VW’s Scout Motors in line for Australia

A super cool new pick-up is set to turn Australia’s ute market on its head thanks to its eye-catching looks and some never before seen features.

Volkswagen is preparing plans to launch its Scout off-road brand in Australia.

Scout, a spin-off designed to take on rivals ranging from Ford’s F-150 Lightning to the Tesla Cybertruck and Rivian R1T, represents a huge investment from the German giant.

A new factory in the US has been built to deliver Scout’s electric and hybrid Terra ute and Traveller SUV, which have attracted more than 100,000 expressions of interest from American customers.

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Scout chief executive Scott Keogh told Australian reporters at the IAA motor show in Munich that Australia is part of the brand’s plans.

“I promise you, we’ve spoken to, let’s say Australian executives,” he said.

“They’ve told us about the opportunity. We know the market.

“We want to nail America and Canada, those will be our first markets, and then after that, we will look to other markets and certainly Australia’s on the list.

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“Obviously, we’re not naive, we see the market in Australia, we see you like these sort of pick-up trucks, let’s say ‘get outdoors, can-do’ kind of vehicles, body on frame, rugged, and we’re certainly aware of the opportunity.”

Scout’s pick-up truck can reach 100km/h in about 3.5 seconds.

It promises more than 500 miles (800 kilometres) of range thanks to a petrol-powered range extender that can top up its battery.

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Keogh said the ability to drive without relying on EV charging infrastructure “is huge”.

“I think, one, it’s good off-road. Of course, it gives you the confidence with range anxiety and everything else.

“And look, it gives you basically V8 power.

“It gives you IC [internal combustion] range, 500 miles … And it’s cool tech, so, I think it delivers best of both worlds, which is why we like it.”

“It also has a lot of other things we looked at in terms of, bi-directional charging, but you have a generator now, an electric generator, and a gas generator since the gas can charge the battery on that front, so there’s a lot of cool applications.”

The car’s retro style, including yellow-toned headlamps, wooden interior trim and classic design influences hark back to the 1960s.

Launching a new brand in Australia could be a tough ask for VW, which has struggled to gain traction with its Cupra and Skoda nameplates.

While Scout has history in the US, it is an unknown here.

Keogh said Scout had not ignored its history of selling Jeep-like vehicles in the US, and had worked closely with enthusiasts of classic examples to reflect the brand’s heritage, because otherwise “we would have came across as posers and wannabes”.

“We’re doing this to create the next great iconic brand,” he said.

“And if you look at great American brands, one done well, whether it’s a Levi is whether it’s a McDonald’s or an Apple depending on your point of view, that’s what we want to be, 100 per cent … I have no doubts we can do it.”