Scout Motors Announces Innovation Center and Jobs in Michigan

A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, the all-electric Scout Motors brand announced last week that it would be opening an innovation center in Novi, Michigan. The R&D facility will be home to the automaker's product, design, and engineering teams. 

“We’re thrilled to welcome Scout Motors’ new R&D facility to Michigan, creating 200 good-paying engineering jobs right here in Michigan. Winning this investment proves that Michigan offers the best opportunity for automotive companies – from R&D to manufacturing,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer. 

Outside of Michigan, Scout will open its production facility in Blythewood, South Carolina. The automaker has always been keen on manufacturing its vehicles in the United States and this EV factory is the fruit of that commitment. 

Production at the facility is expected to begin by the end of 2026. Once fully operational, Scout says the site could create 4,000 or more jobs. Groundbreaking will commence in the first quarter of 2024. 

That location has a $2 billion investment and that automaker expects to produce up to 200,000 vehicles a year. 

The Scout brand was resurrected by Volkswagen a few years back to compete with off-road EV offerings from Jeep, Rivian, and GM. “Our new vehicles will honor Scout’s hard-working heritage while injecting fresh American ingenuity to create a new era of iconic all-purpose vehicles,” said Scott Keogh, president and CEO of Scout Motors.

Scout has partnered with Magna Steyr on the engineering of the upcoming vehicles. Magna Steyr is known as the company that builds the Toyota Supra, Mercedes G Wagen, and most recently the Fisker Ocean. Working with Scout though, the company is helping deal with the tough engineering issues around building a body-on-frame electric vehicle instead of building it for them. 

Keogh told Automotive News recently that Scout has since taken charge of the engineering and that vehicles should debut in the third quarter of 2024.