History of BSA Cars "The thirties"
BSA Scout (1935 to 1939)
BSA's efforts in producing a successful four wheel FWD car culminated in the Scout,
introduced in 1935. This was a two seater with pleasing lines and basically conventional
sporting appearance. It used the Threewheeler/T.9 nine Horse power engine, a
single differential brake at the front as per the three-wheeler, and drum brakes
at the rear operated by rods. Rear suspension was semi-elliptical springs.
Chassis arrangements were similar to the T9.
The Scout sold well, and BSA were encouraged to produce a 10 h.p. (1204 cc) version which
also featured a relocated handbrake assembly. This appeared as the Series 2 (2 seater) and
the Series 3 in both four seat open tourer and 2 seat coupe form.
At the beginning of 1936 the BSA car buying public were faced with a choice of five basic
FWD models plus many more fluid flywheel RWD four and six cylinder saloons. The situation
was rationalised during 1936 by a reduction in the model range to only an improved version
of the Scout, in 2 seat, 4 seat tourer and 2 seat coupe form. These Series 4 Scouts featured
an umbrella dashboard gear change and all round hub brakes, rod and cable operated at the front.
Later Scouts were fitted with a re-designed gearbox. While synchromesh could not be squeezed in,
the straight-cut gears were replaced with offset double helical "Silent Second" constant mesh
sets which gave a dog-clutch type engagement.
Whilst quieter and easier for gear selection, the gears were not as strong and added a
further limitation on any attempts to increase performance.
A promotional shot of a 4 seater Scout shot in Sutton Park, near Birmingham
For 1938 the Scout series 5 featured 12 volts, Bendix cable brakes and minor styling changes,
for example the coupe being a 2 plus 2 in modern parlance. For the final year of Scout production
the 1939 Series 6 was fitted with 'easy clean' wheels and a three bearing crankshaft, and appeared
in 2 and 4 seat tourer form, plus a steel bodied saloon. Just before war commenced a 2 seat
drop head coupe version appeared, but only fourteen were produced, and the rising war effort
brought BSA car production to a halt before the Series 7 with a revised front suspension
arrangement got beyond the prototype stage.
The steel-bodied Series 6 saloon was one of the last designs built. Only one survived
in the 1960's and has
not been seen for many a year.
Data on the number of BSA's produced tends to indicate that some 6650 trikes were
manufactured between 1929 and 1935 and 3000 Scouts of all models. In the above short
history, no mention has been made of the various special bodied FWD BSA's, as details
are unclear.
With the advent of the Second World War BSA car production ceased and with it died the
only volume production prewar British FWD car. In some ways it was more than
that - the BSA FWD threewheeler was the world's first volume produced FWD car and
a significant pointer to what today is commonplace.
Picture taken at a recent Rally, showing a well turned out Series One Scout
in the foreground, this, the first series of Scout featured horizontal bonnet louvres
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