1936 Stout Scarab

The Stout Scarab was created by William Bushnell Stout and manufactured by Stout Engineering Laboratories and later by Stout Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan. Stout, who is best known for his work in aviation included the monoplane wing design called the “Batwing”, the founding of America’s first scheduled airline which was Stout Air Service (eventually integrated into what now is United Airlines) and the the acquisition of his design which became the Ford Tri-Motor airplanes of lore.

The Scarab had an advanced aerodynamic design and used a unitized body structure and rear-engine placement. The Ford-built V8 flathead engine developing 90 horsepower was placed in the rear of the vehicle, driving the rear wheels via a Stout-built three-speed manual transaxle. It had an independent coil spring suspension and a wheelbase that measured 135 inches. The rear swing axle suspension with long coil spring struts was similar to the landing gear of airplanes. The body was designed by Dutch automobile engineer, John Tjaarda who emulated the aluminum fuselage of an aircraft.

My reimagined version is lower, has a shorter 114-inch wheelbase, smaller diameter wheels, additional doors and is sized to fit within a garage and although numerous modifications made to it — the original design language is still honored.