First modern Scout to debut this summer

Volkswagen Group is working on an electric pickup truck and SUV inspired by the International Harvester Scout, and the company will show one of them this summer.

The vehicles are being developed by the new U.S.-based company Scout Motors, which last week released a promotional video that confirms a reveal is planned for summer 2024.

Scout CEO Scott Keogh early last year said the company’s first vehicle will be the SUV. He also revealed last month that Scout is working with Magna International to develop its vehicles, including the vehicles’ body-on-frame platform.

The SUV is the vehicle expected to be revealed this summer, a teaser for which was shown in 2022. Production is slated to start in 2026. Production of the pickup will follow the SUV within a year, Keogh has previously said.

Production will take place at a new plant to be located near Columbia, South Carolina. Close to $2 billion is expected to be invested in the site, which could churn out vehicles for other VW Group brands, possibly sharing Scout’s platform. A rugged Audi SUV targeting the likes of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class and Land Rover Defender is rumored to be on the wishlist.

The original International Harvester Scout, which also offered pickup truck and SUV body styles, was built between 1961 and 1980, and various updates were introduced periodically. VW Group acquired the rights to the Scout name in 2020 with the purchase of Navistar, a successor company of International Harvester.

Interestingly, Scout has made moves to trademark some of the earlier nameplates used by International Harvester for its Scouts. There are close to 30 trademarks that cover Scout 80—the name of the first Scout launched by International Harvester in 1960—Scout 800, and Scout II, as well as package names such as Aristocrat, Rallye, Sno-Star, Sportstar, and more.