squarer front and this continued in production until 1990. Some people didn't like the new boxy shape but this was necessary as the lights were too low on the Mk1 to meet new legislation.
By 1987 the Scamp Company was owned by Andrew MacLean, who continues to produce Scamp’s based on Suzuki 410/413 and Daihatsu vehicles.
Find out more about The Scamp by following this link (You will be going to an External Web Site so you will need to use the "Back" button on your browser to return here).
Page updated 10 November 2000 when the Hot Car Scans were added.
