The Volkswagen Group made waves again in 2022 when it introduced it might be reviving the Scout nameplate for a brand new model of American-built totally electrical vehicles and SUVs, however we hadn’t gotten a lot concrete data concerning the upcoming Scouts past some teasers and learnings gleaned from speaking with the CEO. Till now, that’s. Enter the brand new Scout Terra pickup and Traveler SUV — each names taken from authentic Worldwide Harvester fashions — which have been simply revealed at a sprawling property exterior Nashville. Technically these are simply idea automobiles, however Scout representatives promise they’re fairly near the manufacturing fashions that may launch in 2027.
We don’t have many powertrain particulars but, however the electrical Scouts could have an electrical motor at every axle and an 800-volt battery pack of unknown measurement. The model is focusing on a most torque determine of 1,000 pound-feet, which can ship the vehicles from 0 to 60 mph in as little as 3.5 seconds and permit them to climb 100-percent grades. No horsepower figures got, and there’ll absolutely be lower-powered variations provided. Charging shall be completed with an NACS port, and the Scouts could have 350-kW fast-charging and bi-directional charging capabilities. Most vary shall be a Scout-estimated 350 miles.
Along with the usual totally electrical setup that had been promised from the beginning, Scout shocked us by saying that each the Terra and Traveler shall be provided with an non-obligatory range-extender, a small gas-powered engine that acts as a generator for the electrical motors and battery and can improve the utmost vary to greater than 500 miles. Scout is asking this EREV (prolonged vary electrical car) setup the Harvester, a callback to the corporate’s roots, and it says going for the EREV will keep the packaging and efficiency advantages of an EV. With the intention to accomplish that, my guess is it is going to be a three- or four-cylinder engine mounted someplace across the rear axle, underneath the pickup mattress or SUV flooring alongside a most likely small gasoline tank, to retain the inside packaging and frunk.
No matter powertrain alternative, the Scouts could have critical capabilities and actual truck attributes. The body-on-frame platform is newly developed only for Scout and seemingly gained’t be utilized by some other Volkswagen Group merchandise (although who is aware of how lengthy that may final), and it has a stable rear axle. The Terra will have the ability to tow greater than 10,000 kilos whereas the Traveler will pull over 7,000 kilos, and each fashions could have near 2,000 kilos of payload capability. Scout says the vehicles could have over 12 inches of floor clearance, virtually three toes of water fording functionality and “aggressive” strategy and departure angles. Different goodies embrace a entrance sway bar disconnect, mechanical entrance and rear lockers, and tires as much as 35 inches in measurement. Scout says there shall be totally different suspension choices, however hasn’t mentioned what they are going to be. Accessible from the manufacturing unit shall be a spread of equipment like auxiliary lights, off-road bumpers with a heavy-duty winch and aspect steps. Scout may also have powered equipment that may be managed by inside switches or the cellular app.
All of that’s nicely and good, but when the design is a flop none of it issues. Fortunately, I feel Scout’s Michigan-based design workforce, lead by former Jeep designer Chris Benjamin, completely nailed it. Each the Terra and Traveler are the right combination of retro and fashionable, with sufficient throwback cues to tie into the outdated Scouts with out being too kitschy. Unsurprisingly, from the B-pillars ahead the 2 fashions are an identical, and so they each look fairly enormous. Scout hasn’t given any dimensions but, however the Terra has a 5-foot-5-inch mattress, a complete foot longer than the Rivian R1T’s. The entrance overhangs are tremendous quick and the hoods aren’t too lengthy both, however each Scouts have a frunk that’s large enough to carry golf golf equipment, a gymnasium bag and a cooler.
The Scouts have a particular upright face with a black “masks” that’s a pleasant nod to the unique fashions’ extensive grilles. A serrated gentle strip surrounds all the masks, and the oblong headlights on the ends have a horizontal gentle strip bisecting them that’s then matched by a small marker gentle on the entrance fender edge. The rear ends have equally sized and formed masks and light-weight setups, which I feel appears particularly cool on the pickup. The corporate caught with a traditional Scout script for the badging, which is offset and illuminated at each ends.
Rugged sorts shall be blissful to see that the Scouts have actual bumpers protruding from each the entrance and rear ends, with skid plate parts, outstanding tow hooks and built-in lights. The aspect skirts are thick black plastic, however in any other case there’s not a lot in the best way of aggressive off-road styling — Scout says it wished the vehicles to “outline their rugged functionality with out add-on cladding or different adornments.” The fenders are actually properly flared, with solely a slim plastic bit on the edges, and the Scouts have softly sculpted broad shoulders.
The Traveler’s rear quarter window kicks up on the thick D-pillar, an excellent tie-in with the outdated Scouts, and the present automobile has a contrasting roof that appears nice. Among the best particulars on the Traveler is the break up tailgate, which creates a pleasant spot to take a seat on or load objects into the seemingly spacious cargo space, and it has a spare tire provider that swings out individually and allegedly has “minimal affect” to the aerodynamics. The Terra has an underbody spare provider that may maintain tires as much as 33 inches, or a bed-mounted provider for the 35-inch all-terrains. That mattress has two 120-volt energy shops and a 240-volt outlet, and the Terra has steps within the bedside proper behind the rear doorways and well-integrated seize handles on both sides of the rear window that ape the form of the aspect home windows.
Annoyingly, Scout solely despatched two photographs of the inside, each of the Traveler, nevertheless it appears actually good. Sure, there’s a huge digital gauge cluster and a good larger central infotainment touchscreen, however Scout put an enormous emphasis on having actual bodily controls all through the cabin, like a row of toggle switches and knobs beneath the display screen. The screens are framed by two horizontal bars paying homage to the dashboards in outdated Scouts, and the multi-tiered middle console has numerous cupboard space and USB-C ports. It’s received regular air vents, too!
One of many greatest retro touches is the provision of a bench seat for the entrance row, which shall be provided on each the Terra and Traveler rather than that middle console. Scout may also provide the Traveler with what it calls the Cabana High, a sliding material sunroof that gives one of many greatest openings of any SUV. You’ll additionally have the ability to spec your Scout with a panoramic glass sunroof that fortunately has a powered sunshade. There are a selection of buttons and switches on the entrance of the roof, together with a cool spherical compass.
I actually just like the ’70s-style steering wheel that has rotary knobs and the beginning/cease button built-in within the decrease part, and the shifter is column-mounted to offer extra inside house. This present automobile has an improbable mixture of tan leather-based and gray material all through, with loads of contrasting stitching and aluminum accents, however crucially decrease sections are manufactured from extra sturdy plastics so that you gained’t really feel unhealthy about beating them up. Scout says the inside is made with sustainable supplies, although no particulars got.
The personalizable infotainment system known as the Scout Group UX, described as being “versatile, configurable and easy-to-use” and constructed on a “fashionable zonal software program structure” with over-the-air updates and distant diagnostics. We are able to see an enormous map view dominating the display screen, and a row of shortcut buttons on the backside for generally used options and methods. The speedometer show appears to be a retro horizontal design, which I’m into.
Scout says each the Traveler could have retail costs beginning at underneath $60,000, with the figures going as little as $50,000 with out there incentives — which means the beginning worth will seemingly be $57,500, with the federal tax credit score taking it to the magic $50,000 mark, and people costs most likely don’t embrace vacation spot. The Terra, in the meantime, may also begin underneath $60,000 and go as little as $51,500 with incentives. If Scout can keep on with these numbers, that’ll be a reasonably killer worth, undercutting present electrical vehicles just like the Rivian and Ford F-150 Lightning. In fact, higher-end fashions will definitely be much more costly, and we don’t know the way a lot the range-extender will add onto the worth. The corporate is accepting reservations now to the tune of a refundable $100 price, which can allow you to decide your mannequin and powertrain and reserve your spot in line.
As for the way gross sales and servicing will work, Scout’s doing it equally to different electrical startups by working with a direct gross sales mannequin. Scout guarantees “full worth transparency” and a seamless on-line buying expertise that may be completed in minutes. There shall be an “unique” Scout retail community consisting of devoted retail areas and Workshops that may deal with hands-on experiences, check drives and servicing. Scout says 80 p.c of repairs may be accomplished exterior of the the Workshops, seemingly with at-home servicing, and the vehicles could have “aggressive value of possession by sturdy repairability.”
The groundbreaking of Scout’s model new manufacturing unit in South Carolina solely simply occurred earlier this yr, and whereas manufacturing was initially set to start out in 2026, that has been pushed again to a while in 2027 — a date the corporate says is predicated on present projections and topic to vary. Therein lies one of many greatest issues with these new vehicles. By the point they lastly enter manufacturing, we’ll have seen some huge leaps in EV expertise in functionality. A lot of corporations are engaged on solid-state batteries that may launch over the following few years, and hell, you should buy a Rivian proper now that has a spread of over 400 miles.
Nonetheless, I feel the brand new Scouts are superior, and I feel they nonetheless shall be superior after they hit the roads just a few years from now. Volkswagen Group simply may have fucked this up, and a minimum of from what we all know to this point, it doesn’t appear to have. American shoppers actually do love and need reliable trucky pickups and SUVs, and that’s what the reborn Scout is delivering.
