- Scout is building a $2 billion plant in South Carolina
- Part of the build-out includes the ability to handle contract manufacturing, or building vehicles for other automakers like VW
- This could help fund Scout's ventures or even result in cross-brand tech sharing in the future
Scout Motors, the off-road, U.S.-centric brand spun off from Volkswagen, is getting ready to root itself in South Carolina. When its $2 billion Palmetto State plant comes online in 2027, it's working to set the brand up for success—and not just with its own two introductory trucks.
See, Scout is going about this in a rather smart way. Seemingly unlike Volkswagen, Scout has a focus when it comes to EVs. It's not about creating appliances, it's about creating a lifestyle product that a consumer truly wants. And, sure, there's going to be some tech sharing going on amongst parent and child brands, which is why Scout is hitting the gym early so it can flex its manufacturing muscles to the whole automotive industry.
The Blythewood-based facility will have a three-phase launch. According to Joern Petri, the automaker's VP of Plant Launch, the first phase will be all about getting the doors open and pumping out the Traveler SUV followed by the Terra pickup. After it gets its footing, the plant will continue to ramp up production to output around 200,000 vehicles per year. And once it does that? Well, that's where things get interesting.
Scout actually built its plant with contract manufacturing in mind. That means that it will be able to build vehicles for other OEMs (like Volkswagen) out of the same facility, allowing it to share its cool tech and tools across brands while helping automakers meet U.S. production requirements for vehicles to qualify for the federal EV tax requirements without the brand building a whole new factory on its own. A win-win, if you ask me.
“We set up the factory in a way that contract manufacturing is possible for other VW brands, or whoever is interested,” said Petri during a presentation late last month.
It also means a rapid launch of any other models that Scout has planned in the future. I guess that's better futureproofing than setting up a bunch of tents, right?
Scout's plant is also set up to be completely modular. The already massive plant is architected kind of like Legos, meaning that if the need for expansion is there, the brand can simply snap on some more factory and continue building. The layout and land are both already there, so knowing that it can double production capacity on very short notice should be a positive for any automaker looking to take advantage of the brand's offer to handle contract manufacturing.
All of that being said, it's likely that Scout won't reach that point until closer to the top of the decade. So while all OEMs continue to get their battery-powered butts in gear, it's good to know that there are more options out there to ramp up EV production. And if these trucks turn out half as good as the public thinks they will, I'm sure folks wouldn't mind a bit of Scout under the hood.
