The Entire Dutton Amphibious Car Company Is Up For Sale And You Could Buy It

Who didn’t dream of owning a car company as a kid? Pumping out machines of your own desire, building what both you and your customers think is cool. Sadly, the real world presents some barriers to car company ownership, but don’t consider that childhood dream entirely impossible just yet. The entirety of Dutton Amphibious Vehicles is up for sale, so if you happen to have a whole lot of money burning a hole in your pocket, you can buy an amphibious car company. No really, I’m not joking. Here’s what Dutton says is up for grabs:

ON OFFER (subject to contract):

Whole set 1999 GRP(FRP) moulds and production jigs for Surf

Whole set 2014 GRP(FRP) moulds and production jigs for Reef

All equipment in factory to produce the above inc removable mezzanine floor. Some of the machinery dating back to the late 60’s has no value and is included at no cost.

1/ Web sites:- timdutton.com duttoncars.com amphijeep.biz

2/ Current web site still up and running is timdutton.com

3/ Registered trade mark “Dutton”

4/ 54 years of suppliers details

5/ Hand holding by Tim Dutton thru transfer who is happy to assist for a set time if required. This can include vehicle production and as importantly vehicle/marine legislation including Individual Vehicle Approval. Worthy of note that our amphibs invariably pass IVA on first application.

6/ Other amphibious car projects in the pipe line…..

7/ Use of the name Tim Dutton as a figurehead if required.

8/ Continued consultancy by Tim Dutton if required.

That’s basically everything you need to make two models of amphibious vehicle, and all the intellectual property to keep marketing them for years, or at least until your money runs out. You know what they say: To make a small fortune in automobiles, start with a large one. So, what exactly are these amphibious vehicles? Allow me to introduce you to the Dutton range.

First up is the Dutton Surf, a Suzuki Jimny-based amphibious SUV that really redefines the term “go-anywhere.” With proper four-wheel-drive and a jet drive for the water, this thing can tackle just about anything but the air. Land, sea, take your pick. We’re talking about eight inches of ground clearance, approach and departure angles of 35 and 30 degrees, and a jaunty 2,500-pound curb weight over here. Intriguingly, the Surf also used Mk4 Volkswagen Golf headlights for a while, and thanks to the molded-in-color monocoque, it’s not the sort of vehicle that’s liable to rust out structurally during a lifetime of water excursions. Oh, and it was even available with a poupe deck, which is just a fun phrase to say.

Of more practical interest to the American market is the Dutton Reef. It’s an entry-level front-wheel-drive amphibious vehicle based on the common Mk7 Ford Fiesta. Since it uses the 1.6-liter powertrain, American Fiestas seem like prime donor cars, and the amphibious capabilities should prove a sleeper hit with the weirdos (affectionate) of water-heavy jurisdictions. Sure, it has a top speed of just 6 mph on the water, but imagine taking a direct route through the water instead of meandering along stop-and-go freeways.

If that rather pedestrian water speed turns you off, you aren’t the only one. As our resident professional car designer Adrian Clarke pointed out in our Slack, “A car boat! It’s the worst of both worlds: A shit car AND a shit boat.” He’s not wrong, but the flipside is that objectively bad things can be very entertaining. Ever watched Tommy Wiseau’s “The Room”?

[Editor’s Note: I just want to say that this is one of those rare times where I’m going to ask – no, demand – that nobody listen to Adrian. Amphibious cars are fantastic. It doesn’t matter if it’s not a great car or a great boat – most of us don’t need great anythings, and the combination of car and boat is so much greater than the sum of their parts. 

I’ve actually ranted about this before, right here:

“People always say that cars like the Amphicar failed because they were inherently compromised, not a great car or a great boat. I get that. But here’s the secret: it doesn’t need to be great at either! It just needs to be adequate as a boat, and pretty good as a car. Err on the side of car, because people will use it as a car far more than a boat, and really, for most people, all they demand of a boat is something they can easily putter around a body of water in, without sinking, in reasonable comfort.

An ideal amphibious car will be affordable and should operate at least as well on public roads as other vehicles designed primarily for recreation; if it doesn’t make any more driving compromises than, say, a lifted Jeep, I think you’re good to go.”

Is it weird to blockquote myself? In an Editor’s Note? Who cares. I love amphibious cars. I wish I had the money to give this a go! Who wants to buy my middle kidney? – JT]

Oh, and Dutton amphibious vehicles can’t be that bad because Dutton claims to have sold more than 280 of them over the past 34 years or so. That’s far from crazy volume, but it certainly isn’t bad. As far as business points go Dutton also makes a point of recurring revenue, customers popping in for MOTs, pre-IVA checks, servicing, and what have you. Sure, the Surf can be serviced at any Suzuki dealer and the Reef at any Ford dealer, but this sort of customer loyalty isn’t terribly surprising for a niche maker of fantastic machines.

Plus, think of the scalability here. Who needs autonomous robotaxis when you have manned water taxis for sightseeing, commuting, and everything in between? Why not sell these things to rich folks with private islands who occasionally need to hop across to the mainland? The Reef could even be a hit in low-lying locales threatened by sea levels, hurricanes, and whatnot. It looks way easier to park than a deuce-and-a-half, yet should still be capable of evacuating from waterlogged areas.

Preceding production of amphibious vehicles, Dutton made its mark on the automotive industry from a David-versus-Goliath battle with Ford. In 1980, Dutton launched a strictly land-going Ford Escort-based crossover SUV kit car called the Sierra. Two years later, Ford came along wanting to use the Sierra name for its family hatchback. As Car Magazine reports, Ford served Dutton with a legal writ, but London’s High Court ruled in Dutton’s favor, categorically separating assembled cars and kit cars to make peace. Before that, Tim Dutton-Wooley made sports cars in kit form, and even designed an ill-fated sports car based on the Polski Fiat P125. The man’s a weird car god, up there with Andre Citroën and Tom Karen.

In case strong heritage and everything you need to make real amphibious cars isn’t enough, here’s something else to consider: Jason is very much interested in Dutton, writing “I wonder if I can convince Beau this would be a wise investment,” and to be perfectly honest, we would all like to stay employed. Please, buy Dutton before manufacturing amphibious cars becomes a serious fucking problem for us. I guess if all else fails, we do have membership and merch, right?

(Photo credits: Dutton Cars, Buch-t – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 de)

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