(International) Scout returning as a VW EV brand

[Keef]

I'm still pissed it's a VW. I also find it amusing that they're using Rivian-educated programming to make it work. What I've read is that they're not actually purchasing or using anything directly from Rivian, they just learned an awful lot through their investment.

That said, they're stunning. I prefer the SUV to the pickup and I think it's got incredible levels of retrofuturism in the design. It's so good that I feel like Ford is suddenly pissed they'll have to tweak the Bronco's facelift. While the Rivian trucks are great in their own right, and I think Rivian will eventually create their own design legacy, this thing absolutely resembles a Scout 2 while adding some new and unique elements. They look more purposeful than Rivians, though not necessarily as useful or clever. But then again, Rivian pass-through vs Scout range-extender is a hefty decision to make. Crazy thing is, Rivian could probably develop a self-contained range-extending generator that fits within that compartment. My only complaint about this truck is they seem to be putting K03 tires on it - the BFG K0 family is not known for good wet weather traction at all and is especially poor at braking. I haven't seen updated reviews on whether the K03 is better but the K02 needed massive improvements in wet weather.

I still hate VW's EV effort overall but this thing is rad.

 

[LumpiestFish]

I don't think I've ever seen a better looking SUV, every angle of it just looks right.

 

[ProjectWHaT]

Rivian's chief software officer confirmed that Scout will use technology from Rivian

Scout Motors EVs will use Rivian-VW software and architecture | TechCrunch

VW's new offshoot EV company Scout Motors, which revealed its first two vehicles last week, will use the software and zonal architecture being developed

techcrunch.com

Rivian Chief Software Officer Wassym Bensaid confirmed to TechCrunch at Disrupt 2024 that Scout will leverage the joint venture tech when its vehicles go into production in 2027. VW and Rivian are still working to close the $5 billion deal, which they expect to happen before the end of this year.

Rivian and VW had previously said that they planned to use the tech to power most of the German automaker’s future vehicles. But the question of whether the Scout vehicles would join the party had remained up in the air in the wake of last week’s reveal.

Scout revealed two EV prototypes: The Traveler SUV and the Terra pickup truck. The company said at the time that the vehicles would use a zonal architecture — meaning it would rely on just a handful of computers that control the functions of a few “zones” of the electrical architecture. And the software in Scout’s press images looked awfully similar to what you can find in Rivian’s current vehicles, so Bensaid’s confirmation is not all that surprising.

Bensaid stressed on the Disrupt stage that each brand that uses the joint venture’s software will “continue to have their own identity,” as well as “their own features.”

“We’re enabling competition,” he said.

Bensaid also noted how much the Scout vehicles resemble Rivian’s overall design sensibility, even outside of the software. “That’s fantastic,” he said. “It’s great validation of the Rivian product.”