
Jill and Tom chat with Scout Motor's Ryan Decker about the brand's coming launch, and what to expect from the the maker's first models, the Traveler SUV and Terra pickup truck.
Loading summary
Narrator (Peyronie's Disease PSA)
Lets talk about a condition many people haven't heard of and it turns out it's more common than you think. Peyronie's disease, or PD for short. PD can happen when scar tissue builds up under the skin of the penis. This can cause a curve with a bump during an erection and for some men lead to pain during intimacy and may impact mental health. It may also lead to anger and frustration, depression, lowered self esteem, and even withdrawal from sexual activity and physical intimacy. Because of this, some men can feel embarrassed or reluctant to talk about pd. The actual cause of PD isn't always known. In some cases it may be linked to a minor injury or repeated injuries during sex or other physical activity. The good news is PD is treatable. If you notice a curve with a bump, a trusted urology specialist can help diagnose it and walk you through your options including non surgical treatment. To learn more about Peyronie's disease, visit talkaboutpd.com
Commercial Announcer
when the moments in your life are too important to miss, you can trust O'Reilly Auto Parts to keep you and your plans on the road. Our professional parts people can test your vehicle's battery and even give it a charge if needed. In most cases, we can install your new battery for free. It's just one of the many services we provide at O'Reilly Auto Parts to ensure life's best moments don't find you stranded.
Matt Money Smith
Auto Parts Matt Money Smith here from Believe in Chargers and I am reaching out to you, the small business owners to talk to you about my friends at Gusto because they can help you out. You want to have your hands, everything. It's your business. It's got your name on it. I get it. But how about running that business a little bit tighter and cutting some of the stuff that maybe you don't want to use your valuable time on. And that is payroll hr. Let Gusto help you get your time back because every hour counts. So what is Gusto? It's an online payroll and benefits software that's built for small businesses. It is all in one. It is remote friendly, it is incredibly easy to use and you can pay, hire onboard and support your team from anywhere. What does that give you? Saves time. You got built in automated tools. You got offer letters, onboarding docs, direct deposits, so much more. Not to mention direct access to certified HR experts. They are going to help support you through any tough HR situation. So try gusto today@gusto.com believe that's G U S T O.com believe B L E A V and you're going to get three months free when you run your first payroll again. That is three months of free payroll@gusto.com believe again one more time gusto.com believe
Podcast Intro Announcers
whether you drive a car, need a car, or just occasionally bum a ride
Commercial Announcer
with friends, you've come to the right place.
Podcast Intro Announcers
Join Jill and Tom as they break down everything that's going on in the auto world.
Commercial Announcer
New car reviews, shopping tips, driving green
Podcast Intro Announcers
electric cars, classic cars, and plenty of great guests.
Commercial Announcer
This is the Consumer Guide Car Stuff podcast.
Tom Appel
All right. This is the Consumer Guide Car Stuff podcast. I'm Tom Appel, publisher of Consumer Guide Automotive. Thank you. Thank you so much for joining us this week. When you have a chance, when you have a moment, check us out@consumer guide.com While you're there, check out our 2026 Best Buy picks, all my latest car reviews, and lots of other fun stuff. Also, you can listen to the podcast right there on our homepage, though you really, really, really should just subscribe and leave us a review, especially on Apple. On the phone online with us is Jill Simonello. She is contributing editor here at Consumer Guide, North American Car of the Year juror and prolific freelancer. Jill, how are you?
Jill Simonello
Mostly? Okay. I'm currently embroiled in a battle with pigeons on my balcony.
Tom Appel
Weird.
Jill Simonello
Yes. I'm cruising, by the way.
Tom Appel
You have a balcony?
Jill Simonello
I do. I have a balcony off of our apartment. And yeah, the pigeons have decided they would like to roost underneath my grill.
Tom Appel
What floor are you on?
Jill Simonello
Second floor.
Tom Appel
I wanted to hear like 38th.
Jill Simonello
Yeah, no, it's only a four story building.
Tom Appel
Like you think Chicago and you think balcony and you think like, yeah, mile high. Really, really, really cool. High up there.
Jill Simonello
But no, no, no, I'm not that cool.
Tom Appel
Later in the show, we're going to talk to Ryan Decker of Scout Motors. I'm looking forward to that conversation. Do you realize, Jill, that during the time that you and I have been writing about cars, there have only been a handful of brand new brands.
Jill Simonello
Yes.
Tom Appel
Which is interesting. And some have come and went, like Saturn departed, I think, just before we got into this. And then a bunch of brands at General motors departed in 2010. Pontiac and Saab and Hummer and not Oldsmobile. Oh, I said Pontiac. But a bunch of brands disappeared there. But new brands were pretty much down to Tesla, Scout and Genesis.
Jill Simonello
Rivian.
Tom Appel
Rivian. That's good. And I guess I don't know if I'm counting Rivian as having made it yet.
Jill Simonello
Okay. They're launching a new vehicle this year. And I'm trying to get somebody from Rivian on the show so maybe we can have them talk to us about what their future plans are and whether or not they think they've made it.
Tom Appel
I would like to do that, actually. I'm super interested in Rivian for a couple of reasons, but one of the reasons is the fact that they seem to burn through cash like they're doing everything right. They have their own technology. The reviews of the vehicles are good. They make their own batteries. There's a lot there. The design is good. They're supposed to be great off road. There's a lot there to love. But they lose money on every single vehicle they build and lots of money.
Jill Simonello
And I think the new R2 is going to be a game changer for
Tom Appel
them if they make money on it.
Jill Simonello
Yeah, well, and I think that they will, and I think that's why it's going to be a game changer.
Tom Appel
This is a small, smaller crossover and it should be good for them.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
Also, it looks great.
Jill Simonello
It really does. I've only seen it at auto shows so far. I think they're doing their press preview. Either they did it last week or they're doing it this week. So we should start to see some reviews coming out about it.
Tom Appel
Yeah, I got a couple of things here I want to talk to you. We got. We have a very short intro segment today because later on we'll be talking to Ed Pietrowski. Ed did some writing for us at the. I'm sorry, at the Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally. He reviewed four compact vehicles that I think people want to hear about. So we'll talk to Ed in just a moment. I've got two things.
Producer/Interviewer
Okay.
Tom Appel
One of them I keep forgetting to get back to, and this is my bad. We talked a little bit last week about mild hybrids versus full hybrids. And one of the things about this that I think I didn't make clear and might really confuse people who don't know when you're talking about a hybrid vehicle, a CR V, a RAV4, something like that, a Camry. Those are full hybrid vehicles. There is no option for a mild hybrid. It's not available on the same vehicle. So, I mean, that's a really important distinction. Where we're seeing mild hybrids really is in premium vehicles, mostly German Audis, BMW, some Mercedes and Volvos. And it's because those cars are expensive enough that they can hide the cost of a mild hybrid system in the base price of the vehicle and then pick up a little bit of fuel economy gain. So they typically don't brand these things. You don't hear a car called mild hybrid. So it's just an interesting thing. It's added to some vehicles. It does improve the stop start engine, stop start performance. It does bring somewhat better fuel economy, but not nearly the fuel economy game you get from a full hybrid. The system on a C class Mercedes is far less efficient than the system on a Toyota Camry, for example.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. A mild hybrid also will, in addition to the stop start of the engine, it gives you a little bit of electronic boost like in acceleration. And that is where that fuel economy gain comes in.
Tom Appel
You know, funny story about that one. Way back when, a decade, 12 years ago, when Ram was bringing out the new generation of the Ram 1500 pickup, one of the things that they did was bring out the etorque mild hybrid system. And the interesting thing about etorque was that they had a bunch of specs and numbers lined up for what that did to, to, to compound or add to the torque at launch. And then they just took away all those numbers. Like it didn't add anything. They didn't put it in their specs, their specs they didn't want to list. It's just so weird. Like they had this big presentation and they completely backed off of it. But the system worked. It didn't provide what I would call good fuel economy, but it did help a little. It was also available on the V6 engine of the V6 engine versions of the Ram as well. But anyway, you know what I got coming in my driveway tomorrow?
Jill Simonello
What do you got coming?
Tom Appel
Ford Ranger. I haven't driven a Ranger in a very long time, so I'm excited. And one of the things that I forgot you probably knew this is that the Ranger comes with a 2.3 liter turbocharged four cylinder engine and EcoBoost engine that is actually a variation of the base engine in the Ford Mustang. But you can now just order as a standalone option the 2.7 liter V6 turbocharged engine. Just a standalone option. And that's really cool. A little expensive. It's 2,300 bucks. 2,300 bucks. But worth it if you're a bit of a hot rodder or a demon.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. Or if you just drive more aggressively or live in a city and, you know, need a little bit more get up and go.
Tom Appel
Yep. So that's pretty cool. All right. On the phone with us is Ed Piotrowski, longtime friend of the show. Ed was recently given a fun assignment. He went to The Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally and was tasked with bringing us back a story. We did not tell him what story to bring back, but he brought us back a good one. Ed, how are you doing?
Ed Piotrowski
I'm doing well. How are you all?
Tom Appel
I speak for everyone when I say we're doing okay. Okay. Now, you hit the spring rally and you hit on, I think, the core of the market here. You drove four different vehicles, all of which matter, I think, to an enormous swath of American car shoppers. Tell us about them.
Ed Piotrowski
Okay. Well, at the Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally up at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, several of manufacturers brought their latest and greatest. And fortunately, we had a nice lineup of compact SUVs to go over with examples from Jeep, Mazda, Toyota and Volkswagen. So probably hitting a market where all these vehicles combined should account for a million, if not more sales.
Tom Appel
So it's, as you said, it's a huge segment. Yeah, yeah. I mean, this is when people talk about shopping for a new car, this is primarily where they're shopping these days.
Ed Piotrowski
Yep. Yes. And most of these vehicles are either completely redesigned or have seen a significant update. You know, be it powertrain features, you know, what have you. Actually, three out of the four have been redesigned, although one kind of doesn't look like it, but we'll get there.
Tom Appel
Yeah. This interesting lineup of cars here. So we've got the Volkswagen Tiguan, a vehicle that kind of right in the middle of that segment, I think disappoints some people who are Volkswagen fans because it is not dynamically interesting. And historically, Volkswagens have been fun to drive. That's not really what's happening here. But the RAV4, the single most popular vehicle sold in the US that's redesigned and now hybrid only. And Jeep is finally back in the segment.
Ed Piotrowski
Yes. With the redesigned 2026 Cherokee that comes back after a three year absence, has a more kind of Grand Cherokee esque look to it versus the original one that came out once. It was like 2014. That had a, let's say, very polarizing appearance at that time.
Tom Appel
Yeah.
Ed Piotrowski
But now, I mean, it's,
Producer/Interviewer
I have
Ed Piotrowski
to say, the same for all of these vehicles. It's like, you know, everyone is good in its own way, but at the same time, I mean, while you have these redesigns, maybe a little harsh to say that they're not necessarily pushing the segment forward, but when the segment's already been pushed so far forward with such good products, it's like cell phones. I mean, you know, how much more can you possibly innovate you know, you
Tom Appel
raise a great point. I think in the case of the Mazda CX5, there's the CX50 now and that's sort of a premium, upscale, more crossovery version of the same vehicle and really the same class. They're not even priced that differently, the CX5 and the CX50. But the CX5 has sort of stood pat in terms of moving upmarket, which Mazda keeps claiming it wants to do. They got rid of the turbocharged engine and they didn't really go up Lex with this. But this is their bread and butter high volume car, is it not?
Ed Piotrowski
Yeah, and it's, it really. I mean, I didn't even. Just looking at the vehicle without knowing that it was redesigned, you wouldn't know that it was redesigned. I mean, you'd have to put it next to a previous generation model to really notice it. And you could really see it in that case with the extra length and wheelbase it's got because the back seat and cargo area have significantly better, better space, which that was, that was what kind of impressed me about that is that they really kind of fixed the shortcomings. And also with the infotainment system, I know when I've previously driven vehicles like the CX5 and the CX30, when I was considering purchasing one, I couldn't figure out how to set radio presets using the old infotainment system, whereas with this one, but you know, in less than a minute I had it figured out. So that was, that was great to see. But also, I mean, it really didn't, it really didn't lose that kind of fun to drive character that Mazda pitches the CX5 as, you know, kind of a sportier alternative to, you know, your, your CRVs and your Cherokees.
Tom Appel
Sure, yeah, yeah. So, so quick question about the Jeep and the RAV4. Those vehicles are now both hybrid only, which is interesting. And it just talks about where we're moving as an industry. Do they still say price competitive in your opinion?
Ed Piotrowski
That's actually, that's an interesting question because the vehicle they, that Jeep brought, the Cherokee they had there was the Laredo, which would kind of probably be your bread and butter trim level.
Tom Appel
Yeah.
Ed Piotrowski
And that one, they had it listed at a little over $40,500. And for that price, I think the level of equipment to me was a touch disappointing. I think actually bumping up another two grand to the Limited gets you more stuff and actually to me that makes it a little bit of a stronger value. So I think around 435 for the Cherokee Limited, to me, is more compelling. But with the RAV4, that one gets very pricey. They had the all wheel drive Limited, which was the. A standard hybrid, so no plug in. And that one was over $46,800. And I mean, you know, fully equipped but very expensive. But then they also brought the sport version, which is the GR Sport, which is a plug in, gets up to 324 horsepower, which is crazy. And when you put that thing in sport mode, it is very, very fast. And it, you know, is pretty fun to drive, all things considered. But that one was.
Jill Simonello
Oh, go ahead.
Ed Piotrowski
That one was over $51,000.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. One of the things I think you have to keep in mind with the new Jeep Cherokee is the fact that it is now hybrid only. And, you know, I think that accounts for some of the price increase. And I haven't done, and maybe you have done the price comparison between the RAV4 specifically to the Cherokee. And I, I think that when you add in the hybrid powertrain, I think the price increase makes sense. And I, I had the Laredo for a longer test, and, you know, I, you know, it's hard to say Cherokee, $40,000. That's a little bit much to swallow. But I think that with the hybrid powertrain, I think I, I just think it makes more sense.
Ed Piotrowski
Yeah, I mean, yeah, I'm not saying that's a. It's a terrible value at all. I mean, I, But I'm saying I think that the Limited specifically is a better value than the Laredo, just because I think you are getting $43,000 worth of content on that model.
Tom Appel
And the. I forgot the name. The Cherokee is also all wheel drive standard, correct?
Ed Piotrowski
Yes.
Tom Appel
Okay, so that's some dollar value there, too. That's about two grand of retail value. Interesting. Ed, we're out of time for this segment, but just real quick, what four vehicles do you cover?
Ed Piotrowski
Oh, it was the redesigned 2026 Jeep Cherokee, the redesigned 2026 Mazda CX5, the redesigned 2026 Toyota RAV4, and the updated powertrain that Volkswagen put in the 2026 Tiguan.
Tom Appel
Very cool. Ed, thank you so much for contributing that story to consumerguide.com and we'll have to talk again soon.
Ed Piotrowski
Sure. Thanks for having me.
Tom Appel
All right, that was Ed Piotrowski. We're gonna talk to Ryan Decker. Scout, stick around.
Podcast Intro Announcers
Questions or comments, Drop us a line@carstuffinsumerguide.com that's carstuffconsumerguide.com.
Commercial Announcer
what would you do. If your online store converted 36% more shoppers, you could take 36% more vacation.
Ryan Decker
Another pina colada?
Ed Piotrowski
Yes, please.
Commercial Announcer
Open a new retail location with 36% more square feet.
Ryan Decker
Fantastic.
Commercial Announcer
Hire 36% more help.
Ryan Decker
You're hired and you're hired.
Commercial Announcer
Shopify has the world's best converting checkout up to 36% better than other e commerce platforms. What you do with those extra sales is up to you. Switch to Shopify today@shopify.com listen and get a $1 trial. Shopify.com listen I like things my way.
Podcast Intro Announcers
My coffee, my schedule and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo pre filled syringe which contains fgartegamide alpha and hyaluronidase qvfc. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit vivgardmyway.com that's V Y V G-A-R-T myway.com and talk to your doctor about Vivgart Hytrulo brought to you by Argenics.
Producer/Interviewer
You never been one to settle. Stand down or stand still. You're a lifelong learner, energized by excellence. There's a fire inside you you can't ignore. You've got competition to outrun, momentum to build on, and your own high standards to meet. Stop now. Not a chance. At Capella University, we help you catch what you're chasing because you've always had the drive. Now go earn the degree. Capella University. What can't you do? Visit Capella Edu to learn.
Jill Simonello
Mom, can you tell me a story?
Commercial Announcer
Sure. Once upon a time, a mom needed a new car.
Jill Simonello
Was she brave?
Commercial Announcer
She was tired mostly. But she went to Carvana.com and found a great car at a great price. No secret treasure map required.
Jill Simonello
Did you have to fight a dragon? Nope.
Commercial Announcer
She bought it 100% online from her bed, actually.
Jill Simonello
Was it scary?
Commercial Announcer
Honey, it was as unscary as car buying could be.
Jill Simonello
Did the car have a sunroof?
Commercial Announcer
It did, actually.
Jill Simonello
Okay, good story.
Commercial Announcer
Car buying. You'll want to tell stories about. Buy your car today on delivery fees may apply.
Podcast Intro Announcers
Welcome back to the Car Stuff Podcast.
Tom Appel
All right, we're back. This is the consumer guide Car Stuff Podcast. I'm Tyler Pell. She is Jill Simonello. Jill, how you doing today?
Jill Simonello
I'm doing all right. How are you?
Tom Appel
I am good. I'm excited to have the conversation we're about to have and I have a story to tell you. Are you ready?
Jill Simonello
I am so ready for your story.
Tom Appel
I had a friend back in high school, grade school and high school. His dad owned an International Harvester dealership. True story. Do you know what he drove? Do you know what the family had two of in the driveway?
Jill Simonello
I was like, not an International Harvester.
Tom Appel
They were Scouts.
Jill Simonello
Oh, okay. He did have a Scout.
Tom Appel
They had Scouts. They had a pair of Scouts. What they did not have, and this is really, really off in the weeds, was the Nissan diesel version of the Scout that no one remembers.
Jill Simonello
Okay.
Tom Appel
But that was available last couple of years of Scout. But Scout is back in a very interesting and special way. On the phone with us right now is Ryan Decker. He is the vice president of strategy and branding at Scout, an all new brand, one of the very few all new brands, I think, in our careers. Ryan, welcome to the show.
Ryan Decker
Very glad to be here, Tom. Thanks for having me.
Tom Appel
This is exciting. So tell us a little bit about Scout. Why, why Scout exists, what you guys are trying to do with it and, and ultimately what it means to parent company Volkswagen.
Ryan Decker
It's a. I think your previous comment is actually a good setup, Tom, because yes, we're an all new brand, but we're, we're definitely way, way more than that. So the intent is to reimagine the Scout brand, but it's also to build an all new version of Scout products, all new factory to make Scouts and an all new company to make that all happen. And that's what Scout Motors is. When founded in 2022, it was to reimagine Scout and to do it the right way as a new automotive entrant that's designed to compete in what are the largest segments in the automotive market and to reach the customers that we know are buying vehicles in these segments. And so for us, that meant, yeah, take the best parts of Scout from the brand side, but also honor really what a Scout, a Scout from the vehicle side. And so for us, that's what directly informed a lot of the decisions we made in those early days. To go body on frame, to go solid Rexel, the very tactile interior, optional features like mechanical lockers, you know, really that sort of go anywhere, as they called it, eight day a week Spirit. And then once we made those decisions, then it was okay, how the heck do you do you build these things? So that led us down the road of going all new factory approach. And so then it's all new brand, all new Products, all new factory. You might as well just make it an all new company to unlock the maximum amount of sort of American startup spirit. And that's what we did.
Tom Appel
So talk a little bit about the Scout brand and its positioning. What is Scout? Who is the competitive set for that? And then ultimately too, the mission has changed a little bit. Right. You guys were going to be pure electric. You've adapted a little bit. You're talking eRev now, extended range electric vehicles, but still electric vehicles, basically. What, what is the Scout brand going to be when we see it? Pretty darn soon.
Ryan Decker
I'll start with that one first and then I'll come back to the, the powertrain question. But we do take all kinds of inspiration from what Scout was. I already mentioned a lot of the product characteristics and attributes, but we take a similar amount of inspiration on, on sort of the brand side of, of Scout. And really it's what Scout stood for. Yeah, I would argue one of the first, call it proper SUV's that was capable enough to do all of the off roading that you'd expect, but still comfortable enough for a family and you know, really with that versatility. Scout stood for optimism, it stood for togetherness, it stood for family adventures. It really was a sort of joyful brand that I would say inspired and meant a whole lot to tons and tons of families. It sounds like. Tom, of course, you have a great story. Your. And when we look at sort of the brand positioning of a lot of competitive SUVs in this category today, it's, I would, I would argue that they're not overly optimistic and joyful and focused on togetherness anymore. They're, they're sort of focused on dominating things and you know, going out and blasting over or conquering anything. And don't get me wrong, Scout's going to be able to do all of those things. But we want to anchor really on what Scout stood for, which was you're doing those things so you can connect with the people and the places around you. And so that's sort of our, our unique way in, of, of how we want to position Scout is capable enough for anything, but never losing sight of what an SUV stood for, which was making memories. So fast forward a couple decades from now, hopefully people are talking about and, and speaking fondly of their memories and connections they made in Scout vehicles. So that's where we see the opportunity on the brand side, which by the way, we think is exactly right for American. We think America people are actually looking for brands and products that bring people together Again, and not just brands and products that are intended to go dominate things. And so we think sort of culturally and from a trend perspective, that sort of position is exactly right. And then to your second question on the eRev. Yeah. When the idea started, obviously a very different sort of environment that we were operating in in terms of political regulatory environment, but also customer environment. And so, you know, paying attention to what we were hearing at the customer level, some of the anxieties, of course, were real. Range anxiety is real. Charging anxiety is real.
Tom Appel
Yeah, yeah.
Ryan Decker
On the other hand, you know, for a company that's going to be in the market till 2040 at least, of course we were not naive to some of the sort of EV regulatory requirements that were out there. Several states were Talking about going 100% evolution, greenhouse gas, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. So the initial decision was made to go all electric, but then there was the strategic pivot to preserve the electrified powertrain, but to give it the security of having the built in gas power generator on board. And our perception is that's exactly what the market wanted. They wanted sort of the EV performance benefits. Whether those benefits be things like a front trunk, whether they be things like really impressive performance and zero to 60 and torque, whether it be cost of ownership advantages, of course, in a current elevated fuel price environment. Yeah. We still think efficiency matters to vehicle buyers and truck buyers, but they want to see a combined range of over 500 miles. And they want the security to know that they don't have to stop the charge along the side of a highway. You know, they want to be able to make that trip without ever having to pull off onto the side of the road. They want to know they can get back from that, that big off roading trip they want to go on. And that's what the range extender unlocked. And of course that's where we're seeing now the vast majority of our demand because customers want this type of powertrain that makes sense.
Tom Appel
I really want to talk about the products, but I've got a real quick question for you about the history of Scout and Scout's history in a way, especially going back to the 50s and maybe even the 40s mirrors that of Jeep a little bit and that these were very serious off road commercial vehicles. Are you guys trying to bring forward also Scout print ads from the 60s are so good, no doubt. Yeah, they are so good. And my question is, are you guys trying to bring forward any of that serious sort of gritty professional energy to the new products or is that just a little bit of history that only I'm happy about.
Ryan Decker
No, I wouldn't say it's only history. That is something we're actively discussing is we do believe our vehicles certainly have the capability to go after that sort of segment and opportunity. We also recognize to do that you need to deliver more than just a vehicle. You really need to deliver an ecosystem of products and services. So all I can say on that front, Tom, is ongoing. In terms of your second comment on regarding some of the original advertising work that they did. Yeah, we agree. We think it was pretty iconic and very strong and frankly it was one of those. Some of that work was just absolutely timeless. When you see it today, it's still, still capable of turning heads. And so we'll continue to take inspiration from that and try and try and emulate it. No doubt.
Tom Appel
I'm glad. Because someone killed it. They were knocking it out of the park back then. So tell us about the product.
Ryan Decker
So two products, one platform that gets of course a little bit longer in the wheelbase to deliver two products really going after the core of the segments that we know are most popular in America, which is what we would call a mid size rugged SUV and then a true full size pickup truck. Both products. That platform is body on frame, which we determined to be the right platform approach to really deliver upon the durability and the robustness that customers in these segments are expecting in order to be perceived as a series product. Detailed characteristics like solid rear axles, again, durability, robustness, legit off road characteristics with the range extender powertrain as the lead case now where you still have up to 150 miles of all electric range and over 500 miles of combined range. When you're leveraging the generator, when you look at the overall product intent again, I used that line that Scout used way back when, that eight day a week truck. For us that meant it has to be an absolute no joke, no compromise off roader. So when it comes to delivering upon things like ground clearances and approach angles and departure angles, we want to be, you know, we want to be up there competing with the incumbent leaders in the category where we think we have an absolute killer. Differentiation is on. Coming from the sort of combination of a few things. We will be basically best in class when it comes to combined range. None of our competitors go as far as we will go with this powertrain. We will be by far best in class in terms of our performance characteristics, things like zero to 60 and torque. We'll be very competitive of our off road characteristics and all of which in just an. Absolutely. We're a little biased, but really killer, killer design. We do recognize that the number one reason people purchase vehicles in these categories is because of how they look and how fun they are and the capability they have. So we wanted to make sure they look the part too. And our chief design officer Chris Benjamin did a great job at that. Final point. Joe, one final point I was just gonna say was just the pricing. So I'm sure sometimes there's a tendency to say, okay, too good to be true. How much are these things gonna cost? But the commitment we've made that the numbers we published and we're holding the line on is starting pricing without any inc. Is below $60,000. That is 100% still our plan and our commitment.
Jill Simonello
No, that's, that's really cool. I mean I was going to follow up on your, your design comment because we've seen some very well filled out prototypes circulating. We had one at the Midwest Automotive Media association spring rally last year and we got to not climb around in it, but look in it because it's still a little bit delicate. But I'm just wondering how close to pre production, are the production models going to be like, are there going to be any big design changes that we're going to see or is it just going to be like small little tweaks that happen?
Ryan Decker
Look, it was always our intent when we unveiled our show car properties that they were probably 80 to 90% reality, 10 to 20% little fun on top. But Jill, to your question, the production vehicles will be very similar, very similar proportions, very similar overall styling and details, some of the features that we know people love, bench seats, split tailgates, of course, front trunk execution. All of that is very much going to be carried over into production intent. No doubt.
Jill Simonello
Very cool. And so to be clear, also you said that the primary strategy moving forward is for the powertang is erev, but will there also be electric only versions available?
Ryan Decker
Absolutely. So eRev first e Rev is the priority. But the whole powertrain or the whole platform was designed to accommodate a large battery to accommodate a Bev product. And that logic also applies to the manufacturing approach. Our factory can now easily install the erev, of course, but it can also has the adaptability to build Bev versions of scout vehicles as well. No problem.
Tom Appel
But you guys are making a little bit of news here in that you want to go with a direct to consumer distribution system. You don't want to go with a franchise dealership arrangement. Why is it that you guys want to do that and what does that mean to the consumer?
Ryan Decker
Well, we want to do it because as we've observed now all new entrants, we're seeing one them having success going direct to consumer. But regardless of our competitors success, what we're seeing is just the ability to deliver upon a customer experience that we think is right for Scout customers. As I mentioned, all new factory, all new products, all new powertrain, all new brand, all new everything. We also wanted to make sure that we built a sales model that matched that spirit of really delivering first principles. And the first principles that we want to deliver on the sales process, is the process fast, is the process transparent, is the process trustworthy? And the way we felt we could deliver upon those first principles is to simply own the experience ourselves. Which is shouldn't be a surprise. We've seen this from sort of every single retail category out there. Yeah, really owning the customer relationship is the way to deliver the best possible experience. And that's what we want to do.
Tom Appel
So if you go with the, well, you are going with the direct to consumer approach, does that mean then that Scout will own dealerships? And if that's the case, will there be like a regional rollout of the brand or will you guys be ready to be national on job one?
Ryan Decker
Yeah, we will own, we will invest in and own our own brick and mortar facilities where we will be able to deliver and of course service cars and you know, quote unquote, kick the tire and do test drives. So 100% we will invest in our own facilities. And then in terms of rollout, look, that's one of the other benefits of going direct to consumer is we will throttle up or throttle down. You know, our company, our factory, our brand and our physical footprint based on the demand that we're seeing in the market. But it is our intent, Tom, to fill this factory up as fast as we can. And that means we want of course be able to deliver and sell as many cars that we need to fill that factory. And so working backwards from there, we of course have a plan of how many retail facilities we think we're going to need to service that demand. But it doesn't go all at once. It will scale up with time as we get the whole thing rocking.
Tom Appel
So you guys have two products to launch with. Obviously you can tell us now about your next few products in great detail.
Ryan Decker
Well, to that point, we, you know, the first two that we're launching with, we, we definitely believe are the right segments that we need to build a company around. So we're focused on those two because the opportunity is huge. But of course, every now and again we are permitted to dream big. But more to come on some of those dreams at a later date.
Tom Appel
Is it wrong to make comparisons between Ford and Jeep at this point? Serious off road capability? It seems like there's a place in your lineup eventually for something like a Wrangler or a Bronco. Who is your competitive set and how would you be different maybe from Jeep and the Bronco series?
Ryan Decker
Yeah, I mentioned.
Tom Appel
Right.
Ryan Decker
So for us, it's mid sized SUV's. When we look around now, we see Broncos participating in this, we see Land Cruisers, we see several mainstream SUVs that also have an off road orientation, that are doing very good volume, that are at delivering very good pricing, power low incentives, inventories turning fast. So we are definitely taking inspiration from again, off road, rugged midsize SUVs. And then on the trucks, you know, we're not a tweener truck. We're a full size pickup truck with a proper truck bed. So yeah, we, we want to go after really the core of also the truck segment. Now again, on both of those segments that I mentioned, you have to deliver really on the customer requirements. We're not naive. These are competitive segments and that first requirement is the price point. We are not going to be a product that only transacts at 80 or 90. We are going to hit that entry price point below 60. So that's requirement number one. But then also when you look at our overall sort of value proposition, our performance characteristics, our overall range, our off road characteristics, we believe we're very competitive for what we're offering at the price point we are and we have a lot of confidence that we can go into these segments and win.
Tom Appel
Well, this is very cool and it's very exciting to be here to welcome a new brand. Ryan, is there anything we forgot to ask?
Ryan Decker
You know, you didn't forget to ask, but I always love to shout out the Scout community and the scout stories that we love to hear, Tom, including yours. And it is a special thing to be reimagining a brand that has so much love in the market. And as you all know, there's the real Scout OGs out there who are looking for the Restomas and who have kept sort of the factory grade parts alive. But then there's this much bigger chunk of people who simply have a scout story and we always love to hear them and we want to do right by all of those groups because Scout was a special thing and we want to make it a special thing again.
Tom Appel
Well, I'm glad to hear that. Ryan, thank you so much for your time today.
Ryan Decker
Thank you both Tom and Jill. I appreciate spending time with you.
Tom Appel
Appreciate your time. That was Ryan Decker with Scott. We're going to take a break and when we come back, Quiz time. Quiz time.
Podcast Intro Announcers
Questions or comments?
Commercial Announcer
Drop us a line@carstuffinsumerguide.com that's carstuffsumerguide.com
Matt Money Smith
you
Tom Appel
didn't start a business just to keep the lights on.
Matt Money Smith
You're here to sell more today than yesterday. You're here to win. Lucky for you, Shopify built the best converting checkout on the planet. Like the just one tapping ridiculously fast
Tom Appel
acting sky high sales stacking champion at checkouts.
Matt Money Smith
That's the good stuff right there.
Narrator (Peyronie's Disease PSA)
So if your business is in it
Matt Money Smith
to win it, win with Shopify. Start your free trial today@shopify.com win.
Podcast Intro Announcers
I like things my way. My coffee, my schedule and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo pre filled syringe which contains fgartegamide alpha and hyaluronidase qvfc. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment my way. Visit vivgardmyway.com that's V Y V G A R T my way.com and talk to your doctor about Vivgard Hyrulo Brought to you by Argenics.
Producer/Interviewer
There's a fire inside you you can't ignore. Stand still. Not a chance. You're a lifelong learner who's come this far. Now we are here to help you keep going further. Capella University. What can't you do? Visit Capella Edu to learn more.
Jill Simonello
Mom, can you tell me a story?
Commercial Announcer
Sure. Once upon a time, a mom needed a new car.
Jill Simonello
Was she brave?
Commercial Announcer
She was tired mostly. But she went to Carvana.com and found a great car at a great price. No secret treasure map required.
Jill Simonello
Did you have to fight a dragon?
Commercial Announcer
Nope. She bought it 100% online from her bed, actually.
Jill Simonello
Was it scary?
Commercial Announcer
Honey, it was as unscary as car buying could be.
Jill Simonello
Did the car have a sunroof?
Commercial Announcer
It did, actually.
Jill Simonello
Okay, good story.
Commercial Announcer
Car buying. You'll want to tell stories about Buy your car today on Carvana. Delivery fees may apply.
Podcast Intro Announcers
Welcome back to the Car Stuff podcast.
Tom Appel
And we're back. This is the consumer guide Car Stuff Podcast. I'm Tom Appel. She is Jill Simonello. Jill. Hello, Jill. I feel like we haven't talked about your social media in several hours.
Jill Simonello
No, we've been too busy talking about the pigeons that are attacking my balcony. No. Yeah, you can find me on all the things. I'll keep it short and sweet. Jill Simonello. And I use the hashtag car da jour. And on YouTube and TikTok, I post a new video every day about the vehicles that I'm driving.
Tom Appel
I am car guy Tom on Twitter X and BlueSky and I had a spectacular car spotter weekend. So for people who don't know, I test drive the cars that I'm working with generally on Saturdays. I'd like to put 50 to 100 miles on a car every Saturday. And I drive around. And while I'm doing that, I look for weird, strange, unusual cars, take pictures of them. Sometimes they're just old cars from the 80s or 70s. But this week I crushed it.
Jill Simonello
Okay.
Tom Appel
Crushed it. So you want to check out Carspotter on X.
Jill Simonello
All right. I saw last week what I saw a right hand drive JDM Nissan Skyline gtr.
Tom Appel
That's a crazy thing to see. And I don't know how many people know what that is, but that's like Japan's Mustang.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. It was really cool and was on the Edens heading south.
Tom Appel
Yeah. Jdm. Tell us what that means.
Jill Simonello
Japanese domestic market. So it was never on sale in the United States and I believe it's only just recently that they've been allowed to bring these vehicles over and make them insurable to drive on streets.
Tom Appel
Yeah. So the rule about gray marketing a car in from Japan is that it has to be 25 years old. And we've hit a golden age of cars in Japan that people love. So all of a sudden you're going to start seeing these cars in the US and they're cool and they're little and they're strange and the styling is really kind of controversial and perky. So, yeah, JDM vehicles are going to start showing up on the roads around you now.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. And you'll probably notice them by being right hand drive.
Tom Appel
Yeah, that's the big giveaway.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
All right, guess what time it is.
Jill Simonello
It is quiz time.
Tom Appel
It is quiz time. I've got a good quiz here for you today. It's very functional, it's very business oriented. Are you ready?
Jill Simonello
Okay. Are you going to ask me about like numbers and sales numbers and things like that?
Tom Appel
Nope.
Jill Simonello
Okay.
Tom Appel
Nope. The quiz title this week is is it still being Built?
Jill Simonello
Oh, okay. Okay.
Tom Appel
A lot of action in this particular segment right now. And that segment is vehicles on the bubble. Are you ready?
Jill Simonello
I am. Now or never. I'm as ready as I can be.
Tom Appel
I'm going to give you a particular model. You have to tell me if it is still being produced for sale in the United States. Okay, ready? Number one, the Kia Soul. No, it is not. The beloved Soul was available between 2010 and 2025. The last one was built late last year and it's really the survivor of the boxy vehicle set.
Jill Simonello
Yes.
Tom Appel
You remember there was the Scion xb, the Nissan Cube, and if you want to count it, the Chevy hhr.
Jill Simonello
Oh, yeah, yeah.
Tom Appel
And it outlived all those vehicles. All right, you're on the board. You've got one point.
Jill Simonello
Woo hoo. Okay. It's only getting harder from here, I suspect.
Tom Appel
All right, the Nissan Versa, is it still being built?
Jill Simonello
Ooh. So once upon a time they had a hatchback and a sedan version of it. They got rid of the hatchback and then were still selling the sedan. But is it still on sale?
Tom Appel
The first hatchbacks were pretty practical vehicles. I think the Versa was always likable.
Jill Simonello
It was, it was a very affordable vehicle and you know, like you said, just very practical. I'm going to say yes.
Tom Appel
No, Ned, Versa production ended in December of 2025. There is no 2026 model. And that's part of the problem is it was built in Mexico and it was a tariff thing.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
So we lost a very affordable, accessible new vehicle, unfortunately because of the tariffs.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. All right, I liked that car.
Tom Appel
Yeah, I liked it a lot too. And you got a bunch of tech and a bunch of design for the money. Yeah, it was one of the last, I think that was the last sub $20,000 vehicle sold in the U.S. yeah.
Jill Simonello
Because it was available with a manual transmission, I think.
Tom Appel
A five speed manual too.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. And I think not on the five speed manual, but on the ones with an automatic transmission it had standard automatic reverse braking, which was kind of surprising for the price point.
Tom Appel
Yep. Had good stuff. All right, you're one in one. The Acura rdx, is it still being built?
Jill Simonello
Oh, what's throwing me is there was a little bit of a
Tom Appel
say, kerfuffle
Jill Simonello
situation where they were talking about bringing out a new version and then they were putting it on hold. But then I didn't think it was on hold.
Tom Appel
And that's not a kerfuffle to you.
Jill Simonello
That's a situation kerfuffle. Oh, I'm, I'm Gonna say yes?
Tom Appel
No.
Jill Simonello
Ah. Cause it's a very popular vehicle.
Tom Appel
It was Acura's most popular vehicle. And this whole thing seems like a gigantic mistake. And Volkswagen used to do stuff like this where they'd have two vehicles that were the same with the same model year, but they were different designs or they'd skip two years. And it was all very weird. That was a Volkswagen thing, not an Acura thing. Honda. Honda, Acura's parent company, typically has its stuff together. So this is very weird, but the RDX is going away for two model years. No, 2026. No. 2027, back for 2028 is a hybrid only model. So that's. That's weird. And it's not going to do their sales any good at all.
Jill Simonello
No, no.
Tom Appel
All right. You're kind of in a bad way here. You've got.
Jill Simonello
I know, I know.
Tom Appel
All right.
Jill Simonello
Like I said, it was only going to get harder.
Tom Appel
Yeah, but it got harder. Is it still being built, the Ford Escape? No, it's not. You were decisive in your answer. Production ended December of 2025. This was a question of manufacturing flexibility. And this kills me. They were still selling 140,000 of these a year.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
I don't fully understand what happened here.
Jill Simonello
Well, it's built on the same platform as the Bronco Sport.
Tom Appel
It is. And they will sell more Bronco Sports because of this.
Jill Simonello
Right.
Tom Appel
And I have. I don't want to go too far off into the weeds on this, but I have a question for you. And just sort of a general observation, it seems that compact crossovers are not sold generally on rear seat space. It's a sense I get because the. The Bronco Sport has really. Has a really tight rear seat area.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
And the Escape is roomier.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
So that's not the issue here. But the Bronco Sport, it looks off roady. It's called Bronco. It's got a lot going for it and it will pick up a lot of these sales.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
But it is weird. I think it's weird. All right, well, you got that one. So you've got two points.
Jill Simonello
Two and two. Yep.
Tom Appel
All right. You're in a better way now. You need to get one of the next two. There are five questions total, plus the bonus question. Bonus question. Always related to the topic of the day. Do I have a bonus question? I do. Good. The BMW X4.
Jill Simonello
There's a car I haven't thought about in, like, ever.
Tom Appel
I have to see one to think about one.
Jill Simonello
Well, I feel like the X4 is, like, it's kind of like just a smaller version of the X6. It's like that egg shaped thing.
Tom Appel
Yeah, it is. And for people who don't know, there's the X3 and the X5. That is BMW's compact and mid size crossover. Both are very popular. They're also both very good. The X4 and the X6 are fast backy coupe versions of those vehicles that are wholly unnecessary, but they make so much extra money selling them, usually five grand more than the base vehicle that they sell them anyway. But the X4 has not been selling well. About 5900 units last year versus 1200. I'm sorry, 12,000 for the X6. So the X6 sticks around. But the X4, is it, is it there?
Jill Simonello
Is it not there? I'm going to say no because I think you, you know, you're kind of giving me a hint here. I'll say no.
Tom Appel
I think I blew it. Yeah. The X4. Like everything we've talked about, the X4 was discontinued late in November.
Jill Simonello
Yes.
Tom Appel
Last year. So the X4 is gone. Probably mildly collectible, Kind of good looking, kind of a weird car. So you've got three. You've already won.
Jill Simonello
All right.
Tom Appel
All right. Are you ready for the bonus question?
Jill Simonello
Always. Always ready for the bonus question, Especially if it's about the Hallmark channel.
Tom Appel
It's not about the Hallmark Channel. It's about steak sauce. We don't talk enough about steak sauce on the show.
Jill Simonello
Well, you don't eat steaks.
Tom Appel
That's probably part of the problem. So you're familiar with A1?
Jill Simonello
Yes.
Tom Appel
Do you know how far back A1 goes?
Jill Simonello
No, but I'm going to say a really long way.
Tom Appel
A really long way. 1862.
Jill Simonello
Wow.
Tom Appel
1862. Before Marshall Dillon was the marshal of the Dodge area in Kansas. That's how far back?
Jill Simonello
That's the middle of the Civil War.
Tom Appel
Yes, it is. Yep. So that's a one. Do you know how far back Lee and Perrins goes?
Jill Simonello
No, but I really like Liam Perrins.
Tom Appel
Do you?
Jill Simonello
Sure. Sauce.
Tom Appel
1837.
Ryan Decker
Wow.
Tom Appel
It goes way back. I need you to. Lee and Perrin's savory sweet taste is famous. People seem to love it. Although it's a little bit controversial. I need you to tell me which of the following is not a Lee and Perrin's ingredient.
Jill Simonello
Okay.
Tom Appel
Are you ready? Molasses, anchovies, tamarind or lemon zest.
Jill Simonello
Well, I know anchovies are in there and I'm trying to figure out if molasses. Because like I would say it's either the molasses or. What was the second to last one?
Tom Appel
Tamarind.
Jill Simonello
I would say it's either the tamarind or the molasses. That is not in there. Because the. The lemon zest with the zing makes sense to me, but, you know, it doesn't really taste that sweet to me, which is why I have a problem with the molasses idea. But then again, my dad would put nutmeg in his pulled pork, so what do I know?
Tom Appel
Everyone puts nutmeg in everything. If you watch. If you watch cooking shows. A lot of nutmeg.
Jill Simonello
A lot of nutmeg. Nutmeg in my meatballs.
Tom Appel
Wait, wait now, so if you know about nutmeg, do you know about mace?
Jill Simonello
Ish.
Tom Appel
Mace is the shell around a nutmeg that is also ground up that tastes surprisingly different from nutmeg. And I think if you're just like kind of a cooking person who wants to seem like you know what you're doing. You just mentioned mace a lot.
Jill Simonello
Yeah, I'm. I make no such claims that I know what I'm doing. All right, I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna go with molasses.
Tom Appel
No, the lemon zest is the thing. Yeah.
Jill Simonello
All right, so now I'm gonna have to go get out my Leah Perrin's bottle because I have Worcestershire sauce in my refrigerator. Look at the ingredients.
Tom Appel
We were going to review the Subaru Outback Wilderness today.
Jill Simonello
Yes.
Tom Appel
But we don't really have time. Would you like to give us a brief overview when we get to it next week?
Jill Simonello
Sure. So I got it last week. I drove it over the weekend, went to Indianapolis and back. And I want to address a couple of things that people had mentioned to me in TikTok or some questions that people had asked me on TikTok. And one was about the infotainment system. People assume that now that Toyota and Subaru have an overall collaboration, that all of the Toyota infotainment systems are going into Subaru vehicles. And that's not true. This is actually a Subaru designed infotainment system that uses Android automotive but not Google built in. And it's a really good system. Horizontal screen, very different than the previous vertical screen, and you have physical H VAC controls. The other thing that I noticed on my drive is, you know, I didn't. I thought that the vehicle was really, really quiet and had a good interior quietness. And I was like, listening to my podcast all the way down, and then when I pulled off the highway on the exit, the podcast was so Loud. And I was like, oh, I had to turn this up really high to overcompensate for the tire noise. So, you know, the wilderness is an off roady version of the Outback. And so it's going to have beefier tires on it. So you do get a little bit more interior road noise. I like this car, though, for its overall comfort. The seats are amazing. The overall comfort on the highway for a long drive is really good. But the amazing thing about it is that then you can take it to an off road place and you can do some really capable, competent off roading. I mean, yeah, you're not going to go to Moab and, you know, do like the Rubicon Trail or anything like that, but it is really good on a moderately skilled course. And I drove it off road at the Midwest Automotive Media association was super impressed with it. So if I had to kind of sum this up in a nutshell, I would say this is one of those really great everyday drivers that's comfortable, but you're going to have to deal with a little extra road noise because of the tires. But then it doubles as a really great adventure lifestyle vehicle that you can load your bike in your camping gear, you know, things to do adventure, you know, things, and then, you know, take it on a trail, take it to a trailhead, take it off roading and have a little bit more of an adventure, you know. So I, I think it's got this really great dual personality, but you just have to contend with a little extra road noise.
Tom Appel
I, I gotten the impression from photographs, and I don't think I've seen one in the flesh yet, that the new Outback is much bigger than the old Outback. But I did some checking today and it's not. The wheelbase is the same, the overall length is about the same. You pick up a little bit of cargo space, and that's largely because it looks more like a crossover now than a wagon, but it actually is not different dimensionally than the old vehicle. So that's good. Now, obviously there's the controversy there that I will continue to bring up endlessly. It no longer looks like a station wagon.
Jill Simonello
It doesn't. I mean, it doesn't, it doesn't. And, but, you know, I mean, everything has to evolve, everything has to change. And I don't know, I think it looks really good. I, I'm getting a lot of feedback from people who either love it or hate it. I don't think there's anything in the middle.
Tom Appel
Oh, oh, oh, before we forget, producer Margaret wanted Me to point something out. I keep saying people are on the phone. I keep saying they're on the line. I'm on the phone. And I'm on the phone because something's wonky with my computer that is killing me. It's absolutely killing me. It's going to drive me into therapy, but whatever.
Jill Simonello
You mean, you're not already in therapy?
Tom Appel
Not for this.
Jill Simonello
Okay, so something else to talk about with your therapist then.
Tom Appel
I'm going to see a separate therapist. Just for the podcast.
Jill Simonello
Just. Just for the podcast and the microphone issues.
Tom Appel
Oh. Last week I was also remiss. I had mentioned that Sonny Rollins had passed away and I'd mentioned the photograph. A great day in. In Harlem. And I forgot to mention something important. If you care and you want to check out Sonny Rollins, there's an album called A Night at the Village Vanguard from 1957 spectacular. I spent the weekend listening to it. It's very, very good. So if you're wondering about Sonny Rollins, you can listen to that entire album on YouTube before you decide you want to download it. So there you have that.
Jill Simonello
So YouTube. It's good for not just car reviews.
Tom Appel
I do a lot of music listening on YouTube, actually. I also watch a lot of Jacques Pepin.
Jill Simonello
I love Jacques Pepin.
Tom Appel
He's awesome, right? That dude. He's awesome.
Jill Simonello
He is. Although I have to say, one of the last episodes I saw kind of turned me off a little bit. He cut a live lobster in half.
Tom Appel
Oh, yeah. Yeah. Those old school guys, they're not nice to the lobsters.
Jill Simonello
No. But I'm sure whatever he made was amazing.
Tom Appel
So there you have it. All right. Guess what we did.
Jill Simonello
We had another great show.
Tom Appel
We did. Yeah. It was really good to talk about Scout Motors. I'd like to have more conversations about that as they move forward because what's going to be interesting to see is when they move to just selling the electric vehicles. And I'm getting a sense that the early production is going to be all erev, all extended range electric vehicle. And then what they do with subsequent models. Because right now they've got a full size truck and a largest midsize crossover. Which is the Rivian game plan. Sort of. Rivian has a more compact truck, but still very similar game plans. So we'll see. There's goes also there's still the controversy of them not working through the dealer network.
Jill Simonello
Right.
Tom Appel
So they have legal battles ahead of them. There's. But if they believe the customer is better served this way, you know, it'll be fun to Watch how that plays out.
Jill Simonello
Yeah. And I'll be, I'll be curious to see the, how the national rollout goes. And you know, I think Ryan made a really good point with the flexibility of their production plan. You know, if a whole bunch of people in Chicago, Illinois want one, then they, you know, can very easily build a network here. But you know, if that shifts or if there's also, you know, need and desire in California or Tennessee or Michigan, you know, it just gives them the flexibility to expand and grow quickly.
Tom Appel
Yes. And the other thing is that they're very well financially backed by, well, Volkswagen. So they, they can build their own distribution network. Yes, it's. So that will happen more quickly. It's actually the question I asked about. I know we're running out of time about a national rollout maybe being regional and that they might not want to put all the dealers in right away, but it sounds like they're going to set those up.
Jill Simonello
Yeah.
Tom Appel
So there you have it. All right. Thank you very much, Jill.
Jill Simonello
Yeah, no, thanks. Good to be here.
Tom Appel
All right. Thanks to Ed Piotrowski, thank you to Ryan Decker of Scout, and thanks to producer Margaret. Well, let's talk more about cars again next week. Next week.
Commercial Announcer
Remember to check us out@consumerguide.com the car
Podcast Intro Announcers
stuff podcast is produced by J Turn Media.
Commercial Announcer
To advertise on the show, please drop us a line at carstuff@consumerguide.com.
Podcast Intro Announcers
I like things my way, my coffee, my schedule and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo pre filled syringe which contains fgartigamide alpha and hyaluronidase qvfc. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit vivgardmyway.com that's V Y V G-A-R-T myway.com and talk to your doctor about Vivgart Hytrulo, brought to you by Argenics.
Producer/Interviewer
You've never been one to settle, stand down or stand still. You're a lifelong learner, energized by excellence. There's a fire inside you you can't ignore. You've got competition to outrun, momentum to build on and your own high standards to meet. Stop now. Not a chance. At Capella University, we help you catch what you're chasing because you've always had the drive. Now go earn the degree. Capella University, what can't you do. Visit Capella Edu to learn.
Ed Piotrowski
Learn more.
Tom Appel
If you like the show, please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe. It really does help the show to grow. Thank you for listening.
Hosts: Tom Appel & Jill Simonello (Consumer Guide Automotive)
Guests: Ed Piotrowski (Automotive Journalist), Ryan Decker (Scout Motors Vice President of Strategy and Branding)
This week’s episode dives deep into three key areas of the automotive world:
The tone throughout is lively, enthusiastic, and geared toward car lovers and auto industry followers alike.
Guest: Ed Piotrowski
Main Theme:
A real-world comparo of four mainstream compact SUVs—Jeep Cherokee, Mazda CX-5, Toyota RAV4, Volkswagen Tiguan—based on Ed’s recent testing at the Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally.
Why This Matters:
“This is when people talk about shopping for a new car, this is primarily where they're shopping these days.” – Tom Appel [11:14]
The Models:
Industry Context:
Big Picture:
Guest: Ryan Decker (Scout Motors)
Main Theme:
Scout, the iconic off-road brand, is revived under Volkswagen Group as a stand-alone startup. Ryan Decker shares the vision, product rollout, and strategy—highlighting how Scout aims to carve a nostalgic, American niche in electrified off-road vehicles.
Powertrain Shift:
Vehicle Configuration:
Design & Production:
Direct-to-Consumer Sales Model:
Host: Tom Appel
Contestant: Jill Simonello
Theme:
Is this model still being built in 2026? (And a bonus steak sauce question!)
Mild vs Full Hybrid Tech:
Mild hybrids add minor efficiency gains (mostly on German luxury brands), but not substantially like full hybrids (Toyota, Honda, etc).
“Mild hybrid...gives you a little bit of electronic boost like in acceleration. And that is where that fuel economy gain comes in.” – Jill Simonello [08:07]
Ford Ranger Preview: New Ranger offers 2.3L turbo-four and (for $2,300 extra) 2.7L turbo V6—a legitimate performance option [09:17] “Worth it if you're a bit of a hot rodder or demon.” – Tom Appel
Brief Take:
A rugged, tactile, adventure-ready crossover with a comfortable highway ride and notable off-road ability, albeit with extra road noise from the beefy tires.
Quote:
“If I had to kind of sum this up in a nutshell, I would say this is one of those really great everyday drivers that's comfortable, but you're going to have to deal with a little extra road noise because of the tires. But then it doubles as a really great adventure lifestyle vehicle.” – Jill Simonello [55:24]
“While you have these redesigns, maybe a little harsh to say that they're not necessarily pushing the segment forward, but when the segment's already been pushed so far forward with such good products, it's like cell phones.”
– Ed Piotrowski [12:47]
“We want to anchor really on what Scout stood for, which was you're doing those things so you can connect with the people and the places around you.”
– Ryan Decker [24:20]
“None of our competitors go as far as we will go with this powertrain. We will be by far best in class in terms of our performance characteristics.”
– Ryan Decker [31:23]
The podcast is both an in-depth source of current industry trends (crossovers, electrification, direct-to-consumer models) and a celebration of car community culture, past and present. The Scout Motors segment is particularly rich for those interested in how legacy brands are being reinvented for the electric age.
For more:
Visit Consumer Guide Automotive (consumerguide.com) for reviews, Best Buy picks, and more auto insights.
Contact: carstuff@consumerguide.com
Hosts on Social: