In early 1941, the Australian Army was faced with the difficulty of equipping the Armoured Division that was in the process of being raised - while obtaining tanks and armoured cars was difficult enough, such a division also required some 210 scout cars as a part of its normal establishment. As the supply of such vehicles from the traditional overseas sources was extremely unlikely, a specification for an Australian-built scout car was issued to the Directorate of Armoured Fighting Vehicles Procurement. The resulting vehicle, named the Dingo - which bore little resemblance to the similarly named vehicle produced by Daimler for the British Army - used commercially available parts (including a Ford 30-cwt commercial lorry chassis) and an angular, all-welded hull manufactured from locally produced armour plate. In all some 245 Dingo scout cars (registration numbers 77001-77246) were manufactured, and served with the Australian Army until superseded by the Canadian Mk.3* Lynx I scout car in 1944.

The primary role of the Dingo scout car in the armoured divisions was reconnaissance and liason - these vehicles were employed in a liason role in the armoured car regiments and armoured regiments, and supplemented the reconnaissance work of the MG carriers in the motor battalions, and occasionally the engineer field squadrons.

The Dingo scout car, unfortunately, was a flawed vehicle. From the outset, problems were found with the strength of the front axle assembly, driving the vehicle for any length of time was found to be exhausting due to the cramped nature of the driver's position, visibility for the driver was very poor (made worse by the driver's seat being non-adjustable), and the weight of the vehicle (at some 4.7tons when fully equipped) severely restricted off-road performance such that the type was more or less limited to roads or hard surfaces. While some modifications were undertaken during the service life of the Dingo in an attempt to correct these problems, the usefulness of this vehicle was restricted.

The Australian Dingo scout car did not see active service abroad with the Australian Army (as, by 1943, the army was primarily concerned with jungle fighting, where scout cars would play little part), but rather remained in Australia with the armoured divisions during the long years of training. Whatever its problems, the Dingo did fill a gap during a desperate time.

Source:
Cecil, Michael K. "Australian Military Equipment Profiles Vol.3: Australian Scout and Armoured Cars 1933 to 1945" (1993) [an excellent, very detailed book - highly recommended]