For VW to chase Tesla and Ford, the Austrians have to step in now

Scout models planned from Volkswagen will be built by Magna in Austria. Two models of the new American Scout brand should be developed by the Canadian-Austrian company, he writes A small newspaper from Austria. Development work in Graz and the USA was already in full swing. The cars should be ready for series production by the end of 2026 before the US market launch starts in early 2027, according to reports.

The contract has an amount of 450 million euros, making it the largest development project that the company has been awarded to date. Initially, Magna was also supposed to take over production in the United States. But now the VW Group wants to do it itself. For this purpose, the company is building a new factory for two billion dollars in Columbia (South Carolina). Up to 200,000 Scouts will be released there each year.

Together with Advertisement for two Scout models Volkswagen surprised us in May 2022. The teaser image released showed a large SUV and a pickup truck. The brand, which is well known in the United States, should be used for new models Scout revived, VW said at the time. VW had already acquired those rights in 2020.

Regarding development and production, it was said at the time: “Cars will be designed, manufactured and produced in the United States for American customers.” The first prototypes should be shown as early as 2023, but series production should not start until 2026. . The only information about the characteristics of the models is that they should be “stable” with electricity only.

Last October there were rumors that… Modular electrical building blocks (MEB) should not be basic , but a new platform. This should be developed by Magna. The cars would be manufactured in a new factory. This new one The plant was officially confirmed by VW in March 2023 .

There are also rumors about one Audi– Version of Scout models. A loud voice Car Week However, the new factory will remain for the Scout brand. VW wants to get better direction in the US with new models. Because until now the market share has been very small. Even models made specifically for the United States such as the Passat NMS or the VW Atlas, the long version of the Tiguan, did not change this. From January to October 2023, the group sold nearly 460,000 vehicles in the United States. During that period, Toyota sold more than 1.6 million vehicles and General Motors sold nearly two million vehicles.

The Scout pick-up, which is said to be five meters long, will probably be used against, among other things Ford F-150 Electric and Tesla Cybertruck compete. On the other hand, there are only a few “solid” SUVs on the international market – we can only imagine this. BMW iX, Mercedes EQS SUVs and the like probably fall more into the “good” category.

By Stefan Leichsenring