The Detroit Historical Museum is about to put its 1935 Stout Scarab on display after getting the priceless automobile back from a Maine museum, where it spent the past 12 years on loan.

The Stout Scarab was ahead of its time by some four decades, laying out the blueprint for today’s minivans and rear-engined passenger vehicles. It was also a thing of beauty.

The Stout Scarab is considered one of the rarest vehicles on the planet because only a few were made between 1934 and 1939. Some claim Stout Engineering Laboratories made as many as nine, while ...

William Stout was an American inventor known for his aviation and automotive designs. Roy Schneider, of Milwaukee, shows off his 1936 Stout Scarab, a model often called the first minivan.

The Scarab prototype arrived in 1932; during this time Stout was also working on a number of other concepts and prototypes, none of which ever made it to production.

DETROIT -- It's certainly one of the most original cars ever and it's named for a sacred beetle. It's the 1935 Stout Scarab, which is about to go on display again at the Detroit Historical Museum.

William Stout was an American inventor known for his aviation and automotive designs. Roy Schneider, of Milwaukee, shows off his 1936 Stout Scarab, a model often called the first minivan.

The 1936 art deco-inspired Stout Scarab is considered to be the world’s first production minivan but unlike most modern family haulers, it has a presence that will stop you in your tracks.

The Scarab was created in 1936 by William B. Stout out of Michigan. He had a background in the aeronautics industry and he’s apparently most famous for building what is believed to be one of the ...