In 2026, production of the electric Scout pickup truck and SUV will begin.
The legend of the International Scout receiving an electric reboot is now a reality. Volkswagen Group has confirmed that it will launch a new Scout brand in the USA, creating an electric vehicle and SUV. Production will begin in 2026.
Herbert Diess, VW CEO, stated that after Volkswagen’s success in the US, they are now looking to strengthen their position in one the most important growth markets for electric vehicles. “Electrification offers a historic chance to enter the highly desirable pickup and R-SUV segments as a group. This underlines our ambition to be a player in the US market.”
VW doesn’t just create Scout badges for existing vehicles. The subject is briefly covered in a press release. It states that a new independent company will be formed and assigned the task of creating these vehicles. This includes everything, from the design and engineering of prototypes to the production of production-spec vehicles. Scout will be the company’s name and it has four year to accomplish all this.
VW claims that the first step in establishing the company is actually establishing it. This will happen later in the year. The prototypes for the new Scout pickup truck and SUV will be available in 2024. If everything goes according to plan, production models should be available in 2026. Although it is not known where they will be made, VW claims that the company and its operations are based in the US. It appears that the electric Scout vehicles will be built on a “new technical platform idea” which means it is not a completely new endeavor.
Arno Antlitz, VW CFO, stated that the company he will create this year will be an independent unit and brand within Volkswagen Group. He will manage it independently. This aligns with the new group steering system – small units which act quickly and have access to our technology platforms to leverage synergies.
The International Harvester Scout is a classic. It was built from the 1960s to 1980 and could be purchased as a small SUV or pickup. International Harvester also manufactured passenger cars, as well as farm equipment, engines and semi-trucks. In 1985, the company was closed down. The semi-truck division survived as Navistar International. In 2020, Volkswagen bought Navistar International via its Traton heavy-truck group.