In 1960, the first International Harvester Scouts hit the road in the United States. What was at the time seen as a counterpart to the Jeep now seems somewhat ahead of its time — a bulky vehicle that resembles a proto-SUV, and one which could venture off-road just as easily as it navigated streets and highways. The rights to the Scout name are now owned by Volkswagen, and speculation and rumors have circulated for a while now that VW would revive the name.
Now, we’ve officially passed the “speculation and rumors” stage of things. As Autoblog reports, Volkswagen has released confirmation that a new Scout is in the automaker’s plans.
According to a press release from Volkswagen, the Scout will return as an electric pickup and rugged SUV for model year 2026. What’s more interesting about the return of the Scout itself, arguably, is how VW plans to handle the new iteration — it will be designed, engineered and built in the United States under the auspices of a new company within the Volkswagen Group.
The new company was described by Volkswagen AG CFO Arno Antlitz as “a separate unit and brand within the Volkswagen Group to be managed independently.”
Volkswagen plans to use a new technical platform for the revived Scout. “Electrification provides a historic opportunity to enter the highly attractive pick-up and R-SUV segment as a Group, underscoring our ambition to become a relevant player in the U.S. market,” said Herbert Diess, the CEO of Volkswagen AG. It’s an interesting blend of old and new — and it’ll be fascinating to see how the next generation Scouts will perform on and off roads.
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