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Who out there is old enough to remember these Scammel Scarab’s delivering goods to their doors?
The Scammell Scarab is a British 3-wheeled tractor unit produced between 1948 and 1967. Its name is commonly believed to be derived from the rounded bonnet that resembled the elytra (wing covers) of a Scarab beetle, but the name really comes from a more conventional source, Scammell’s idea of the combination of an Arab horse (which the Mechanical Horse replaced in BR usage) and the word Scammell. Sca-rab = Scarab.
The official Scammell Lorries Ltd advertisement film makes reference to this. It was extremely popular with British Railways and other companies which made deliveries within built-up areas. The Ministry of Defence also used the Scarab and trailers for predominantly internal transport on large military bases.
Scammell Lorries produced approximately 30,000 Mechanical Horses of all types; of these, about 30 original Mechanical Horses, 60 Scarabs, and 30 Townsman are known to survive together with 3 Karrier Cobs and two Jen Tugs.
