VW's Scout Motors debuts 2 new EVs and a surprise range extender hybrid option
10/26/2024 03:20The revived Scout Motors finally showed off its two upcoming electric adventure vehicles, along with a bonus surprise.
The Scout brand, originally known for making the International Harvester back in the 60s and 70s, was purchased by Volkswagen (VWAGY) in 2021 and reborn as an electric adventure brand — and its two latest vehicles are here: the Terra pickup and the Traveler SUV.
The two EV trucks both use body-on-frame platforms like current pickups and some larger SUVs, eschewing modern unibody design. Scout says that platform, plus a live rear axle and mechanically locking front and rear differentials, gives the two adventure EVs “credible capability and off-road performance.”
Performance-wise, the two trucks can go from 0-60 mph in only 3.5 seconds, with the four-wheel drive system (most likely dual motor) outputting 1,000 lb. ft of torque.
Most interesting is that both models will offer a range-extender hybrid version, known as an extended range electric vehicle (EREV), which Scout calls the “Harvester.” EREVs are basically electric vehicles with smaller batteries that include a regular gas motor that fires up when battery is depleted and charges the battery, allowing for more range.
The EV-only Terra and Traveler will get an estimated 350 miles of range, but the Harvester models will get more than 500 miles.
“I think it's the perfect technology for what's happening in America today. It gets you up over 500 miles [with a] gas generator powering the battery,” Scout Motors CEO Scott Keogh told Yahoo Finance. “It introduces electrification to America that gives you the safety and security of a gas-powered engine. It gives us the flexibility in our plant and in our platform. So for us, it's spot-on.”
Keough said the addition of the EREV was because customers are looking for more range in their EVs. “Maybe it was a little bit on the back burner about nine months ago; we put it on the front burner,” he said. “It's a good solution and it gives us the flexibility, which is what we want.”
Scout says the trucks are designed and engineered in Michigan and will be built in a new plant in South Carolina, creating over 4,000 jobs.
Design-wise, the Traveler most resembles the original International Harvester, though of course thoroughly modernized. The Terra truck looks awfully close to a Rivian R1T, though Scout won’t say so. The use of zonal software architecture, fancy talk for localized systems throughout the truck, does not actually come from Rivian (who is VW’s joint venture partner), but Keogh said the opportunity exists for collaboration in the future.
Pricing for the entry-level Terra and Traveler will start under $60,000, though they could be had for around $50,000 with state and federal incentives. Production is targeted for a 2027 start date, but customers can make reservations starting today.
Keogh said the company pulled in 600 reservations in the first 45 minutes of preordering, so demand appears strong, at least initially.
More importantly, despite the relatively competitive cost, Keough believes Scout has the right recipe in place to build the EVs and sell them profitably — something other startups like Rivian and Lucid are struggling to do.
"There's two things to get the business case right: Get material cost of the car down so we can make money on [the] car, No. 1, critical with an EV. And then being a startup, obviously we don't have any legacy cost, we don't have big overheads. We can manage our operating costs.”
Keogh predicts Scout will be profitable in the first calendar year of production. It's an aggressive goal, but Keogh believes it can happen.
In the big picture, the former VW USA CEO believes there is too much negativity in the auto business currently, and automakers should focus more on what's really important: making good, and exciting, vehicles.
“They want something cool,” Keogh said about customers who are interested in Scout EVs. “There's this moment in America where people want to build things again; they want to do things again. I think that's why there's this visceral reaction to Scout.”
Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on X and on Instagram.
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