An incredible identify from an earlier period of off-roading is again, and People are already explicit about it. Scout Motors says, in early reservations, its deliberate SUV is outselling its pickup truck 2-to-1. Information gathered unofficially by an fanatic discussion board means that Scouts geared up with a range-extending gas-powered generator are outselling purely electrical fashions 4-to-1.
The Historical past
From 1961 to 1980, the Worldwide Harvester firm constructed SUVs, and generally pickups, beneath the Scout identify. The early Scout was one of many world’s first real SUVs — rugged styling, brief overhangs for excellent rock-crawling angles, versatile truck frames, and 4-wheel drive (4WD). They competed with Nineteen Sixties and Nineteen Seventies Ford Broncos, Jeep Wagoneers, and different early SUVs for the eye of consumers who needed one thing trail-worthy.
The Scout was, at occasions, out there as a pickup, a traditional hardtop SUV, and a Jeep Wrangler-like convertible off-roader with a fold-down windshield.
Worldwide Harvester deserted its automobile enterprise in 1980 to deal with industrial vehicles and college buses. Within the many years since its belongings had been bought and resold.
They landed with the Volkswagen Group.
In 2022, VW introduced plans to restart Scout manufacturing. The brand new firm, although owned by the German conglomerate, can be based mostly in America and construct automobiles in South Carolina.
The brand new Scouts can be electrical automobiles (EVs). EVs have great promise as off-road automobiles as a result of it’s comparatively straightforward for engineers to design 4WD fashions. Electrical motors are small and fitted on to a automobile’s axles. You possibly can construct an EV with one motor per wheel if you want, spinning every wheel individually to get out of difficult path conditions.
The Traveler and the Terra
Scout took the wraps off two fashions late final week. We anticipate each for the 2027 mannequin yr.
The Scout Traveler is the traditional boxy SUV. The Scout Terra is a 4-door pickup. Each put on rugged, boxy traces for the sharp method and departure angles that befit a critical off-roader. Each are crammed with practical options corresponding to mounted anchor factors for ropes of their bumpers and so many locations to strap gear inside that the partitions would possibly as effectively be pegboard.
There’s even an possibility for a entrance bench seat.
Each are deliberate as pure EVs, or as what’s generally known as an extended-range electrical car (E-REV).
An E-REV works as an EV — solely electrical motors energy the wheels. Nevertheless, it has a gasoline engine that serves solely as a generator. You possibly can maintain the car charged and use electrical energy nearly on a regular basis. However you at all times have the choice of a protracted journey removed from chargers as a result of you’ll be able to recharge on the go.
It’s the identical precept behind the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger. Scout hasn’t mentioned what sort of engine will energy the E-REV fashions as a result of it doesn’t notably matter. It’s simply there as a roving battery backup. It received’t even be linked to the wheels. So that you don’t want monster torque – only a trickle cost while you want it.
They’ve, cheekily, named the engine the Harvester.
Reservations So Far; and a Warning About Them
To date, it appears the typical shopper desires an E-REV SUV.
The SUV half comes immediately from Scout. The corporate tells CarScoops that about two-thirds of early reservations have been for the Traveler SUV.
The corporate hasn’t commented on what number of need the vary extender. An organization spokesperson says, “The Harvester range-extender, connection-focused options just like the bench seat, and a return to tactility and utility are resonating with shoppers, and we’re seeing that enthusiasm mirrored in reservation counts.”
However we might have a clue in regards to the numbers.
An fanatic discussion board has already popped up. The Scout EV Discussion board is monitoring reservation numbers by a survey.
To date, they report, 81% of customers have reserved the Harvester version.
We should always sprinkle a number of massive grains of salt right here. First, reservations should not gross sales. You possibly can reserve a Scout with a $100, absolutely refundable reservation on-line. Automakers often report giant reservation numbers solely to see many fewer precise consumers.
Second, this isn’t a rely of reservations from Scout. It’s a rely of people that discovered the fanatic discussion board and stuffed out a type there. It’s fairly probably that most individuals who’ve reserved one haven’t executed that.
However the numbers are intriguing dialog items, if nothing else, whereas we watch for the actual Scouts to get right here.
Web curiosity in these automobiles is dramatic this week, and all of us want one thing low-stakes to speak about, don’t we?
