The Volkswagen Group can't be too proud of its namesake VW brand for its (lackluster) performance across the significant North American market. Luckily, there's a chance to redeem themselves.
VW AG recently decided that now is the perfect time to revive the legendary Scout nameplate in the form of an electric SUV and pickup truck series. 'Now' is a relative term, though, as the company will build these two off-road-focused vehicles either at a dedicated Scout facility right in the US, presumably starting with 2025 to start deliveries within the 2026 model year timeframe, or in collaboration with Magna Steyr in Austria, according to the latest info from across the rumor mill.
While it is still way too early to speculate heavily about the life cycle of these two all-new vehicles, we have already seen a few teasers from the reborn Scout sub-brand that give us a general idea of how they could look like. VW is also adamant they will both dominate the trails, and the price plus performance and capabilities will fall in line with other off-road-focused EV pickup trucks and SUVs.
Interestingly, the market is slowing down in terms of EVs as of late – unless you're Tesla, that is. Thus, it will be interesting to see if Volkswagen keeps the timeline for the market arrival, where the Scout SUV and pickup truck would have to face stiff competition from the Rivian R1T and R1S, Ford F-150 Lightning, GMC Hummer EV and Hummer EV SUV, Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV, Ram 1500 REV, plus the mighty Cybertruck.
No worries, if Volkswagen isn't in a hurry to come to market with the Scout EV pickup truck and SUV, the imaginative realm of digital car content creators is never too patient. As such, the Halo oto channel on YouTube usually provides fresh automotive info corroborated with their virtual designs; now, there are some new CGI ideas about the Scout brand's revival.
So, after recently putting their resident pixel master to the task of unofficially imagining the 2026 Scout EV sport utility vehicle, the channel's host is back with the video presentation of the 2026 Scout EV pickup truck. Presumably, it won't be too different from the SUV, much like is the case with the Rivian R1T and R1S plus the GMC Hummer EV and Hummer EV SUV. Instead, they both have a modern appearance with minimal styling cues but, at the same time, pay their respects to the International Harvester Scout original.
What do you think? Does Volkswagen have a chance to break into the field of rugged EVs with the two Scout models, or is the recent slowdown of EV sales enough to temper their ambitions – especially when coupled with fears that Tesla's new Cyberbeast of a Cybertruck could dominate the market of high-performance off-road EV pickup trucks?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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