Scout Motors has about 212,000 reservations for its Terra pickup and Traveler SUV, Chief Executive Officer Scott Keogh told CNBC, as the Volkswagen-owned brand said construction of its South Carolina plant had entered its final phase.
The count is up from more than 160,000 in March, when Keogh gave that figure at an Automotive Press Association event in Detroit, and about 82,000 more than the 130,000 he cited to Bloomberg in October 2025.
Scout opened reservations in October 2024, when it revealed both models.
About 87% of reservations are for the extended-range versions, which carry a gasoline engine that acts as a generator for the battery, Keogh told CNBC. That share is unchanged from March. About 75% are for the Traveler SUV.
Keogh told Bloomberg in January 2025 that Scout had more than 50,000 reservations, with more than half for the range-extended version and about 70% for the Traveler. The extended-range share has since climbed further.
In October 2025, he said Scout would “probably lean with the EREV, but nothing we’ve announced yet,” adding that “both of them are being developed.” By March, Scout’s help center said it intended “to start producing our EREV first to match demand,” and that the Traveler would be the first model to enter production. It has not given a timing for the Terra.
Reservations cost $100 and are fully refundable, so they do not necessarily turn into sales. Keogh said Scout could “easily” pass 400,000 before customer production begins, but that the priority is presales.
“The big thing for us is how much of the initial production can we 100% presell,” he said, adding that an order book of 12 to 18 months “would be great.”
Range-Extended Models First
Scout will launch the extended-range versions first and the fully electric ones later, Keogh said, citing the mix of reservations. It will also start with mid-level trims rather than the most expensive versions.
“In my mind, it’s how quick can you get to 100,000 units,” Keogh said. “It’s at 100,000 units where you can start to punch through.”
The approach differs from Rivian‘s. Its founder and Chief Executive Officer RJ Scaringe has ruled out extended-range models, and the company began R2 deliveries with its higher-priced versions.
Scout is not alone in leaning on range extenders. Ford ended production of the battery-electric F-150 Lightning late last year and has said its successor will use an extended-range design.
Scout was originally planned as an all-electric brand. Volkswagen Group said in May 2022 that it would revive the name with an all-electric pickup and SUV, with production starting in 2026. It added the range-extended option, which it calls Harvester, when it revealed the vehicles in October 2024.
At the reveal, Scout said both models would start under $60,000 before incentives, or at $50,000 for the Traveler and $51,500 for the Terra with available incentives.
The federal EV tax credit expired in September 2025. Scout estimated about 350 miles of range for the battery-electric versions and more than 500 miles for the Harvester models.
Plant in Its Final Phase
Scout said on Thursday that construction of its Blythewood production center is in its final phase, with most manufacturing equipment installed, and that it has started building validation vehicles there.
“What we are building in Blythewood is no longer a promise on paper,” Keogh said in the statement.
The validation vehicles are early builds used to test equipment and find production problems. They come before pre-production vehicles, and Scout said validation builds will continue into 2027.
Keogh told CNBC the plant is about 85% complete, while supporting infrastructure and a $300 million on-site supplier park are still being installed. The body shop is designed to handle about 40 vehicles an hour at full capacity, according to the company.
At that rate the site, which covers more than 1,100 acres, can build up to 200,000 vehicles a year, Scout said in June, when it welded its first Traveler body there.
A Scout spokesperson told South Carolina Public Radio on October 30 that the company had about 900 employees in the state, including nearly 300 production workers, and was installing about 700 robots in the body shop. Seven suppliers in the state’s Upstate region are expanding, investing about $82 million to make parts for Scout, the spokesperson said.
Cost and Timing
CNBC described the plant as a more than $2 billion investment. Scout said in February that its total investment had grown to $3 billion, and that $2 billion was the guaranteed minimum under its agreement with South Carolina. It cited the supplier park as a key factor in the increase.
Scout also told Carscoops at the time that the plant was “on time and on budget” and disputed that costs had risen by an additional $1 billion.
The state approved a $1.3 billion incentive package in 2023 to bring the plant to Blythewood, outside Columbia. Scout has promised more than 4,000 jobs at the site, plus about 1,000 at the supplier park.
Scout has said initial production is targeted for 2027, with customer deliveries starting in 2028. Its earlier target had been deliveries in 2027. Keogh told Bloomberg in October 2025 that the plant would need about three years to reach full output.
The schedule has been questioned. Der Spiegel reported in February that technical problems could push the start of production to summer 2028. Scout said at the time that it had no update to its timeline, and in April a spokesperson said initial production was still targeted to begin in 2027.
Volkswagen’s U.S. Push
The plant is part of Volkswagen Group’s push to build more vehicles in the U.S. as tariffs weigh on imports.
Audi said in October it would build its first U.S. factory in Georgia, investing about $4 billion, with capacity for 200,000 premium SUVs a year. Volkswagen Group will also add 25,000 units of annual capacity at the Scout plant for a model not yet chosen, Bloomberg reported at the time.
The spending comes as the group cuts costs at home. Volkswagen Group has backed 50,000 more job cuts and put four German plants on notice.
Direct Sales Fight
Scout plans to sell directly to customers rather than through franchised dealers, a model that has drawn lawsuits from dealer groups in several states, including California and Washington.
Keogh has defended direct sales alongside Rivian and Lucid, which face similar restrictions in some states.
Volkswagen revived the Scout name in 2022. International Harvester built the original Scout from 1961 to 1980.
