First Look: Scout is Electrified Americana

Scout Motors is a nostalgic name in the car world that’s making a comeback, reimagined as a buzzy electric car brand. In late October, Scout showed off its first two products in Franklin, Tennessee, against a golden sunset backdrop. The Traveler, an SUV, and the Terra, a pickup truck preserve its decades-old heritage and captures the mood of the current moment. That mood veers toward boxy, upright shapes, and wanderlust vibes, framed by a cursive logo.

“A Scout always comes back” is one of tagline used in a splashy celebratory reveal video. Scout first announced its relaunch in 2022, after the Volkswagen Group acquired its parent company Navistar, and has been scaling up its workforce and plans to begin selling vehicles first introduced by International Harvester in 1960 out of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Backed by the muscle of VW, the new Scout is still based in the US, led by Scott Keough the former head of the US Volkswagen and Audi brands. Scout’s body on frame architecture is original to the company, which will build its products in Blythewood, South Carolina. In addition to an all-electric model that produces 350 miles, a version that includes gasoline range extender is in the works. That battery and gas configuration means a proposed 500-mile range that sets it range apart from other EV makers and appeals to the off-roading crowd. The Scout Traveler and the Scout Terra are available for pre-order with a $100 refundable deposit, projected to be built in 2027. Scout intends to forgo traditional car dealers and is building out a sales platform and hubs where consumers can test drive and scope out vehicles. Pricing after incentives will start at $50,000 for the Traveler SUV and $51,500 for the Terra pickup.

DESIGNING THE NEW SCOUT

As Scout starts to roll out its products, design is at the center of the narrative, based out of Novi, Michigan studios. Chris Benjamin is the head of design for the revamped brand. Born in Queens, New York, Benjamin developed a love for drawing as kid and sketched comic book characters with his brother. When the family moved from New York City to Miami, architecture and splashy Miami car culture grabbed his interest. Benjamin graduated from Design and Architecture Senior High School in Miami, a school that counts artist Daniel Arsham and fashion designer Emanuel Ungaro as alumni. He attended the College for Creative Studies in Detroit and entered its prestigious transportation program in his second year. He went on to work for Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo, and most recently led interior design for Stellantis. “I'm mostly inspired by places and architecture,” Benjamin said. “When I walk into a room, I always notice the lighting fixtures, the indirect lighting. It’s the vibe that you get in different spaces and around different people.”

He’s hired a 45-person team to realize Scout’s vision and prioritizes versatility in the studio. Many of the designers on his team are former colleagues that come from Rivian, Ford, and Stellantis. “I personally still draw and use Photoshop,” he said. “I can still build the exterior of a car in 3D.” He looks for designers who have the skill to work in interdisciplinary manner. Doubling down on details are high on Benjamin’s list, like perfecting the feel of the door handle and the mobile app’s aesthetic. “A lot of people think of user experience as cool graphics on your screen. That's not what it is. For me, user experience is everything in every aspect of how you interact with the vehicle.” A feature that he is proud of is the trademarked Community UX interface, which makes the center screen a hub for the passenger and driver to access easily from their seats. “We've designed it so that can always your map as a background, which is cool because you always know where you are as a Scout.”

To blend technology and references to its heritage, Scout’s interiors are simple and elegant, and draw from the Scout collector community’s insights, which the company has tapped for feedback in the design process. “I love the idea of the feeling to be able to create something from scratch,” Benjamin said. “I say from scratch, but that's the other cool thing about Scout is that even though we're a startup, we have such a rich and cool heritage and history, and that leaves the door open for so many different vehicles to be inspired by.” Scout enthusiasts and their fresh, funky vintage vehicles were everywhere at the Tennessee launch. They offered rides to journalists, and cheered when the new models took the stage. Keough and Benjamin both gave remarks about Scout’s path forward.

“Being able to touch people and society through things you’ve created is very fun and satisfying,” Benjamin said to me a few hours before the reveal. “It keeps me in a young mindset, thinking about how things shift and change in the world and how technology changes what we do, what we think and how we approach problems, because that's what design is.”