The Scout name went quiet when the last Scout II left Fort Wayne on October 21, 1980. Volkswagen Group came to own it in 2021, when its truck arm Traton completed the purchase of Navistar, International Harvester's successor. On May 11, 2022, Volkswagen approved a new, independent US company to design, build and sell off-road vehicles under the Scout name. Scout Motors Inc. was founded on May 24, 2022, and former Volkswagen Group of America boss Scott Keogh became its CEO on September 1, 2022. Everything on this page is as officially announced by Scout Motors, with dates. None of it has been driven by a customer.
A FACTORY IN SOUTH CAROLINA
On March 3, 2023, Scout announced a $2 billion factory in Blythewood, South Carolina, designed to build up to 200,000 vehicles a year and to employ more than 4,000 people. Scout says its vehicles will be engineered in Detroit and built in South Carolina; its product, design and engineering teams work at an Innovation Center in Novi, Michigan. On November 12, 2025, Scout announced that its headquarters would move to Charlotte, North Carolina.
Scout plans to sell directly rather than through franchised dealers. Its website says retail stores will debut in 16 metro areas, expanding to about 100 locations in the US and Canada by 2032. That plan has drawn lawsuits: Volkswagen and Audi dealers in Florida sued in February 2025, and the California New Car Dealers Association sued Scout and Volkswagen Group of America in federal court. On March 30, 2026, a federal judge let the California association's main claims proceed.
THE REVEAL
On October 24, 2024, at an event outside Nashville, Scout revealed two concepts: the Traveler SUV and the Terra pickup. The specification read like an off-roader's wish list. Scout announced a body-on-frame platform with a solid rear axle, four-wheel drive with an electric drive unit on each axle, front and rear mechanical locking differentials and a front sway-bar disconnect. It also projected an 800-volt architecture, up to 35-inch tires, more than 10,000 lb of towing for the Terra and more than 7,000 lb for the Traveler, and nearly 2,000 lb of payload.
Scout offered two powertrains. The battery-electric versions are projected to reach up to 350 miles of range. The "Harvester" extended-range versions add a gasoline generator and are projected to reach 500 miles or more. Scout said entry prices would start under $60,000, or as low as $50,000 for the Traveler and $51,500 for the Terra with incentives available at the time. Reservations opened that evening for $100, fully refundable. In January 2025 Keogh said there were more than 50,000 reservations, about 70% for the Traveler, and that more than half of buyers had picked the Harvester. At the November 2025 Los Angeles Auto Show, Scout showed refreshed concepts, with the Terra on 37-inch tires.
THE WAIT
At the reveal Scout targeted the start of production for 2027, and its model pages still say "initial production targeted for 2027, subject to change." In March 2026 Keogh told a Detroit audience, "When do I see the cars in the hands of a physical customer? I see that sometime in 2028," and said reservations had reached about 160,000, roughly three-quarters of them for the Traveler. On April 13, 2026, a Scout spokesperson said, "We expect customers will begin taking delivery of new Scout vehicles in 2028."
In July 2026 Scout welded its first validation Traveler body at Blythewood. Keogh said the milestone gets the company "one step closer to delivering Scout vehicles in 2028." For now, the original Scout 80 and the Scout II remain the only Scouts you can actually drive.
The range-extender most buyers picked
Scout's Harvester models are still driven by electric motors, with an onboard gasoline generator to recharge the battery. Scout says they can be charged at electric charging stations and refueled with gasoline, and projects 500 miles of range or more.
In January 2025 Keogh said more than half of the 50,000-plus reservation holders had chosen the Harvester over the pure electric version. Scout hasn't published production specifications for either powertrain, so treat towing, payload and range as projections until it does.