Scout Motors' electric cars will get a Mexican-made VW petrol engine
The American brand Scout Motors, revived by the Volkswagen Group, will produce not only all-electric cars, but also Range Extended Electric Vehicle (REEV) models. The role of the generator will be performed by a Volkswagen petrol engine.
Here's What We Know
The compact internal combustion engine will be produced in Mexico and will be named Harvester - in honour of the historic International Harvester brand, which first produced Scout cars in the 1960s. This was reported to Automotive News by Volkswagen Group Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz. He also noted that the engine will not be turbocharged.
We are talking about a four-cylinder motor, which will be assembled at the VW plant in Silao (Mexico). The internal combustion engine will be located behind the rear axle, in Scout's words, "so far back that you don't hear it or feel it."
The Terra electric pickup and Traveler SUV will have a range of about 350 miles (563 kilometres) in standard configuration. With the petrol-powered Harvester, that figure will rise to 500 miles (805 km), but purely electric mileage will be just 150 miles (241 km). Conventional versions will get a battery with a capacity of about 120 kWh, while the internal combustion engine version will have half the battery capacity.
In terms of dynamics, the Scout promises acceleration to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 3.5 seconds, but with the Harvester the time will increase by a full second. Important: the petrol engine won't have a direct connection to the wheels - it will act as a generator to charge the battery while driving.
The Scout is not the first to use a petrol engine as a range extender. Models like the Chevrolet Volt and BMW i3 offered similar solutions back in the 2010s, and the Ram 1500 Ramcharger with a V6 will join them in the coming months. Parent company Volkswagen also plans to offer a similar architecture first in China and then in Europe.
Although Scout prototypes were unveiled back in October last year, mass production won't begin until late 2027 at the earliest. Production will begin at a new plant in Blythewood, South Carolina. More than 4,000 jobs will be created there, with a planned capacity of up to 200,000 vehicles per year. According to Antlitz, the petrol version with the Harvester engine is one of the factors that will help achieve this figure.
Source: Automotive News