The Scout Reveal is Coming!

[RallyRaptors]

While corporate promises are worth their weight in spit, VW says it's a clean sheet design, body on frame.

I don't think VW currently has any body on frame designs to crib from, so not a simple badge engineered version of anything else.

I'd be happy to be wrong, and can see them designing a new frame (only body on frame design they have, as mentioned elsewhere here, would be a rebadged Ranger). I just won't put much $ on it being a Scout only design. Now, if they do a body on frame plugin hybrid with some genuine offroad potential... that would be interesting. Something to compete with the Wrangler 4xe but built from the ground up with electric or plugin hybrid power in mind.

One visit to an Electrify America station (part of VW's settlement for Diesel Gate) makes me second guess their ability to do EV's well though. I've driven a few Taycan's, and if you don't need to recharge on the road, or have a functioning station on your route, those are awesome. So somewhere in the VW-Porsche-Audi world there are people who do EV's well. I guess we will see if those people work on the Scout and spend some time offroad.

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[bodie_38]

My favorite Mandolorian saying is “If you don’t know, don’t speak.” I have been following the Scout story since I first heard they were coming back because the Scout is my favorite 4x4. I currently have a ‘78 and previously owned a ‘64 and ‘79 along with the ‘71 Bronco in my avatar.
So is the new EV Scout a Scout? A little history. International harvester’s roots go back to the mid 1800s but ran into financial problems in the late 1970s. They ended their passenger vehicle (light line) production in 1980 to cut costs but ended up going bankrupt in the early eighties anyway. IH sold off the farm equipment business (and the IH logo) to Case which became Case IH and still exists. Other parts were also sold off and the remainder of the company (heavy trucks) was reorganized and renamed Navistar International. Navistar retained all the light line trademarks, including Scout, and continued to build heavy trucks but never restarted the light line of passenger vehicles. In 2020, Navistar was acquired by Traton. Traton is the heavy truck subsidiary of VW group. Other subsidiaries of VW Group are Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley, Ducati and of course VW. VW Group decided to create an entirely new subsidiary based in the US called Scout Motors to take advantage of the portfolio they acquired as part of the purchase of Navistar- essentially restarting the light line but separate from Navistar. They will be built in a new factory under construction in South Carolina. Note- they did not just buy the trademarks, they bought the entire functioning manufacturer and continue to build Navistar heavy trucks.
My opinion, it’s as much a Scout as a Jeep is a Jeep after being bought by AMC, and Chrysler and Mercedes and Stellantis. It’ll be at least as American as a Ford built in Mexico or a Chevy from Canada.
I don’t know why they decided to go EV only but I can understand that since they will NOT be using any existing VW Group platforms (according to their press releases) and will be starting from scratch with an entirely clean sheet design, it’s probably easier/faster to build an EV than ICE or PHEV. Certainly easier than coming up with a platform that handles all 3.

 

[MayhemMike]

Travon owns VW, and Navistar. Building a Scout vehicle under this layered corporation resembles the “ seven degrees of Kevin Bacon”.

 

[lakesinai]

Oh, and I think Ford was also targeting the wrangler. ;-)

Sure they were targeting Wrangler. I just want to give the long-deceased Scout it's historical due, because many of the Ford-based write-ups that told the "History" of the Bronco have emphasized the connection of the 6g with the 1966 1g, without reference to other vehicles of the era, including the 1960 International Scout. And all these cars, which started as off-road Utility vehicles, were part of a redesign process that made them more road-worthy for use on the highway during the 1970's, which affected their look.

 

[lakesinai]

My favorite Mandolorian saying is “If you don’t know, don’t speak.” I have been following the Scout story since I first heard they were coming back because the Scout is my favorite 4x4. I currently have a ‘78 and previously owned a ‘64 and ‘79 along with the ‘71 Bronco in my avatar.
So is the new EV Scout a Scout? A little history. International harvester’s roots go back to the mid 1800s but ran into financial problems in the late 1970s. They ended their passenger vehicle (light line) production in 1980 to cut costs but ended up going bankrupt in the early eighties anyway. IH sold off the farm equipment business (and the IH logo) to Case which became Case IH and still exists. Other parts were also sold off and the remainder of the company (heavy trucks) was reorganized and renamed Navistar International. Navistar retained all the light line trademarks, including Scout, and continued to build heavy trucks but never restarted the light line of passenger vehicles. In 2020, Navistar was acquired by Traton. Traton is the heavy truck subsidiary of VW group. Other subsidiaries of VW Group are Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley, Ducati and of course VW. VW Group decided to create an entirely new subsidiary based in the US called Scout Motors to take advantage of the portfolio they acquired as part of the purchase of Navistar- essentially restarting the light line but separate from Navistar. They will be built in a new factory under construction in South Carolina. Note- they did not just buy the trademarks, they bought the entire functioning manufacturer and continue to build Navistar heavy trucks.
My opinion, it’s as much a Scout as a Jeep is a Jeep after being bought by AMC, and Chrysler and Mercedes and Stellantis. It’ll be at least as American as a Ford built in Mexico or a Chevy from Canada.
I don’t know why they decided to go EV only but I can understand that since they will NOT be using any existing VW Group platforms (according to their press releases) and will be starting from scratch with an entirely clean sheet design, it’s probably easier/faster to build an EV than ICE or PHEV. Certainly easier than coming up with a platform that handles all 3.

Nice summary. I hope the restart is such that I'll want to buy one. One thing is certain, from the responses to this post: there us alot of interest in, and love for, the International Scout!

 

[indio22]

Oh, and I think Ford was also targeting the wrangler. ;-)

Yep there has been cross breading and competition among the various vehicles. I didn't realize back in 2001 when Ford owned Land Rover, they had looked into revival of the Bronco using Land Rover chassis items, but it never got far into prototype stage apparently.

I was real bummed when the Ford/Land Rover mashup didn't work out, I had hoped it would be a chance for Land Rover to return to the USA with Defenders and a more "everyman" approach to the vehicle, rather than the upscale approach Land Rover had been pursuing. Later Tata got hold of Land Rover, the Defender died and we have the unibody non-removable top "Defender in name only" vehicle.

 

[CarmeloS]

VW should have hired pitbulls for lawyers and fought the fines rather than folding during Dieselgate, I mean look at what was taken from us

Even if you didn't wanna TDI VW, we'd be talking about affordable Turbo Diesels instead of speculating how their EV will crash and burn. Not everyone lives in big cities, I've been to and drove though enough states to see MILES of vast emptiness, so other than coastal elites, they aren't feasible throughout the land, especially with people whose commutes are tons of miles and not just 20 mins or less.

Harley and Hyundai did similar and were slapped on the wrist, so VW shouldn't have let the govts crucify them, unless it was all intentional to begin with by the Judas Goats on the boards

 

[lakesinai]

Yep there has been cross breading and competition among the various vehicles. I didn't realize back in 2001 when Ford owned Land Rover, they had looked into revival of the Bronco using Land Rover chassis items, but it never got far into prototype stage apparently.

I was real bummed when the Ford/Land Rover mashup didn't work out, I had hoped it would be a chance for Land Rover to return to the USA with Defenders and a more "everyman" approach to the vehicle, rather than the upscale approach Land Rover had been pursuing. Later Tata got hold of Land Rover, the Defender died and we have the unibody non-removable top "Defender in name only" vehicle.

I forgot about Land Rover-Ford! And there was also a Volvo-Ford pairing for awhile, as I remember! You make a good case for the reality that there are few pure automobiles!

 

[stampede1]

The "squared off" Series Land Rover was the precursor to both the Scout and Bronco. The Bronco in terms of competition in North America was modeled to take on the Scout.

And the jeep preceded the Land Rover, which is why the British SAS used jeeps in World War Two as opposed to land rovers as they didn’t come along until after the war.

 

[stampede1]

Yep there has been cross breading and competition among the various vehicles. I didn't realize back in 2001 when Ford owned Land Rover, they had looked into revival of the Bronco using Land Rover chassis items, but it never got far into prototype stage apparently.

I was real bummed when the Ford/Land Rover mashup didn't work out, I had hoped it would be a chance for Land Rover to return to the USA with Defenders and a more "everyman" approach to the vehicle, rather than the upscale approach Land Rover had been pursuing. Later Tata got hold of Land Rover, the Defender died and we have the unibody non-removable top "Defender in name only" vehicle.

And according to some sources, the Land Rover prototype used some jeep components. Crazy!

 

[Montana Bronco]

Unless I am misunderstanding something, it seems to me that an electric off-road vehicle would deliver outstanding performance. Each wheel with its own electrical motor, with a computer delivering precise torque and individual wheel speed in difficult and off-camber situations? Sure, battery life is a limiting factor, but the concept of an electric off-road vehicle is certainly intriguing.

It will be interesting to see what direction VW goes with the new Scout. Hardcore off-roader? Maybe.

This thread is making me nostalgic over my old Scouts.

 

[Lowcountry Bronco]

VW should have hired pitbulls for lawyers and fought the fines rather than folding during Dieselgate, I mean look at what was taken from us

Even if you didn't wanna TDI VW, we'd be talking about affordable Turbo Diesels instead of speculating how their EV will crash and burn. Not everyone lives in big cities, I've been to and drove though enough states to see MILES of vast emptiness, so other than coastal elites, they aren't feasible throughout the land, especially with people whose commutes are tons of miles and not just 20 mins or less.

Harley and Hyundai did similar and were slapped on the wrist, so VW shouldn't have let the govts crucify them, unless it was all intentional to begin with by the Judas Goats on the boards

I had just bought my TDI Golf SW two weeks prior to dieselgate. Really loved the car, 50 mpg was easy to do on the back highways between towns here. To me, the big issue wasn't so much us in the US but what diesel was doing in Europe where it was subsidized and in use to power everything. Take a look at some of the large city's just 10 years ago and think of LA from our history.

I ended up letting it go back and made some money on the buy back but VW got that back as it went to a new GTI. They should have fought it in the US, fully agree, but they did get allot of benefits in the long run too but don't know how it balanced out.

Anyway, glad SC is getting the plant, Hyundai is building one on the Georgia border and then we have BMW and Volvo here as well. I'm sure the State gave them some big subsidies like Tennessee did for VW in Chattanooga. I have no real desire to go to an EV, at least give a hybrid option to be of use as an off-road or off the beaten path vehicle.

 

[indio22]

And according to some sources, the Land Rover prototype used some jeep components. Crazy!

Back in the '60s Buick produced an aluminum V8. Buick also made a V6 from that engine, by cutting off two cylinders and casting the block in iron. Buick ended up selling the V8 to Land Rover and the V6 to Jeep (parent company Kaiser at the time). So both Land Rover and Jeep had engines with some shared DNA.

I use to own a 1970 CJ-5 Kaiser Jeep having one of those Dauntless odd-fire V6s, loved that engine, it had a heavy flywheel that made the engine hard to kill even when the rpm dipped low, that engine wanted to keep turning over when crawling over rocks.

I was planning to swap a Dauntless V6 into my Series Land Rover, coupled to a Ford T18 4-speed manual transmission. Still have the adapter for mounting the Ford trans to the stock LR tcase, but never got around to the swap. Now that I have the Bronco for longer distance high speed travel to trails, I'll probably keep my Series Land Rover stock with it's anemic 4cyl engine.

 

[Sherminiator]

$3B invested in a from the ground up facility in South Carolina despite or in conjunction with the deal VW has with Rivian means they have a plan

Plans mean almost nothing if the market shifts...just look at Ford's "plans" for their 3 row EV...

Oakville was supposed to build it and now they are retooling to build Super Duties (partly a shot across the UAW's bow after what happened last contract) and the 3 row is cancelled (which from what I heard was the best thing for it since it looked awful and with a 60K plus price tag would have been a disaster sales wise)

Ford is focusing on a cheaper EV that is being done by a skunkworks team and the first product will be a EV Pickup roughly the size of a Maverick or Ranger (which are only about 10 inches different in Overall Length)

The T3 pickup (larger EV truck) is getting pushed back a year along with BOC assembly.

Plans change.

 

[lakesinai]

Plans mean almost nothing if the market shifts...just look at Ford's "plans" for their 3 row EV...

Oakville was supposed to build it and now they are retooling to build Super Duties (partly a shot across the UAW's bow after what happened last contract) and the 3 row is cancelled (which from what I heard was the best thing for it since it looked awful and with a 60K plus price tag would have been a disaster sales wise)

Ford is focusing on a cheaper EV that is being done by a skunkworks team and the first product will be a EV Pickup roughly the size of a Maverick or Ranger (which are only about 10 inches different in Overall Length)

The T3 pickup (larger EV truck) is getting pushed back a year along with BOC assembly.

Plans change.

What a fascinating story of a changing market. Stay tuned!

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