Strange Automotive Engines: International's (IH) "Half of a V8" Comanche 152/196ci 4cyl!

My family owned an autoboby repair shop. We had a 1961 Scout, with this unique engine, set up as a snow plow and tow truck. My grandfather bought it new in 1961. It was a blast to drive! Power nothing, vacuum wipers and sliding half windows in the doors. The gearing was insane. In Granny gear, the torque felt like you could pull a house off its foundation! When my father retired in 2005, the Scout had 13,200 original miles on it!!!!! My uncle, living in Texas, drove to Pennsylvania with a flatbed and hauled it back to Texas. The Scout lives on!!

Never had a Scout, but I loved the ScoutII's. The 304's were unbelievably bulletproof, due to their extremely thick cylinder walls, forged cranks and nickel-alloy blocks and gear-drive cams.

I use to have an international scout 2 , wish I still had it . The only problem with driving it was every time I drove past corn fields the damn thing always started pulling to the right !

We lived in a wooded area at the end of the road . Me and older brother would take one of my dads 2 wheel drive trucks into the woods on old oil lease roads . We would sometimes get stuck and need pulled out . We would alway go get our elderly neighbor and his little scout truck to pull us . He never complained or told our dad. We were in our teens in the seventies. The poor neighbor was in his eighties, wonderful man . Never forget his little scout truck . Hopefully someday ill find one i can restore

There’s an older gentleman in my neighborhood that daily drives a 61 scout with the original 4 cyl engine. Smokes like a damn freight train. Can’t help but smile and shake my head every time he creeps by.

My grandfather kept an old 4 cylinder mid 60’s Scout for decades at my grandparents NC summer home to serve as his mountain runabout. He loved it. It would sit in a rickety garage for 6 months every year during the winter and fire right up with a little coaxing when they returned in the spring. Other than having an automatic transmission, it was about as crude as a vehicle could get with dented body panels and a floppy soft top. He couldn’t have cared less. It suited him perfectly.

You have touched a soft spot in me because in 1964 when I was 16 my parents bought a new International Scout all-wheel-drive. At the time I thought it was the most useful vehicle I had ever seen. Liked it so much better than the Mustang. We had the Scout for eight years and except for rust, very little went wrong with the Scout. I learned to drive stick shift on the Scout and we spent many times romping through snow in the winter and going camping in the summertime. I do not recall the four cylinder vibrating much. I loved the sound it made on take off. it sounded a bit like a farm tractor and had a chugging note to it. Indeed, it was bare-bones, although with ours, we did get the optional roll down windows and a heater and defroster. The only peculiarity it had was when it rained occasionally it would stall when you came to a stop. It was in the shop for that a number of times, but they claimed they could never find a problem. It did rust out, unfortunately after eight years as it occasionally leaked around the windshield. I also remember the steering wheel was on crooked from the factory. Instead of the bars going horizontally, they went vertically up and down. My father sold our Scout in 1972 to a friend up the street who fixed the rust in the floorboards, and had the Scout re-painted from the original tan with a white top to red with a white top. He drove it for another 10 years before he got rid of it. It was the greatest vehicle any teenager could've ever grown up with.

Just stumbled onto this video. My comment here is to clarify that the picture of the Scout 152 engine with the partial turbo (and disconnected outlet pipe to the right) is not a picture of the actual turbo option installed in the 1965-67 Scouts. It's a picture from a "turbo" Scout project I had around 2016. I was mocking up 152T turbo exhaust manifolding mounted to the larger IH 196 in a 1980 Scout II engine bay, to check for clearances and feasibility. My project was successful, but short lived.

A friend had one of those Scouts. Don't know if it was the 152 or 196. It was not a fast car, but it would really lug. Had 3 speed floor shift, posi in the rear, plus 4 wheel drive with a low range. Had to spin both rears and one front before you were stuck. The engine was very durable, had medium-duty truck engine parts inside. That little car had a heart of gold!

I worked for IH as a field rep the late 70s and we were provided with new Scouts every year. Internally at IH, they were called “ETVs (employee travel vehicles) I had several 1978, 79 and 1980 Scout IIs. They had 304 and 345 v8s. All the V8 scouts came with standard dual exhaust , and they sounded amazing. Most were upper trim models, all with chrome rims, whitewalls and deluxe interiors. I’ve seen many restorations, but very few retain the original details such as correct decals, the whitewall tires and chrome Rally rims. I really loved driving them. Thanks Adam love your channel and the fascinating details !

I Can’t say how much I enjoy your channel . The way you present information with no hype is refreshing. I’m 55 and a lifelong gear head, it’s annoying when some there’s some real engine family 101 stuff presented as if it’s more esoteric information. You don’t do that, I’ve been able to learn expanded knowledge on basic w Glen families I knew and become aware of some others. I also like your car collection in that you stay away from the more popular muscle and pony cars.

I'm so glad you featured IH!! Don't forget about the Nissan powered diesel they offered. Absolutely zero power, but unreal fuel economy. Keep in mind, while not perfect, International carried over a lot of the durability and toughness from their ag lines to their vehicles. They didn't fair so well against rust, but tough as nails.

i had a 65 scout for many years and off road adventures. it was slow but never got stuck in sand and was soo reliable . the 4 cyl engine was a gem

This is fantastic - my first vehicle was a 1980 Scout 2, factory yellow with half a V8 and a 4 speed. My brother and I ran it for years then I drove it out to CO and sold it while out there. I miss that truck!

196 owner here! 78 Scout Terra. Very reliable. Won't win a race but does great. It's a little shakey LOL!!! My 392 in the my 75 Travelall is super smooth.

In 1972 I traded a VW bug for a 1970 4 cylinder Scout with the full roof. I was in the USAF and my drive home went from 9 hours in the VW to 12 hours in the Scout. It was not a road trip vehicle and was like riding in a steel drum at 55-60 mph top speed! I traded it for a Pinto when I got married later that year. I sure do wish I had the old Scout today!

Don't hear enough about IH vehicles. When I worked on them in the 70s, I was impressed with how robust they were designed. I never experienced any driveability issues with them. They were just solid!

I bought a 1963 Scout in the fall of 1971. It had a snow plow on it. Rear end was out of it. Was fortunate to find a used rear end. Ran the Scout until it was severely rusted out to the point that the passenger seat was falling through the floor. I found a 1965 Scout right hand drive with own motor. The body was in good condition. I swapped the body onto the 63 chassis. Swapped all the controls and dash and everything into the 65 body. Made new foor pans and bed floor. Completed the project in 1978. Ran it until 1985 and sold it for the same amount of money I originally paid for it. Plowed lots of snow with. Wish I still had this Scout.

Love it, when I was a kid I had a 1965 international Scout with the 152 4 cylinder really good off road but the freeway it was a slow go😊

Love those old corn binders. Always got the job done.