In Might 2022, when Volkswagen confirmed the return of the Scout model, the automaker mentioned Scouts “will be designed, engineered, and manufactured in the U.S. for American customers.” One thing occurred on the best way to improvement and engineering, as a result of 5 months later, German outlet Automobilwoche reported VW was in talks with Magna Worldwide about Magna “managing the comeback of the Scout brand.” The report solely talked about Magna growing the battery-electric pickup and SUV due in 2026, the query being whether or not VW would keep on with its plan to construct the Scout within the U.S. Austrian outlet Kleine Zeitung (translated) cited unnamed sources to say the event deal is full, Magna’s Austrian outpost Magna-Steyr having agreed to its largest-ever deal price 450 million euros ($492M U.S.) to get the 2 new Scouts prepared for manufacturing in three years.
That leaves manufacturing for us, not less than. The association would not embrace manufacturing, KZ writing, “Originally, Magna was also supposed to take over assembly in the USA. Nothing came of it. Now Volkswagen will build the Scout itself and is building a new production facility in Columbia, South Carolina.” That refers back to the $2B facility in Blythewood, SC, about 100 miles southeast of BMW’s Spartanburg plant complicated. The state gave VW an incentive bundle price $1.3 billion, the association together with a proviso that VW would repay the state $790 million if the automaker “doesn’t meet or maintain certain job and investment commitments.”
Magna’s labored up an honest data financial institution about ICE-powered and EV truck challenges, too. It builds the ICE-powered G-Class and can construct the battery-powered EQG. It assembles the electrical Jaguar I-Tempo, helped develop the FM29 platform the Fisker Ocean sits on, and has already signed a contract to engineer and construct the battery-electric model of the Ineos Grenadier.
Splitting improvement and manufacturing is not new, Magna having labored with Ineos Automotive to create the Grenadier pickup that Ineos builds at its personal manufacturing unit in Hambach, France. Earlier than that, Magna labored on improvement of the Audi TT that Audi inbuilt Hungary, amongst different locations. Since one of many Scouts is a pickup, U.S. meeting makes essentially the most sense to us on the face of it as a result of VW must keep away from America’s 25% Rooster Tax on imported pickups and cargo vans — a hurdle we’re nonetheless undecided how Ineos plans to keep away from, contemplating the place Ineos at the moment builds its Grenadier Quartermaster pickup. The U.S. plant can also be anticipated to serve different VW Group manufacturers, particularly Audi, which may use it to construct an electrical Vary Rover or Mercedes-Benz G-Class competitor on the brand new electrical platform being created for the Scout; Audi has repeatedly been tabbed because the Scout division’s know-how provider.
Final we heard, the Scout continues to be deliberate to launch with a $40,000 SUV first, adopted by a pickup mentioned to be concerning the dimension of a Ford F-150. The picture above is a brightened model of the latest teaser from late final yr. It is nonetheless up on the Scout Motors website, however Scout employed Chris Benjamin as head of design in Might of this yr, so every little thing may have modified. Benjamin’s 25 years within the auto enterprise contains six years at Fiat Chrysler/Stellantis overseeing inside design for Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram.