Although it fights with Toyota for global supremacy, Volkswagen isn't a big player across a significant market – North America. However, it strives to change that.
Adaptation is critical to survival – and Toyota is like a chameleon in that regard. With just two major brands, Toyota and Lexus, it has something for everyone around the world and also loves to provide bespoke options for various regions. On the other hand, Volkswagen AG doesn't seem to know how to do the same – and not even buying everyone around them has resulted in great shows of strength in some markets.
The US market, for example, hasn't cared much about the namesake Volkswagen brand since the massive Dieselgate scandal. Even if it's ID. models are doing all right, they are all still light years away from market leader Tesla, and we don't really see that changing too fast. As for the regular models, there are some faithful customers for the Atlas crossover, and now a younger audience is discovering the affordable Taos, but that's about it.
Naturally, VW still hopes to turn that around. For example, not long ago, they came into possession of the Scout nameplate through their commercial business acquisition of Navistar, and the rumor mill quickly picked up on the official teasers about dedicated EVs coming to the market to fight the off-road SUV and full-size pickup truck establishment. Just recently, the reports were reactivated by the recent news that Magna Steyr might be involved with the development and research process.
Allegedly, VW has confirmed the rumors and is even painting a fascinating picture of a big-time investment to create a "completely unique platform" that's dedicated to the off-road-focused SUV and pickup truck and has nothing to do with the modular MEB architecture. Naturally, these enticing reports have also stocked the fire across the imaginative realm of digital car content creators.
Over there, the Halo oto channel on YouTube provides fresh automotive info corroborated with their virtual designs; now, there are some CGI ideas about the Scout EV revival. The resident pixel master is obviously interpreting the previous official sketches of the SUV and pickup truck – they are trying to add a bunch of modern cues while also respecting Scout's well-known heritage.
Interestingly, for the upcoming 2026 or 2027 Volkswagen Scout SUV, the competition won't be Ford's Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler. Instead, with both models being EVs, the target is painted on the $78k Rivian R1S that starts with a dual-motor QWD and 260-mile pack but can easily top out at 835 hp (quad-motor AWD) and still won't be as expensive as the $96,550 GMC Hummer EV. As such, if they come out below $70k with the starting MSRP, they might have a good chance of slapping silly, at least the American behemoth from GMC, if not the new Rivian kid on the block, right?
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
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News