Scout’s New Truck and SUV Are Another Step Closer to Reality

Just like vehicles themselves, automotive manufacturing plants have to go through a lot of testing before cranking out the first production model. Scout Motors broke ground on its Blythewood, South Carolina, plant about two and a half years ago, and as final bits of construction wrap up, the VW Group subsidiary is beginning to build validation vehicles to test production processes.

When Scout reemerged a few years ago to bring back the practical, can-do vehicles that defined the brand in the 1960s and ’70s, it aimed to build a fleet of hybrid and electric body-on-frame off-roaders that blended modern amenities with vintage charm. The automaker plans to launch a Terra pickup truck and a Traveler SUV for the 2028 model year.

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It looks like Scout is still on track to stick with that timeline. The automaker has announced that most of the manufacturing parts are already up and running, with validation vehicles beginning to make their way through the body, paint, and assembly shops. Validation vehicles are kind of like a practice run, giving employees the ability to problem-solve and refine processes without having to keep a tight schedule.

Alongside the new equipment, Scout is testing out more than 750 robots in the body shop. The AI-supported bots will be used to monitor about 5000 weld points per vehicle for quality assurance. At full capacity, the body shop will be able to process about 40 vehicles per hour.

The Terra pickup and Traveler SUV are both expected to start at under $60,000. Scout says the validation process will continue into 2027, followed by more refined pre-production vehicles and eventually the finalized production model. That’s right in line with what Scott Keogh, Scout’s CEO, told us last year, when he projected that the first vehicles would go on sale by the end of 2027. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2028.

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Alayna Wilkening grew up reading motorsport magazines and following her grandpa around his Chevrolet dealership's showroom floor. In true Hoosier fashion, her first car was a hot pink custom cardboard "Fiero-vette" for her kindergarten Kindy 500 race. She now autocrosses a 1994 Miata with her dad, which she learned to drive the night before her first event. Alayna went to Indiana University and graduated with a degree in journalism and a minor in graphic design. As a testament to her great taste in cars, her first real one was a metallic orange 2007 Chevy HHR, which she lovingly called "The Dumptruck."  

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