Zac Quinn 
Amid a competitive off-road market with the Ford Bronco and Jeep Wrangler clashing, Volkswagen is considering producing an all-electric off-roader to join the fold, and they want it to have the Scout name. According to Motor Trend, Johan De Nysschen, Volkswagen Group of America Chief Operating Officer, mentioned the idea and noted that Volkswagen now owns the rights to the Scout name during a conversation at a press event. There’s a lot to unpack here, including a possible Ford Motor Company connection involving the Ranger, Amarok, and future Bronco EV.
The Electric VW Scout SUV
Volkswagen is another company that is shifting towards an entire production line of EVs, and De Nysschen envisions the new scout to be something more closely tied to the Rivian R1S but with a more affordable price point of around $40,000 instead of $70,000.
The use of the Scout name by Volkswagen comes from Traton recently merging with Navistar. Navistar is actually owned by Volkswagen, and thus giving them the ability to use the name.
Ford tried to trademark the Bronco Scout name a few years ago for what we assume to now be the Bronco Sport. But the Scout name wasn’t available as they had hoped, likely due to Traton having the rights to the title.
Volkswagen Scout To Share A Common Architecture With Ford Bronco EV?
Not too long ago, Ford and Volkswagen signed a joint venture to co-develop some commercial-grade vehicles together. These include a city van created and built by Volkswagen; a 1-ton cargo van engineered by Ford; and a new Volkswagen Amarok mid-sized truck share a platform with the Ford Ranger. And just as the next-generation Ford Ranger will share common architecture, the Ford Bronco is also in the platform family.
Okay, so hear us out… While the original Ford-Volkswagen strategic alliance didn’t include an electric SUV, we figure that an electric Volkswagen Scout SUV would complement an electric VW Amarok with a common architecture. Which would likely be based off what Ford has in store for a Ranger EV and/or Bronco EV.
If Ford and Volkswagen continue to get along with one another, the Bronco EV could be related to the VW Scout. Both could also be built within the same plant by the end of this decade or potentially even sooner.
