The TV commercial below for the 1963 International Scout 800 boasts that the Scout can be used on the ranch as well as as going into town. Do you think the first generation International Scout was a great all purpose vehicle?
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I just don’t understand it. Originally, there was to be 12 International Scout 800′s in the Fast Five movie. The original intent was to have them driven by the Brazilian military. However, that idea was kiboshed by the production designer and instead the military guys were forced to drive VW Touaregs. WTF? Do they stop by Starbucks before they head out to battle? I thought the military drove real trucks! Vehciles that could take a beating and keep on going?

“The idea was that the Brazilian military should be driving in something that looks tough,” explains Fast Five’s Picture Car Coordinator Dennis McCarthy, “but not necessarily something you’d see every day in the U.S. So I came up with the idea of building some first-generation Scouts. When was the last time anyone had even seen one? However, the production designer absolutely hated the Scouts,” reports McCarthy. “We had already built five and were getting ready to build seven more, but he didn’t want them anywhere near the film. So they were relegated to background duty. Blink and you’ll miss them.”

The 1968 International Scout 800 in the video below was heavily modified. A 300hp 5.7 litre Chevrolet small block was coupled to a Turbo 400 transmission. A custom front bumper and grille guard make chasing the bad guys through the jungle a little easier. The custom roll cage is there just in case, as is the machine gun mount.

NOTE: If you are reading this via email or Facebook, you may need to go to the Off Road Action website to view the video.

I have always loved International Scouts. They are like the girl next door that is not as pretty or popular as the other girls, but surprises you by being just as good or better in bed than the more popular girls. The International Scout was never as popular as Jeeps or Broncos, but performed just as well on and off road as them. Frequent Off Road Action photo contributor Kevin Vaughan posted some more photos on the Ultimate Class 3 Photo thread on Race Dezert. In September 1978, International Harvester sponsored the Coors Off Road Championship in Colorado, a 100-mile race held on a closed course near Indian Springs. The day before the race, the competitors were all invited to display their rigs at Colorado Springs Equipment Co. All these Scouts were on display there; one that wasn’t there was Sherman Balch’s green-and-white machine that won the race the next day.

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We found this 1965 International Scout 80 for sale on Bring A Trailer. Originally listed on this Salt Lake City KSL ad, the truck is in great shape for an asking price of only $9000. You really have to love the simple old trucks. What do you think?





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Now isn’t this a beauty? The International Scout 800 was a great machine, but even better after modifications!