Volkswagen announced plans to bring back the Scout name back in 2022, and late last year, we saw the first vehicles Scout plans to sell — the Traveler SUV and Terra pickup truck. We were big fans, the general public were big fans and VW dealers were mad because Scout plans to use a direct-to-consumer sales model, cutting them out of the deal completely. We initially thought Scout might cave to dealer pressure, but the electric startup has responded to the latest attempt to block DTC sales by telling dealers to pound sand, the Drive reports.
While the whining and complaining has gone on for a while, the latest challenge to Scout’s DTC plans came when the California New Car Dealers Association sent a cease-and-desist letter, claiming that Volkswagen’s existing dealer network meant that Scout would be competing directly with the other dealerships. According to the CNCDA’s argument, by being part of Volkswagen Group, Scout Motors can’t sell cars directly to consumers.
Scout, of course, disagreed, responding with a letter of its own:
In a January 17 response to the December cease-and-desist, Scout General Council Neil Sitron matter-of-factly tells the CNCDA, “You are wrong.” Using that exact phrase and other similar verbiage, Sitron counters that Scout is wholly independent of Volkswagen Group of America (VWGoA), its South Carolina production plant was not funded by VWGoA, and VWGoA dealerships “have no right to Scout-branded vehicles.”
“VWGoA is not authorized by Scout Motors to sell, and will not be selling or distributing, Scout-branded EVs in California or in any other state,” wrote Sitron. “Scout Motors and the Scout brand exist and operate independently of VWGoA and its brands, such as Volkswagen and Audi. They will continue to do so in the future.”
The dealer association immediately fired back. According to Automotive News, the CNCDA released a same-day response, stating that the group’s original cease-and-desist arguments remain unchanged. “We are prepared to act if needed,” said CNCDA President Brian Maas.
It will likely be a while before this issue is finally settled, and for all we know, Scout could go out of business before it even sells a single car, making this whole thing moot. However, it’s still encouraging to see Scout fight back as hard as it has. Dealers have a lot of money and a lot of local influence despite being completely unnecessary middlemen, and anyone who makes those folks mad is alright in our book.