Scout Quality

[Harris005]

I'm sure this feels like a given, but I thought it would be worth saying anyway. Anybody that approaches me making conversation about my Scout, one of the first things I say is "yeah, these old Scouts are tanks". They were built solid to hold up on the farms across America.

Now fast forward to modern day. We all know the materials used will be quite different....yes, plastics will be introduced I think I can speak for the Scout community here when I say, please make sure the level of quality and durablity is true to the Scout name. To better understand where I am coming from here, google "Tesla Poor Build Quality" and watch a few YouTube videos on this. Nobody wants the Scout legacy tarnished with a cheap feel, poor build reputation!!

As the Scout name lives on, please ensure the strength and durability behind that name does as well.

 

[Jamie@ScoutMotors]

I'm sure this feels like a given, but I thought it would be worth saying anyway. Anybody that approaches me making conversation about my Scout, one of the first things I say is "yeah, these old Scouts are tanks". They were built solid to hold up on the farms across America.

Now fast forward to modern day. We all know the materials used will be quite different....yes, plastics will be introduced I think I can speak for the Scout community here when I say, please make sure the level of quality and durablity is true to the Scout name. To better understand where I am coming from here, google "Tesla Poor Build Quality" and watch a few YouTube videos on this. Nobody wants the Scout legacy tarnished with a cheap feel, poor build reputation!!

As the Scout name lives on, please ensure the strength and durability behind that name does as well.

I think the companies that try and jump into building cars for the first time will logically struggle to get it right compared to legacy manufacturers that have done it for 60+ years. You learn a few things over time.

No question. The goal is to get it as perfect as we can. Nothing is flawless these days, especially with the levels of equipment most customers expect (and competitors offer) in a new modern vehicle.

Reality check - J.D. Power had to change their Inital Quality Satisfaction survey several years back because the number of problems reported on new vehicles was less than 1 per vehicle average. So the survey questions changed a bit asking buyers if they found the font size of switches to be legible or large enough. Does the vehicle get good gas mileage? Is it easy to get in and out of. These subjective things obviously can vary widely from person to person. Are they things manufacturers should address? Yes. Are they legitimate "quality problems"? No. Even with the new survey, the number of "complained about problems" is 1.8 average.

So overall cars are pretty decent these days.

 

[Rustic_father]

I think what @Harris005 is trying to convey is that while most vehicles on the roads today are subject to very standard conditions on roads that at most have to contend with pot holes.

I think he is really asking to take into consideration that the spirit of the Scout is to be driven where there are no roads. So please ensure that the suspension joints, tie-rods, and sway bars are all up to the challenge.

Just today i heard an advertisement from KIA suggesting it is fully capable of handling rough off road situations. while a technically those claims are true, but it is misleading because when consumers think of "off road" they don't think of "venturing off of the paved road." I have seen too many "SUV"s that venture barely off road and snap components because the vehicles were not designed for anything rougher than a dirt path.

As discussed in a different thread I don't think the Scout should be intended to handle the Rubicon trail, but bouncing around a farm with a heavy load of equipment in the back without the fear that something will snap.

It isn't quality control that makes something "built like a tank" but rather "over engineering" compoents to withstand more than a reasonable amount of excess stress.

 

[Jamie@ScoutMotors]

He mentioned Tesla build quality as an example and I focused on that, sorry.

Yes, durability and "ruggedness" are at the forefront of the design brief for Scout. I wish I could give specific examples, but we aren't there yet on public announcements. Hopefully soon we can tell you more. ?

 

[Jaxx79]

to

I'm sure this feels like a given, but I thought it would be worth saying anyway. Anybody that approaches me making conversation about my Scout, one of the first things I say is "yeah, these old Scouts are tanks". They were built solid to hold up on the farms across America.

Now fast forward to modern day. We all know the materials used will be quite different....yes, plastics will be introduced I think I can speak for the Scout community here when I say, please make sure the level of quality and durablity is true to the Scout name. To better understand where I am coming from here, google "Tesla Poor Build Quality" and watch a few YouTube videos on this. Nobody wants the Scout legacy tarnished with a cheap feel, poor build reputation!!

As the Scout name lives on, please ensure the strength and durability behind that name does as well.

your thoughts are my feelings exactly! My dad took us on vacation all over America in his 79 Scout II. He then came to the farm dropped the tailgate, lifted the lift gate, put the rear seat up and loaded square bales of hay to go feed the cows! Digging through red clay the whole way. It was a RUGGED off road machine but could be cleaned up and driven to dinner the same night. They MUST get this right! If they dont it will just be another cookie cutter piece of junk SUV

 

[Harris005]

He mentioned Tesla build quality as an example and I focused on that, sorry.

Yes, durability and "ruggedness" are at the forefront of the design brief for Scout. I wish I could give specific examples, but we aren't there yet on public announcements. Hopefully soon we can tell you more. ?

Fair to say yes to all of that.

I think the companies that try and jump into building cars for the first time will logically struggle to get it right compared to legacy manufacturers that have done it for 60+ years. You learn a few things over time.

No question. The goal is to get it as perfect as we can. Nothing is flawless these days, especially with the levels of equipment most customers expect (and competitors offer) in a new modern vehicle.

Reality check - J.D. Power had to change their Inital Quality Satisfaction survey several years back because the number of problems reported on new vehicles was less than 1 per vehicle average. So the survey questions changed a bit asking buyers if they found the font size of switches to be legible or large enough. Does the vehicle get good gas mileage? Is it easy to get in and out of. These subjective things obviously can vary widely from person to person. Are they things manufacturers should address? Yes. Are they legitimate "quality problems"? No. Even with the new survey, the number of "complained about problems" is 1.8 average.

So overall cars are pretty decent these days.

Sure you guys will be all over it . I was just shocked to hear a brand new $70k Telsa built in todays world, would have those kind of issues. I would just hate to see corners cut on the Scout, creating a simular negative vibe.

 

[Harris005]

He mentioned Tesla build quality as an example and I focused on that, sorry.

Yes, durability and "ruggedness" are at the forefront of the design brief for Scout. I wish I could give specific examples, but we aren't there yet on public announcements. Hopefully soon we can tell you more. ?

Fair to say all of the above .....and cant wait!

 

[J Alynn]

maybe this should be a new thread/topic but curious if the folks on here so far are on because this venture is a new EV venture OR because the new venture is a Scout. I for one am here because Scout is being resurrected and I have very fond memories except for the rear floor rusting through-LOL. Perhaps I’m not in the majority but I’d be just as happy if tomorrow we were told this vehicle will be ICE and built solid to compete with Bronco and Wrangler and more for adventuring. I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait. Truth be told I can except the fuel consumption because to me this is a fun, everyday driver and not a cross country trekker (though it should be comfortable enough to do that too). I think the new Scout needs to be that as well-fun and daily driver. I have nothing against EV’s other than lack of a national charging network and am excited this is an electric vehicle but I enjoy the revving and engine noise of an ICE and the quirks that make it different/traditional. I like opening the hood and seeing an engine. I want a vehicle that is SUV based, solid as a tank, has a removable top and screams Scout. I travel to competitions around the east coast that require light off-roading to get to venues so I agree this vehicle needs to be more than a Kia and over built to some degree. Just wonder what brought others to this forum

 

[Carl_Mary]

maybe this should be a new thread/topic but curious if the folks on here so far are on because this venture is a new EV venture OR because the new venture is a Scout. Just wonder what brought others to this forum

I am here because it is a Scout and am cautiously optimistic about it being an EV,

I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait.

If it is the full-size version with a hardtop, take it through a car wash very soon. A friend has a hardtop and took it through the car wash. The groceries in the back and the back were soaking wet. She brought the Bronco to the dealer. After a week, the dealer called to tell her to come get her Bronco. "Is the leak fixed?" "No, there is nothing we can do. Do NOT take the Bronco through a car wash. The vehicle was not designed to go through car washes." She is considering selling her Bronco.

 

[J Alynn]

I am here because it is a Scout and am cautiously optimistic about it being an EV,

I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait.

If it is the full-size version with a hardtop, take it through a car wash very soon. A friend has a hardtop and took it through the car wash. The groceries in the back and the back were soaking wet. She brought the Bronco to the dealer. After a week, the dealer called to tell her to come get her Bronco. "Is the leak fixed?" "No, there is nothing we can do. Do NOT take the Bronco through a car wash. The vehicle was not designed to go through car washes." She is considering selling her Bronco.

It’s a soft top. I’ve read quite a bit on the Bronco forum so we have a good understanding of the “risks”. Her coach has had his Bronco soft top for nearly 18 months and has been educating us as well. We shall see but appreciate your insight

 

[Harris005]

I am here because it is a Scout and am cautiously optimistic about it being an EV,

I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait.

If it is the full-size version with a hardtop, take it through a car wash very soon. A friend has a hardtop and took it through the car wash. The groceries in the back and the back were soaking wet. She brought the Bronco to the dealer. After a week, the dealer called to tell her to come get her Bronco. "Is the leak fixed?" "No, there is nothing we can do. Do NOT take the Bronco through a car wash. The vehicle was not designed to go through car washes." She is considering selling her Bronco.

Maybe post some pictures of the problem area so the Scout team can avoid some of the same design flaws??

 

[Harris005]

It’s a soft top. I’ve read quite a bit on the Bronco forum so we have a good understanding of the “risks”. Her coach has had his Bronco soft top for nearly 18 months and has been educating us as well. We shall see but appreciate your insight

Any soft top lessons learned on the Bronco that could be passed along to the Scout crew? Maybe copy/paste the Bronco forum on this topic you mentioned??

 

[Harris005]

maybe this should be a new thread/topic but curious if the folks on here so far are on because this venture is a new EV venture OR because the new venture is a Scout. I for one am here because Scout is being resurrected and I have very fond memories except for the rear floor rusting through-LOL. Perhaps I’m not in the majority but I’d be just as happy if tomorrow we were told this vehicle will be ICE and built solid to compete with Bronco and Wrangler and more for adventuring. I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait. Truth be told I can except the fuel consumption because to me this is a fun, everyday driver and not a cross country trekker (though it should be comfortable enough to do that too). I think the new Scout needs to be that as well-fun and daily driver. I have nothing against EV’s other than lack of a national charging network and am excited this is an electric vehicle but I enjoy the revving and engine noise of an ICE and the quirks that make it different/traditional. I like opening the hood and seeing an engine. I want a vehicle that is SUV based, solid as a tank, has a removable top and screams Scout. I travel to competitions around the east coast that require light off-roading to get to venues so I agree this vehicle needs to be more than a Kia and over built to some degree. Just wonder what brought others to this forum

Definitely here for my love of the Scout's! For years I have been wishing the Scout would come back with todays modern features.

These last couple years my wife and I have been talking about trying out an EV for our next SUV. Seems to be a win win for us.

 

[J Alynn]

Any soft top lessons learned on the Bronco that could be passed along to the Scout crew? Maybe copy/paste the Bronco forum on this topic you mentioned??

If and when we experience any I’ll be glad to do that. Only drove it 25 miles today but gotta say I was very impressed. Sound system was awesome (high package so it has the premium sound with subwoofer-sadly I just read Ford already killed the subwoofer apparently due to supply issues so I guess she got lucky) I’ve ridden in wranglers over the years and the Bronco just seemed to ride so much better. I’ll update as we learn anything new

 

[Harris005]

If and when we experience any I’ll be glad to do that. Only drove it 25 miles today but gotta say I was very impressed. Sound system was awesome (high package so it has the premium sound with subwoofer-sadly I just read Ford already killed the subwoofer apparently due to supply issues so I guess she got lucky) I’ve ridden in wranglers over the years and the Bronco just seemed to ride so much better. I’ll update as we learn anything new

@J Alynn Look forward to seeing it posted on the "What are you currently driving" thread ?

 

[Rustic_father]

maybe this should be a new thread/topic but curious if the folks on here so far are on because this venture is a new EV venture OR because the new venture is a Scout. I for one am here because Scout is being resurrected and I have very fond memories except for the rear floor rusting through-LOL. Perhaps I’m not in the majority but I’d be just as happy if tomorrow we were told this vehicle will be ICE and built solid to compete with Bronco and Wrangler and more for adventuring. I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait. Truth be told I can except the fuel consumption because to me this is a fun, everyday driver and not a cross country trekker (though it should be comfortable enough to do that too). I think the new Scout needs to be that as well-fun and daily driver. I have nothing against EV’s other than lack of a national charging network and am excited this is an electric vehicle but I enjoy the revving and engine noise of an ICE and the quirks that make it different/traditional. I like opening the hood and seeing an engine. I want a vehicle that is SUV based, solid as a tank, has a removable top and screams Scout. I travel to competitions around the east coast that require light off-roading to get to venues so I agree this vehicle needs to be more than a Kia and over built to some degree. Just wonder what brought others to this forum

I will admit I never heard about the scout before the EV announcement. But when I learned about the pedigree and the history of the scouts it was exactly what I'm looking for.

I currently have a model 3 and I wished I got an SUV because I have a family and trunk space in the model 3 is limited. The only options for electric 'SUV's are the id4 and the mustang. And neither of them ready appealed to me. The rivian R1S is everything I would want in a SUV. If we were to compare the "feeling" of the rivian vs the scout I think it is like comparing LL bean and bass pro shop. I think the scout identity is something I allign much more with.

So to answer your question I initially came because it was a new and exciting EV.

 

[LastDayScout]

Definitely in the because it’s a Scout group. The fact it’s an EV is icing on the cake. No pun intended!

 

[J Alynn]

@J Alynn Look forward to seeing it posted on the "What are you currently driving" thread ?

I’ll update my original post on What I’m driving as well

 

[Eswanson]

As a current Scout 800 owner I want to remind everyone that our old Scouts are also not the tanks everyone says they are. They were known to rust fast, the rugged off-road ones have been modified (sometimes heavily with mostly a new chassis and drivetrain). The engines are swapped out quickly some times, I've blow up 2 myself. I call mine a pile of junk all the time, but it's an endearing truth.

This all said, it is a tank... for strength but most importantly, but also for being able to be fixed. I would absolutely love to see some modular aspects to the design. A bit of recognition that IH had, that farmers break stuff, fix stuff, make stuff to do the work they want. It is why people go the Jeep route to an annoying degree at this point. It's the best market out there for having an entire aftermarket designed to unbolt out and bolt in, parts that help you achieve your goals.

I cannot imagine how much harder that will be with an EV Scout. Maybe dual solid axles with motors where the diff normally is... Maybe a single motor point to a more "conventional" transmission/transfer case and axel setup. Maybe doors that come off, roof that comes off, bumper mount options, body panels that are unbolted to be replaced... (can you imagine your aftermarket sales potential here with me).

 

[mybikeisred]

I am here because it is a Scout and am cautiously optimistic about it being an EV,

I am picking up my daughter’s new Bronco tomorrow morning and can’t wait.

If it is the full-size version with a hardtop, take it through a car wash very soon. A friend has a hardtop and took it through the car wash. The groceries in the back and the back were soaking wet. She brought the Bronco to the dealer. After a week, the dealer called to tell her to come get her Bronco. "Is the leak fixed?" "No, there is nothing we can do. Do NOT take the Bronco through a car wash. The vehicle was not designed to go through car washes." She is considering selling her Bronco.

My bronco has a hard top. I’ve even taken it off and put it back on a few times. Never seen a drop inside after taking it through car washes. I still think the top could be much better, but not because of any leaks. I’d take it to a different dealer, some service departments are just shit. First I’d probably try to find another person with a hard top, disassemble them both side by side and inspect the parts for any differences. If it’s as bad as you say, it’s gotta be missing a gasket or some other part somewhere, but probably something that doesn’t jump out at you unless you’re looking at another one that it’s not missing from. There have been plenty of mistakes made at the factory that have been posted on Bronco6G. I’ve seen two different tail lights, incorrect bash plate installed, parking brake switch installed upside down, and lots of paint issues. I know I’m forgetting a couple. That top should be fine going through a car wash though. With as much wind noise as you get, I wouldn’t have been surprised if mine leaked, but not even a drip.