M3A1 White Scout Car

SPECIFICATIONS

CREW: 2 - Driver and Commander; and 6 Passengers
DIMENSIONS: Length 18 ft 6 in / Width 6 ft 8 in / Height 6 ft 7 in
COMBAT WEIGHT: 12,400 lbs
FUEL CAPACITY: 54 gallons
PERFORMANCE: Max road speed 50 mph; Range 250 miles
ARMAMENT: .50 cal machine gun with 750 rounds 2x .30 cal machine guns with 8,000 rounds

Designed for High-Speed Reconnaissance
The M3A1 White Scout Car, developed a few years before the U.S. entered World War II, was designed for high-speed reconnaissance duty. It was widely used in all theaters of the war by the U.S. Army and, in smaller numbers, by the Marine Corps.


One .50 Caliber and Two .30 Caliber Machine Guns
The M3A1 had an open top and 1/4-inch protective armor plating. It was armed with a .50 caliber machine gun, plus one or two water-cooled .30 caliber machine guns mounted on a skate ring encircling its inside edge.

Reliable and Rugged, but Not Without Faults
Despite being reliable and rugged, the M3A1 had several flaws. It functioned poorly off-road, its open top left the crew vulnerable and the large ammunition storage boxes inside the compartment crowded the crew. By mid-1943 these drawbacks were limiting its utility on the front lines, so much so that it was eventually replaced by the M8 and M20 armored cars. Of the roughly 21,000 M3A1 Scout Cars produced by the White Motor Company from 1940 to 1944, about half were provided to the Allies under the Lend-Lease program.