Scout Motors says 87% of the roughly 160,000 refundable reservations it has taken for its Traveler SUV and Terra pickup are for the gas-powered, range-extending Harvester version, not the fully electric model the Volkswagen-owned brand originally built its relaunch around, according to CEO Scott Keogh. Only 13% of reservation holders chose the pure battery-electric configuration, a split Keogh himself admitted caught the company off guard.

Scout’s Own Numbers

“Did I think it was 85/15? No. I thought it might be more 60/40, let’s put it that way,” Keogh said, according to InsideEVs’ reporting on the reservation mix. In an earlier interview covering the same trend, Keogh told the outlet Scout will “most likely lead with the range extender, since that’s where the volume is,” and that the Harvester EREV appeals to buyers because “the American solution is generally give me everything I want,” referring to a truck that can run on electric power around town and gas on long hauls without the range anxiety of a pure EV, per InsideEVs’ interview.

Scout’s Harvester pairs a gasoline engine that acts purely as a generator with an electric drivetrain, giving it roughly 500 miles of combined range, well beyond what the standalone battery-electric Traveler and Terra offer. Keogh has said manufacturing flexibility factored into the decision to build both, telling InsideEVs the company can “manage the market as it ebbs and flows” without ripping up supply chains built around either powertrain. Scout’s dedicated plant in South Carolina is set to begin production in 2027, with a target of 100,000 units annually within three years.

Key Points

• 87% of Scout’s roughly 160,000 reservations are for the gas-generator Harvester EREV, versus 13% for the pure-electric version.
• CEO Scott Keogh says he originally projected closer to a 60/40 split in favor of the EREV.
• The Harvester’s combined range is roughly 500 miles, well ahead of the battery-only models.
• Scout’s South Carolina plant is targeting 2027 production and 100,000 units annually within three years.

What’s Affected

Scout is not alone in leaning back toward range extenders. Hyundai has said it plans to launch its first extended-range electric vehicles, reported by InsideEVs’ coverage of Hyundai’s EREV plans, while multiple outlets have tracked Ford and Jeep separately exploring extended-range electric trucks and SUVs of their own as automakers recalibrate how fast they expect pure-EV demand to grow. CleanTechnica’s reporting on Hyundai’s EREV strategy frames the shift as an industry-wide hedge against slower-than-expected EV adoption, rather than a Scout-specific stumble.

What Buyers Should Know

Anyone holding a Scout reservation for the pure-EV Traveler or Terra should watch production sequencing closely, since Keogh has indicated the Harvester EREV will most likely reach customers first given where demand is concentrated. A 500-mile-range EREV eliminates the DC fast-charging dependency that still limits long-distance electric truck and SUV travel in large parts of the country, which is the specific gap Scout’s reservation numbers suggest a large majority of its customers are trying to close.